pendent livelihood; and she conceived the idea of
employing fiction as a vehicle for the exposition and popularization of
the principles of social and political economy. The idea was as new as
it was happy; nor could it have been realized at a more opportune time
than when the English public was beginning to awake from its long
political lethargy, and to assert the rights of the nation against the
dominant class interests. It was desirable that its new-born activity
should be guided by an intelligent apprehension of the cardinal truths
by which reform is differentiated from revolution; and to contribute to
this result became Harriet Martineau's purpose. Accordingly, in 1826,
she wrote, and after conquering the difficulty of finding a publisher,
gave to the world her tale of "The Rioters," the first of a long series
of illustrations of political economy, which had a very considerable
influence, if not quite so great an influence, as she herself supposed.
The series comprises eighteen tales, of which the best, perhaps, are
"Ella of Gareloch," "Life in the Wilds," and "The Hamlets." Their true
merit consists in their having quickened and strengthened the interest
of the reading classes in economic questions. In their day they did an
useful work, but they are already forgotten; and, as Sara Coleridge
predicted, their political economy has proved too heavy a ballast for
vessels that were expected to sail down the stream of time.

In 1834 Miss Martineau "qualified," so to speak, for a place among
female travellers, by visiting the United States. She spent nearly two
years in traversing the territories of the Great Western Republic, and
was everywhere received with an enthusiastic welcome. Returning to
England in 1836, she recorded her impressions of American society, and
her views of American institutions in her "Society in America" and her
"Retrospect of Western Travel." These are discriminative and thoughtful,
while sufficiently cordial in their praise to satisfy even the most
exacting American; and at the time of their appearance these books
unquestionably did much to soothe the irritation which Mrs. Trollope's
hard hitting had provoked. It is but just, however, to commend the
honesty with which she avowed her anti-slavery opinions, which could
not then be enunciated without exciting the anger even of the people of
the North. It brought upon her no small amount of abuse and contumely,
many of those who had previously receiv