Footlines appear principally within the music text, reproducing such information as the plate number and, on the first and last pages of many editions, the name and address of the publisher. They therefore resemble those in modern editions. The FLs of certain Chopin first editions also include the following details: 

• copyright notices (e.g. 2–1-HAt, 2–2-HAt, 4–1-R, 13–1a-W, 17–1-W, 21–1-W, 33–1-B&H, 44–1-W&S, 74–1-G)
  
• comments on performance (e.g. 2–1-HAt, p. 9; 14–1-Sm, p. 2), on attributed opus numbers (see the sepa­rate German editions of Opp. 66–73) or on compositional genesis (e.g. 68–1-MEIf, 68–1-Sam, MM–1-Sm, PolG#m–1-K)
  
• information about the publisher’s other output (e.g. 3–1-W, 6–1-W, 14–1-W, 17–1-W)
  
• confirmation of the censor’s approval (e.g. 74/10&1–1-KO, WaltzEm–1b-K)
  
• name of the series to which the work belongs and the work number therein (e.g. 2–1-W)
  
• names of foreign publishers sharing or holding copyright (e.g. 32/1–1-Sam, 33–1-B&H, 50/1–2-Sm, 57–1-W, MFM–1-E, 74–1-G)
  
• name of engraver or printer (e.g. 1–1a-BR, 1–2-HO, 4–1-R, 32–3-Sam, 35–1-TR, 43–1a-SCHU, 66–1-MEIf) or of the firm carrying out lithographic transfer (e.g. 40–1g-A&P, 43–1g-SCHU, 53–1d-A&P)
  
• name of editor (e.g. 1–2-HO, 3–1-W, 4–1-CO, 10/1-6–1e-W, 51–2-HO, VGNA–1-COC) or arranger (e.g. 8–1a-W)
  
• price of orchestral accompaniment (e.g. 2–1-W, 13–1-W). 
  

The FLs of one half-title and three prefaces or postscripts also give the plate number (64–2-B&H, Posth–1-MEIf, 74–1-G, 74–1-Sam). 

Only a handful of editions have no FL text, among them 1–1-BRZ, 5–1-BRZ, 70/2&69/2–1b-WI and 71/2–1-CHR.