me very imperfectly known youthful
experiences, which formed at least the basis of his later novels,
_Lavengro_ (1851) and _The Romany Rye_ (1857), he received an
appointment as colporteur to the Bible Society, first in Russia, then in
Spain; and his adventures in the latter country formed the basis of a
study called _The Gipsies of Spain_ (1840), which has much, and a volume
of travel and autobiography, _The Bible in Spain_ (1843), which has
unique interest. Returning home, he married a wife with some money, and
spent the remainder of a long life in his native county of Norfolk,
producing, besides the books just named, _Wild Wales_ (1862), and dying
in 1881. There is, in fact, not very much difference between Borrow's
novels and his travel-books. The former had at least some autobiographic
foundation, and the latter invest actual occurrences with the most
singular flavour of romance. For his mere style Borrow was a little
indebted to Cobbett, though he coloured Cobbett's somewhat drab canvas
with the most brilliant fantastic hues. But his attitude, his main
literary quality, is quite unique. It might be called, without too much
affectation, an adjustment of the picaresque novel to dreamland,
retaining frequent touches of solid and everyday fact. Peacock's style
has found a good many, though no very successful, imitators; Borrow's is
quite inimitable.

Harriet Martineau, one of the numerous writers, of both sexes, whom the
polygraphic habits of this century make it hard to "class," was born at
Norwich in 1802, and belonged to one of the families that made up the
remarkable literary society which distinguished that city at the end of
the last century and the beginning of this. She began as a religious
writer according to the Unitarian persuasion; she ended as a tolerably
active opponent of religion. But she found her chief vocation (before,
as she did in her middle and later days, becoming a regular journalist)
in writing stories on political economy, a proceeding doubtless
determined by the previous exercises in didactic story-telling of Miss
Edgeworth and Mrs. Marcet. These _Illustrations of Political Economy_
(1832) exactly hit the taste of their time and were very popular. Her
less adulterated children's books (of which the best perhaps is _Feats
on the Fiord_) and her novel _Deerbrook_ (1839), owing much to Miss
Edgeworth in conception, display a good faculty of narrative, and she
did a great deal of miscellaneous w