should not record trifles is perfectly true." He should have used _an_.

Dickens also used the article incorrectly. He refers to "Robinson Crusoe"
as "_an_ universally popular book," instead of _a_ universally popular
book.

The relation between nouns and pronouns has always been a stumbling block
to speakers and writers. Hallam in his _Literature of Europe_ writes,
"No one as yet had exhibited the structure of the human kidneys, Vesalius
having only examined them in dogs." This means that Vesalius examined
human kidneys in dogs. The sentence should have been, "No one had as yet
exhibited the kidneys in human beings, Vesalius having examined such
organs in dogs only."

Sir Arthur Helps in writing of Dickens, states--"I knew a brother author
of his who received such criticisms from him (Dickens) very lately and
profited by _it_." Instead of _it_ the word should be _them_ to agree
with criticisms.

Here are a few other pronominal errors from leading authors:

"Sir Thomas Moore in general so writes it, although not many others so
late as _him_." Should be _he_.--Trench's _English Past and Present_.

"What should we gain by it but that we should speedily become as poor as
_them_." Should be _they_.--Alison's _Essay on Macaulay_.

"If the king gives us leave you or I may as lawfully preach, as
_them_ that do." Should be _they_ or _those_, the latter
having persons understood.--Hobbes's _History of Civil Wars_.