_Wednesday 17._--We have now just finished the first of the three books I had the pleasure of receiving yesterday. I read it aloud and we are all very much amused, and like the work quite as well as ever. I depend on getting through another book before dinner, but there is really a good deal of respectable reading in your forty-eight pages. I have no doubt six will make a very good-sized volume. You must be quite pleased to have accomplished so much. I like Lord Portman[338] and his brother very much. I am only afraid that Lord P."s good nature will make most people like him better than he deserves. The whole Portman family are very good, and Lady Anne, who was your great dread, you have succeeded particularly well with. Bell Griffin is just what she should be. My corrections have not been more important than before; here and there we have thought the sense could be expressed in fewer words, and I have scratched out Sir Thos. from walking with the other men to the stables, &c., the very day after his breaking his arm; for, though I find your papa did walk out immediately after _his_ arm was set, I think it can be so little usual as to appear unnatural in a book.
Lyme will not do. Lyme is towards forty miles"
distance from Dawlish and would not be talked of there. I have put Starcross instead. If you prefer Exeter that must be always safe.
I have also scratched out the introduction between Lord Portman and his brother and Mr. Griffin. A country surgeon (don"t tell Mr. C. Lyford) would not be introduced to men of their rank.
I _do_ think you had better omit Lady Helena"s postscript. To those that are acquainted with _Pride and Prejudice_ it will seem an imitation.
We are reading the last book. They must be two days going from Dawlish to Bath. They are nearly 100 miles apart.
_Thursday._--We finished it last night after our return from drinking tea at the Great House. The last chapter does not please us quite so well; we do not thoroughly like the play, perhaps from having had too much of plays in that way lately,[339] and we think you had better not leave England. Let the Portmans go to Ireland; but as you know nothing of the manners there, you had better not go with them. You will be in danger of giving false representations. Stick to Bath and the Foresters. There you will be quite at home.
Your Aunt C. does not like desultory novels, and is rather afraid yours will be too much so, that there will be too frequently a change from one set of people to another, and that circ.u.mstances will be sometimes introduced of apparent consequence which will lead to nothing. It will not be so great an objection to _me_ if it does. I allow much more lat.i.tude than she does, and think nature and spirit cover many sins of a wandering story, and people in general do not care so much about it for your comfort.
I should like to have had more of Devereux. I do not feel enough acquainted with him. You were afraid of meddling with him, I dare say. I like your sketch of Lord Clanmurray, and your picture of the two poor young girls" enjoyment is very good. I have not yet noticed St. Julian"s serious conversation with Cecilia, but I like it exceedingly. What he says about the madness of otherwise sensible women on the subject of their daughters coming out is worth its weight in gold.
I do not see that the language sinks. Pray go on.
[September 9, 1814.]
We have been very much amused by your three books, but I have a good many criticisms to make, more than you will like. We are not satisfied with Mrs.
Forester"s settling herself as tenant and near neighbour to such a man as Sir T. H., without having some other inducement to go there. She ought to have some friend living thereabouts to tempt her. A woman going with two girls just growing up into a neighbourhood where she knows n.o.body but one man of not very good character, is an awkwardness which so prudent a woman as Mrs. F.
would not be likely to fall into. Remember she is very prudent. You must not let her act inconsistently. Give her a friend, and let that friend be invited to meet her at the Priory, and we shall have no objection to her dining there as she does; but otherwise a woman in her situation would hardly go there before she had been visited by other families. I like the scene itself, the Miss Lesleys, Lady Anne, and the music very much. . . . Sir Thomas H. you always do very well. I have only taken the liberty of expunging one phrase of his which would not be allowable--"Bless my heart!" It is too familiar and inelegant. Your grandmother is more disturbed at Mrs. Forester"s not returning the Egertons" visit sooner than by anything else. They ought to have called at the Parsonage before Sunday. You describe a sweet place, but your descriptions are often more minute than will be liked. You give too many particulars of right hand and left. Mrs. Forester is not careful enough of Susan"s health. Susan ought not to be walking out so soon after heavy rains, taking long walks in the dirt. An anxious mother would not suffer it. I like your Susan very much indeed, she is a sweet creature, her playfulness of fancy is very delightful. I like her as she is now exceedingly, but I am not quite so well satisfied with her behaviour to George R. At first she seems all over attachment and feeling, and afterwards to have none at all; she is so extremely composed at the ball and so well satisfied apparently with Mr. Morgan. She seems to have changed her character.
You are now collecting your people delightfully, getting them exactly into such a spot as is the delight of my life. Three or four families in a country village is the very thing to work on, and I hope you will write a great deal more, and make full use of them while they are so very favourably arranged.
You are but _now_ coming to the heart and beauty of your book. Till the heroine grows up the fun must be imperfect, but I expect a great deal of entertainment from the next three or four books, and I hope you will not resent these remarks by sending me no more.
They are not so much like the Papillons as I expected. Your last chapter is very entertaining, the conversation on genius, &c.; Mr. St. Julian and Susan both talk in character, and very well.
In some former parts Cecilia is perhaps a little too solemn and good, but upon the whole her disposition is very well opposed to Susan"s, her want of imagination is very natural. I wish you could make Mrs. Forester talk more; but she must be difficult to manage and make entertaining, because there is so much good common sense and propriety about her that nothing can be made very _broad_. Her economy and her ambition must not be staring. The papers left by Mrs. Fisher are very good. Of course one guesses something. I hope when you have written a great deal more, you will be equal to scratching out some of the past. The scene with Mrs. Mellish I should condemn; it is prosy and nothing to the purpose; and indeed the more you can find in your heart to curtail between Dawlish and Newton Priors, the better I think it will be--one does not care for girls till they are grown up. Your Aunt C. quite enters into the exquisiteness of that name--Newton Priors is really a nonpareil. Milton would have given his eyes to have thought of it. Is not the cottage taken from Tollard Royal?
[September 28, 1814.]
I hope you do not depend on having your book again immediately. I kept it that your grandmama may hear it, for it has not been possible yet to have any public reading. I have read it to your Aunt Ca.s.sandra, however, in our own room at night, while we undressed, and with a great deal of pleasure. We like the first chapter extremely, with only a little doubt whether Lady Helena is not almost too foolish. The matrimonial dialogue is very good certainly. I like Susan as well as ever, and begin now not to care at all about Cecilia; she may stay at Easton Court as long as she likes. Henry Mellish, I am afraid, will be too much in the common novel style--a handsome, amiable, unexceptionable young man (such as do not much abound in real life), desperately in love and all in vain. But I have no business to judge him so early.
We feel really obliged to you for introducing a Lady Kenrick; it will remove the greatest fault in the work, and I give you credit for considerable forbearance as an author in adopting so much of our opinion. I expect high fun about Mrs. Fisher and Sir Thomas.
Devereux Forester"s being ruined by his vanity is extremely good, but I wish you would not let him plunge into a "vortex of dissipation." I do not object to the thing, but I cannot bear the expression; it is such thorough novel slang, and so old that I dare say Adam met with it in the first novel he opened.
Walter Scott has no business to write novels, especially good ones. It is not fair. He has fame and profit enough as a poet, and should not be taking the bread out of other people"s mouths.
I do not like him, and do not mean to like _Waverley_[340] if I can help it, but fear I must.
I am quite determined, however, not to be pleased with Mrs. West"s _Alicia De Lacy_, should I ever meet with it, which I hope I shall not. I think I _can_ be stout against anything written by Mrs.
West.[341] I have made up my mind to like no novels really but Miss Edgeworth"s, yours, and my own.
What can you do with Egerton to increase the interest for him? I wish you could contrive something, some family occurrence to bring out his good qualities more. Some distress among brothers and sisters to relieve by the sale of his curacy!
Something to carry him mysteriously away, and then be heard of at York or Edinburgh in an old great coat. I would not seriously recommend anything improbable, but if you could invent something spirited for him it would have a good effect. He might lend all his money to Captain Morris, but then he would be a great fool if he did. Cannot the Morrises quarrel and he reconcile them? Excuse the liberty I take in these suggestions.
The Webbs are really gone! When I saw the wagons at the door, and thought of all the trouble they must have in moving, I began to reproach myself for not having liked them better, but since the wagons have disappeared my conscience has been closed again, and I am excessively glad they are gone.
I am very fond of Sherlock"s sermons and prefer them to almost any.
Anna"s marriage took place on November 8. Her husband was afterwards a clergyman, but he did not take Orders until about three years after the marriage; and the first home of the young couple was at Hendon, to which place the following letter was addressed, Jane being at that time with her brother Henry, in Hans Place:--
Hans Place: [November 28, 1814].
MY DEAR ANNA,--I a.s.sure you we all came away very much pleased with our visit. We talked of you for about a mile and a half with great satisfaction; and I have been just sending a very good report of you to Miss Benn, with a full account of your dress for Susan and Maria.
We were all at the play last night to see Miss O"Neill in _Isabella_. I do not think she was quite equal to my expectations. I fancy I want something more than can be. I took two pocket-handkerchiefs, but had very little occasion for either. She is an elegant creature, however, and hugs Mr. Young delightfully. I am going this morning to see the little girls in Keppel Street.
Ca.s.sy was excessively interested about your marriage when she heard of it, which was not until she was to drink your health on the wedding day.
She asked a thousand questions in her usual manner, what he said to you and what you said to him. If your uncle were at home he would send his best love, but I will not impose any base fict.i.tious remembrances on you. Mine I can honestly give, and remain
Your affectionate Aunt, J. AUSTEN.
Early in December, Anna sent her aunt another packet, which elicited the following letter:--
Hans Place: Wednesday.
MY DEAR ANNA,--I have been very far from finding your book an evil, I a.s.sure you. I read it immediately, and with great pleasure. I think you are going on very well. The description of Dr.
Griffin and Lady Helena"s unhappiness is very good, just what was likely to be. I am curious to know what the end of _them_ will be. The name of Newton Priors is really invaluable; I never met with anything superior to it. It is delightful; one could live upon the name of Newton Priors for a twelvemonth. Indeed, I do think you get on very fast. I only wish other people of my acquaintance could compose as rapidly. I am pleased with the dog scene and with the whole of George and Susan"s love, but am more particularly struck with your _serious_ conversations, etc. They are very good throughout. St. Julian"s history was quite a surprise to me. You had not very long known it yourself, I suspect; but I have no objection to make to the circ.u.mstance, and it is very well told. His having been in love with the aunt gives Cecilia an additional interest with him. I like the idea--a very proper compliment to an aunt! I rather imagine indeed that nieces are seldom chosen but out of compliment to some aunt or another. I dare say Ben was in love with me once, and would never have thought of you if he had not supposed me dead of a scarlet fever.
[Mrs. Heathcote] writes me word that Miss Blachford is married, but I have never seen it in the papers, and one may as well be single if the wedding is not to be in print.
Your affectionate Aunt, J. A.
In August 1815 the Lefroys moved from Hendon, and took a small house called Wyards, near Alton, and within a walk of Chawton. Wyards is more than once mentioned in our letters.