Part 4 (1/2)

The next letter, written four days later than the former, was addressed to Miss Lloyd, an intimate friend, whose sister (my mother) was married to Jane's eldest brother:--

'Steventon, Wednesday evening, Nov 12th

'MY DEAR MARTHA,

'I did not receive your note yesterday till after Charlotte had left Deane, or I would have sentthe ance of your new dress for the Hurstbourne ball by the value of 3_d_ You are very good in wishi+ng to seeto come to you I believe our merit in that respect ispaid this tribute of praise to the virtue of both, I shall here have done with panegyric, and proceed to plain ht's ti able to coe my visit as to spend some days with you after your mother's return In the 1st place, that Iher, and in the 2nd, that Iyou back with me Your promise in my favour was not quite absolute, but if your will is not perverse, you and I will do all in our power to overcome your scruples of conscience I hope we shall meet next week to talk all this over, till we have tired ourselves with the very idea of ins Our invitations for the 19th are arrived, and very curiously are they worded {65} Mary mentioned to you yesterday poor Earle's unfortunate accident, I dare say He does not see on very well The two or three last posts have brought less and less favourable accounts of hiain to-day We have two families of friends noho are in a h by a note fro there seems now to be a revival of hope at Manydown, its continuance may be too reasonably doubted Mr

Heathcote, {66a} however, who has broken the s on very well It would be really too much to have three people to care for

'You distress me cruelly by your request about books I cannot think of any to bring withthe; I can do that at hoence to pour out on you asHenry's History of England, which I will repeat to you in any manner you may prefer, either in a loose, desultory, unconnected strea my recital, as the historian divides it hiion: Constitution: Learning and Learned Men: Arts and Sciences: Co: and Manners So that for every evening in the week there will be a different subject

The Friday's lot--Co--you will find the least entertaining; but the next evening's portion will make amends

With such a provision onthe French Grammar, and Mrs Stent {66b} will now and then ejaculate some wonder about the cocks and hens, what can ant? Farewell for a short time We all unite in best love, and I am your very affectionate

'J A'

The two next letters must have been written early in 1801, after the removal from Steventon had been decided on, but before it had taken place They refer to the two brothers ere at sea, and give some idea of a kind of anxieties and uncertainties to which sisters are seldoraphs At that time shi+ps were often windbound or becalmed, or driven wide of their destination; and sometimes they had orders to alter their course for some secret service; not to mention the chance of conflict with a vessel of superior power--no iar

Information about relatives on board men-of-as scarce and scanty, and often picked up by hearsay or chance ence was proportionably valuable:--

'MY DEAR CassANDRA,

'I should not have thought it necessary to write to you so soon, but for the arrival of a letter from Charles to myself It ritten last Saturday from off the Start, and conveyed to Pophaham He came from Lisbon in the ”Endymion” I will copy Charles's account of his conjectures about Frank: ”He has not seen my brother lately, nor does he expect to find hi up to take co down; but supposes he will arrive in less than a fortnight froland about that time with dispatches from Sir Ralph Abercrombie” The event must shohat sort of a conjuror Captain Boyle is The ”Endyued with any more prizes Charles spent three pleasant days in Lisbon

'They were very well satisfied with their royal passenger, {68} whousta as his wife, and seems much attached to her

'When this letter ritten, the ”Endymion” was becalmed, but Charles hoped to reach Portsmouth by Monday or Tuesday He received land; was much surprised, of course, but is quite reconciled to them, and means to come to Steventon once more while Steventon is ours'

From a letter written later in the same year:--

'Charles has received 30_l_ for his share of the privateer, and expects 10_l_ more; but of what avail is it to take prizes if he lays out the produce in presents to his sisters? He has been buying gold chains and topaze crosses for us He must be well scolded The ”Endyypt, which I should not like at all if I did not trust to Charles being removed fro of his own destination, he says, but desires me to write directly, as the ”Endymion” will probably sail in three or four days He will receive ain by this post to thank and reproach him We shall be unbearably fine'

CHAPTER IV

_Removal fro at Chawton_

The fa of 1801, where they resided first at No 4 Sydney Terrace, and afterwards in Green Park Buildings I do not knohether they were at all attracted to Bath by the circuh Perrot, spent part of every year there The nah in Oxfordshi+re, had been bequeathed to hireat uncle I must devote a few sentences to this very old and now extinct branch of the Perrot family; for one of the last survivors, Jane Perrot, randmother, from whom she derived her Christian name The Perrots were settled in Pembrokeshi+re at least as early as the thirteenth century They were probably sos placed in that county, which thence acquired the naland beyond Wales,' for the double purpose of keeping open a co the Welsh One of the faorously; for it is recorded of him that he sleenty-six men_ of Kemaes, a district of Wales, and _one wolf_ The ether, and the disproportion of numbers, are remarkable; but probably at that time the wolves had been so closely killed down, that _lupicide_ was becouished exploit than _homicide_ The last of this family died about 1778, and their property was divided between Leighs and Musgraves, the larger portion going to the latter Mr Leigh Perrot pulled down the h, and the name of these Perrots is now to be found only on soh Perrot was also one of several cousins to whoh property in Warwickshi+re was left, after the extinction of the earlier Leigh peerage, but he compromised his claim to the succession in his lifetiue Cholmeley of Lincolnshi+re He was a man of considerable natural poith much of the wit of his uncle, the Master of Balliol, and wrote clever epigrah without his name, found their way into print; but he lived a very retired life, dividing his time between Bath and his place in Berkshi+re called Scarlets Jane's letters from Bath make frequent mention of this uncle and aunt

The unfinished story, now published under the title of 'The Watsons,'

the author's residence in Bath In the autumn of 1804 she spent some weeks at Lyme, and became acquainted with the Cobb, which she afterwards rove In February 1805, her father died at Bath, and was buried at Walcot Church Theand daughters went into lodgings for a few months, and then removed to Southa those four years are the three following letters to her sister; one froood deal into society, in a quiet way, chiefly with ladies; and that her eyes were always open to minute traits of character in those hom she associated:--

_Extract from a letter from Jane Austen to her Sister_

'Lyme, Friday, Sept 14 (1804)

'MY DEAR CassANDRA,--I take the first sheet of fine striped paper to thank you for your letter fro at Ibthorp before this ti, being able to get as far as Blandford on Wednesday Your account of Wey which strikesno ice in the town For every other vexation I was in some measure prepared, and particularly for your disappointo on board on Tuesday, having already heard fro too late But for there being no ice, what could prepare me! You found my letter at Andover, I hope, yesterday, and have now for many hours been satisfied that your kind anxiety on my behalf was as much throay as kind anxiety usually is I continue quite well; in proof of which I have bathed again thisIt was absolutely necessary that I should have the little fever and indisposition which I had: it has been all the fashi+on this week in Lys by this tioes on in the usual order The servants behave very well, andcertainly can exceed the inconvenience of the offices, except the general dirtiness of the house and furniture, and all its inhabitants I endeavour, as far as I can, to supply your place, and be useful, and keep things in order I detect dirt in the water decanters, as fast as I can, and keep everything as it was under your adht was pleasant, but not full for Thursday My father staid contentedly till half-past nine (ent a little after eight), and then walked hoh I believe the lanthorn was not lit, as the reat convenience to him My mother and I staid about an hour later nobody asked me the two first dances; the two next I danced with Mr Crawford, and had I chosen to stay longer ht have danced with Mr Granville, Mrs Granville's son, whom my dear friend Miss A introduced tome for some time, and at last, without any introduction, asked ain I think heto the honbl B's, who are son, and son's wife of an Irish viscount, bold queer- looking people, just fit to be quality at Lyht it not in strict propriety to be ter?) on Miss A and was introduced to her father and enteeler than her parents Mrs A sat darning a pair of stockings the whole ofshould act as an exaether for an hour on the Cobb; she is very converseable in a coenius, but she has sense and so She seems to like people rather too easily