CHAWTON, Wednesday (Sept. 28).
MY DEAR ANNA,--I hope you do not depend on having your book again
immediately. I kept it that your grandmamma may hear it, for it has not
been possible yet to have any public reading. I have read it to your
Aunt Cassandra, 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 will be, I am afraid,
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 Jane Egerton is a very natural, comprehensible girl, and the
whole of her acquaintance with Susan and Susan's letter to Cecilia are
very pleasing and quite in character. But Miss Egerton does not entirely
satisfy us. She is too formal and solemn, we think, in her advice to her
brother not to fall in love; and it is hardly like a sensible woman,--it
is putting it into his head. We should like a few hints from her better.
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. You have
been perfectly right in telling Ben. Lefroy of your work, and I am very
glad to hear how much he likes it. His encouragement and approbation
must be "quite beyond everything."[33] I do not at all wonder at his not
expecting to like anybody so well as Cecilia at first, but I shall be
surprised if he does not become a Susanite in time. 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. Indeed, I did very much like to know Ben's opinion. I hope he
will continue to be pleased with it, and I think he must, but I cannot
flatter him with there being much incident. We have no great right to
wonder at his not valuing the name of Progillian. That is a source of
delight which even he can hardly be quite competent to.
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 the mouths of other people.
I do not like him, and do not mean to like "Waverley" 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. 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 greatcoat. 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.
Your Aunt Frank's nursemaid has just given her warning, but whether she
is worth your having, or would take your place, I know not. She was Mrs.
Webb's maid before she went to the Great House. She leaves your aunt
because she cannot agree with the other servants. She is in love with
the man, and her head seems rather turned. He returns her affection, but
she fancies every one else is wanting him and envying her. Her previous
service must have fitted her for such a place as yours, and she is very
active and cleanly. 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.