Complete Works of Jane Austen (374 page)

It was, however, at Steventon that the real foundations of her fame were laid. There some of her most successful writing was composed at such an early age as to make it surprising that so young a woman could have acquired the insight into character, and the nice observation of manners which they display. ‘Pride and Prejudice,’ which some consider the most brilliant of her novels, was the first finished, if not the first begun. She began it in October 1796, before she was twenty-one years old, and completed it in about ten months, in August 1797. The title then intended for it was ‘First Impressions.’ ‘Sense and Sensibility’ was begun, in its present form, immediately after the completion of the former, in November 1797 but something similar in story and character had been written earlier under the title of ‘Elinor and Marianne;’ and if, as is probable, a good deal of this earlier production was retained, it must form the earliest specimen of her writing that has been given to the world. ‘Northanger Abbey,’ though not prepared for the press till 1803, was certainly first composed in 1798.

Amongst the most valuable neighbours of the Austens were Mr. and Mrs. Lefroy and their family. He was rector of the adjoining parish of Ashe; she was sister to Sir Egerton Brydges, to whom we are indebted for the earliest notice of Jane Austen that exists. In his autobiography, speaking of his visits at Ashe, he writes thus: ‘The nearest neighbours of the Lefroys were the Austens of Steventon. I remember Jane Austen, the novelist, as a little child. She was very intimate with Mrs. Lefroy, and much encouraged by her. Her mother was a Miss Leigh, whose paternal grandmother was sister to the first Duke of Chandos. Mr. Austen was of a Kentish family, of which several branches have been settled in the Weald of Kent, and some are still remaining there. When I knew Jane Austen, I never suspected that she was an authoress; but my eyes told me that she was fair and handsome, slight and elegant, but with cheeks a little too full.’ One may wish that Sir Egerton had dwelt rather longer on the subject of these memoirs, instead of being drawn away by his extreme love for genealogies to her great-grandmother and ancestors. That great-grandmother however lives in the family records as Mary Brydges, a daughter of Lord Chandos, married in Westminster Abbey to Theophilus Leigh of Addlestrop in 1698. When a girl she had received a curious letter of advice and reproof, written by her mother from Constantinople. Mary, or ‘Poll,’ was remaining in England with her grandmother, Lady Bernard, who seems to have been wealthy and inclined to be too indulgent to her granddaughter. This letter is given. Any such authentic document, two hundred years old, dealing with domestic details, must possess some interest. This is remarkable, not only as a specimen of the homely language in which ladies of rank then expressed themselves, but from the sound sense which it contains. Forms of expression vary, but good sense and right principles are the same in the nineteenth that they were in the seventeenth century.

‘My deares Poll,

‘Y
r
letters by Cousin Robbert Serle arrived here not before the 27
th
of Aprill, yett were they hartily wellcome to us, bringing y
e
joyful news which a great while we had longed for of my most dear Mother & all other relations & friends good health which I beseech God continue to you all, & as I observe in y
rs
to y
r
Sister Betty y
e
extraordinary kindness of (as I may truly say) the best Moth
r
& G
nd
Moth
r
in the world in pinching herself to make you fine, so I cannot but admire her great good Housewifry in affording you so very plentifull an allowance, & yett to increase her Stock at the rate I find she hath done; & think I can never sufficiently mind you how very much it is y
r
duty on all occasions to pay her y
r
gratitude in all humble submission & obedience to all her commands soe long as you live. I must tell you ‘tis to her bounty & care in y
e
greatest measure you are like to owe y
r
well living in this world, & as you cannot but be very sensible you are an extra-ordinary charge to her so it behoves you to take particular heed th
t
in ye whole course of y
r
life, you render her a proportionable comfort, especially since ‘tis y
e
best way you can ever hope to make her such amends as God requires of y
r
hands. but Poll! it grieves me a little y
t
I am forced to take notice of & reprove you for some vaine expressions in y
r
lettrs to y
r
Sister — you say concerning y
r
allowance “you aime to bring y
r
bread & cheese even” in this I do not discommend you, for a foule shame indeed it would be should you out run the Constable having soe liberall a provision made you for y
r
maintenance — but y
e
reason you give for y
r
resolution I cannot at all approve for you say “to spend more you can’t” thats because you have it not to spend, otherwise it seems you would. So y
t
‘tis y
r
Grandmoth
rs
discretion & not yours th
t
keeps you from extravagancy, which plainly appears in y
e
close of y
r
sentence, saying y
t
you think it simple covetousness to save out of y
rs
but ‘tis my opinion if you lay all on y
r
back ‘tis ten tymes a greater sin & shame th
n
to save some what out of soe large an allowance in y
r
purse to help you at a dead lift. Child, we all know our beginning, but who knows his end? Y
e
best use th
t
can be made of fair weath
r
is to provide against foule & ‘tis great discretion & of noe small commendations for a young woman betymes to shew herself housewifly & frugal. Y
r
Mother neither Maide nor wife ever yett bestowed forty pounds a yeare on herself & yett if you never fall und
r
a worse reputation in y
e
world th
n
she (I thank God for it) hath hitherto done, you need not repine at it, & you cannot be ignorant of y
e
difference th
t
was between my fortune & what you are to expect. You ought likewise to consider th
t
you have seven brothers & sisters & you are all one man’s children & therefore it is very unreasonable that one should expect to be preferred in finery soe much above all ye rest for ‘tis impossible you should soe much mistake y
r
ffather’s condition as to fancy he is able to allow every one of you forty pounds a yeare a piece, for such an allowance with the charge of their diett over and above will amount to at least five hundred pounds a yeare, a sum y
r
poor ffather can ill spare, besides doe but bethink y
r
self what a ridiculous sight it will be when y
r
grandmoth
r
& you come to us to have noe less th
n
seven waiting gentlewomen in one house, for what reason can you give why every one of y
r
Sist
rs
should not have every one of y
m
a Maide as well as you, & though you may spare to pay y
r
maide’s wages out of y
r
allowance yett you take no care of y
e
unnecessary charge you put y
r
ffath
r
to in y
r
increase of his family, whereas if it were not a piece of pride to have y
e
name of keeping y
r
maide she y
t
waits on y
r
good Grandmother might easily doe as formerly you know she hath done, all y
e
business you have for a maide unless as you grow old
r
you grow a veryer Foole which God forbid!

‘Poll, you live in a place where you see great plenty & splendour but let not y
e
allurements of earthly pleasures tempt you to forget or neglect y
e
duty of a good Christian in dressing y
r
bett
r
part which is y
r
soule, as will best please God. I am not against y
r
going decent & neate as becomes y
r
ffathers daughter but to clothe y
r
self rich & be running into every gaudy fashion can never become y
r
circumstances & instead of doing you creditt & getting you a good prefer
nt
it is y
e
readiest way you can take to fright all sober men from ever thinking of matching th
m
selves with women that live above thy
r
fortune, & if this be a wise way of spending money judge you! & besides, doe but reflect what an od sight it will be to a stranger that comes to our house to see y
r
Grandmoth
r
y
r
Moth
r
& all y
r
Sisters in a plane dress & you only trick
d
up like a bartlemew-babby — you know what sort of people those are th
t
can’t faire well but they must cry rost meate now what effect could you imagine y
r
writing in such a high straine to y
r
Sisters could have but eithe
r
to provoke th
m
to envy you or murmur against us. I must tell you neith
r
of y
r
Sisters have ever had twenty pounds a yeare allowance from us yett, & yett they
r
dress hath not disparaged neith
r
th
m
nor us & without incurring y
e
censure of simple covetousness they will have some what to shew out of their saving that will doe th
m
creditt & I expect y
t
you th
t
are they
r
elder Sister sh
d
rather sett th
m
examples of y
e
like nature th
n
tempt th
m
from treading in y
e
steps of their good Grandmoth
r
& poor Moth
r
. This is not half what might be saide on this occasion but believing thee to be a very good natured dutyfull child I sh
d
have thought it a great deal too much but y
t
having in my coming hither past through many most desperate dangers I cannot forbear thinking & preparing myself for all events, & therefore not knowing how it may please God to dispose of us I conclude it my duty to God & thee my d
r
child to lay this matter as home to thee as I could, assuring you my daily prayers are not nor shall not be wanting that God may give you grace always to remember to make a right use of this truly affectionate counsell of y
r
poor Moth
r
. & though I speak very plaine down-right english to you yett I would not have you doubt but that I love you as hartily as any child I have & if you serve God and take good courses I promise you my kindness to you shall be according to y
r
own hart’s desire, for you may be certain I can aime at nothing in what I have now writ but y
r
real good which to promote shall be y
e
study & care day & night

‘Of my dear Poll
‘thy truly affectionate Mothr.
‘Eliza Chandos.

‘Pera of Galata, May y
e
6th 1686.

‘P.S. — Thy ffath
r
& I send thee our blessing, & all thy broth
rs
& sist
rs
theyr service. Our harty & affectionate service to my broth
r
& sist
r
Childe & all my dear cozens. When you see my Lady Worster & cozen Howlands pray present th
m
my most humble service.’

This letter shows that the wealth acquired by trade was already manifesting itself in contrast with the straitened circumstances of some of the nobility. Mary Brydges’s ‘poor ffather,’ in whose household economy was necessary, was the King of England’s ambassador at Constantinople; the grandmother, who lived in ‘great plenty and splendour,’ was the widow of a Turkey merchant. But then, as now, it would seem, rank had the power of attracting and absorbing wealth.

At Ashe also Jane became acquainted with a member of the Lefroy family, who was still living when I began these memoirs, a few months ago; the Right Hon. Thomas Lefroy, late Chief Justice of Ireland. One must look back more than seventy years to reach the time when these two bright young persons were, for a short time, intimately acquainted with each other, and then separated on their several courses, never to meet again; both destined to attain some distinction in their different ways, one to survive the other for more than half a century, yet in his extreme old age to remember and speak, as he sometimes did, of his former companion, as one to be much admired, and not easily forgotten by those who had ever known her.

Mrs. Lefroy herself was a remarkable person. Her rare endowments of goodness, talents, graceful person, and engaging manners, were sufficient to secure her a prominent place in any society into which she was thrown; while her enthusiastic eagerness of disposition rendered her especially attractive to a clever and lively girl. She was killed by a fall from her horse on Jane’s birthday, Dec. 16, 1804. The following lines to her memory were written by Jane four years afterwards, when she was thirty-three years old. They are given, not for their merits as poetry, but to show how deep and lasting was the impression made by the elder friend on the mind of the younger: —

TO THE MEMORY OF MRS. LEFROY.

1.

The day returns again, my natal day;
  What mix’d emotions in my mind arise!
Beloved Friend; four years have passed away
  Since thou wert snatched for ever from our eyes.