In 1818, shortly after the foundation of the Bohemian Museum at Prague, its conductors received an anonymous letter, evidently written in a feigned hand, inclosiog a Bohemian manuscript, which the writer of the letter stated that he had purloined from his muter, whose name was of course not given, because ho knew that he would rather burn it than present it to the museum. The manuscript con tained a poem, since well known under the name of The Judgment of Libusea,' which those who maintain its genuineness regard as the most ancient monument of the Bohemian language, and older than the IOth century. Dobrowaky suspected its authenticity from the first, and immediately on racing it pronounced it without hesitation to be a forgery, the production of some Bohemian Chatterten, adding, to his friends, that he had no doubt it was from the hands of Waclaw Hanka. Hanka was a young antiquary, who had recently made a tour for the purpose of collecting poetical manuscripts, and had been fortunate enough to find at Kralodvor a collection of ancient poetry which has been since universally recognised as the finest relie of ancient Bohemian literature, if it be really ancient, which was at first not generally believed.
The accused protested his innocence; but the judgment of Dobrow eky in such matters was regarded as almost infallible, and it was thought best by Bohemian patriots to let the matter fall quietly into oblivion. In 1820 however Rakowiecki printed the fragment of 'Libusaa's Judgment' in his 'Prawda Rubs,' at Warsaw, as authentic; in 1821 Admiral Shishkov reproduced it in the 'Accounts' of the Rimini] Academy at St. Petersburg ; and an opinion now began to gain ground in Bohemia that,authentio or not it was a piece of great value. Dobrowaky, indignant at the revival of the affair, published, in Iforrnayea 'Archiv,' a Vienna periodical, an article upon it, headed Literary Fraud,' and concluding with the words that "it was the obvious imposture of a scoundrel who wished to play his tricks on his credulous countrymen." In 1828 however Ilanka, then (and now) librarian of the museum, made a third discovery. He stated that he had purchased from a second-hand bookseller at Prague a volume bound in parchment, and on removing and examining tho cover— unfortunately without informing any one else of his proceedinga had found it was a portion of a manuscript of St. John's Gospel, in Latin, with an interlineary Bohemian translation, supposed to be of a date anterior to the tenth century. Dobroweky examined this manuscript, and pronounced in favour of its genuineness. Ile was
then placed on the horns of a cruel dilemma : the manuscript of the St. John had many of the peculiarities which had been thought a proof against the 'Libman.' Dobrowaky was so thoroughly perplexed that when a professor of chemistry proposed to apply come chemical tests to the ink of the Libuesa manuscript—but said that of course in doing so a part of it would be destroyed—Dobrowaky opposed the proposal, because, as he raid, " the manuscript might be genuine after &1L" An elaborate examination of the eubject by Safarik and Palacky Aeltesten Denkmaler der Bohmischen Sprache,' Prague, 1840) left them convinced that the manuscript was what it professed to be, and Hanka enjoys the reputation, not of an excellent poet, but of a very fortunate antiquary. The whole of his poetical discoveries were translated into English by Wratislaw as undoubtedly genuine, and published at Camteldge in 1852. Dobroweky, who was much annoyed at the turn the affair had taken, died on a journey at Bruen in Mora via, on the 6th of January, 1829, the year after the production of the manuscript of St. John.
The works of Dobroweky are numerous: a complete list of them is given in Pelacky's 'Joseph Dobrowskys Leben and gelehrtes Wirken,' Prague, 1833. It is singular that nearly all of them are in the German language, it being in fact the opinion of Dobroweky that the Bohemian language should only be made use of in works intended for the people. The modern Bohemian writers have, on the contrary, lately made it a point to write in their native language even their works of erudition. Ilia cases ' On the Introduction of Printing into Bohemia," On the earliest Bohemian Translation of the Bible," On the History of the Bohemian Adamites,' /cc., first appeared in the German 'Transactions of the Bohemian Scientific Society,' a most valuable series of volumes, and almost all of his compositions in his native language in the ' Casopis Cesk6ho Muzeuma,' a Bohemian periodical. Ilia more important productions aro a' German and Bohemian Dictionary,' a ' Grammar of the Bohemian Language,' a History of the Bohemian Language and Elder Literature,' and, above all, the 'Inetitutiones Linguae Slaving Dialecti Veterie; Vienna, 1822, a book by which be throw a flood of light on a subject before involved in obscurity. The language treated of is that still used by the Russians in their church service, and the book has been recognised by the Russians as of the highest value.