f ten (at least in
the few that I have known) unaffected and
pleasant, and quite removing by their conversation
any fear that may have been excited by their
works. But a wit, a delineator of character, who
does not talk, is terrific indeed!

Miss Mitford has, however, the candour to add a qualification which
diminishes the force of her earlier remarks, and bears upon our present
subject. She says:--

After all, I do not know that I can quite vouch
for this account, though the friend from whom I
received it is truth itself; but her family
connexions must render her disagreeable to Miss
Austen, since she is the sister-in-law of a
gentleman who is at law with Miss A.'s brother for
the greater part of his fortune. You must have
remarked how much her stories hinge upon entailed
estates--doubtless she has learnt to dislike
entails. Her brother was adopted by a Mr. Knight,
who left him his name and two much better legacies
in an estate of five thousand a year in Kent, and
another of nearly double the value in Hampshire;
but it seems he forgot some ceremony--passing a
fine, I think they call it--with regard to the
Hampshire property, which Mr. Baverstock has
claimed in right of his mother, together with the
mesne rents, and is likely to be successful.[290]

Miss Mitford, indeed, could hardly have done less, after repeating this
somewhat spiteful gossip, than mention the hostile quarter from which it
arose. We have considered it right to quote part of it, as the writer is
an author of some note: but we venture to think that those readers who
have accompanied us so far will believe that Jane was guilty of nothing
worse than being shy, and talking but little among strangers; and that
such strangers as knew something of her literary ability believed, but
were quite wrong in believing, that she was taking stock of their
peculiarities with a view to introducing them into her next novel.

Jane had now completed the first of three visits which she was to pay to
Henry this year, and Cassandra was in London in her place; while the
Godmersham party were spending two months at Chawton. The two following
letters were written by Jane from Chawton in anticipation of a visit to
the Cookes at Bookham. Incidental