This study provides a description of the 20th-century literary criticism associated with the epistolary form in English literature arrived at by bibliometric descriptive analysis. Information gathered from eight different indexes for the period 1900-1991 helps describe the specific features of: authors, titles, format, language, country of publication, year of publication, specific topics related to the form, and subject headings. Suggestions are made as to the applicability of descriptive studies to collection development, augmenting standard bibliographies, and how descriptive studies may further the knowledge of those working with specific materials in the humanities. Three tables and six figures of data are included; the form used to record the bibliographic information is attached. Contains 22 references. (Author/RS)