A Memoir of Jane Austen

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Character and Tastes
her great pleasure; she did not live to make much acquaintance
with his novels. Only three of them were published before her
death; but it will be seen by the following extract from one of her
letters, that she was quite prepared to admit the merits of ‘Waverley’;°
and it is remarkable that, living, as she did, far apart from the
gossip of the literary world, she should even then have spoken so
confidently of his being the author of it:––
‘Walter Scott has no business to write novels;° especially good
ones. It is not fair. He has fame and profit enough as a poet,
and ought not to be taking the bread out of other people’s
mouths. I do not mean to like “Waverley,” if I can help it, but I
fear I must. I am quite determined, however, not to be pleased
with Mrs.—— ’s,° should I ever meet with it, which I hope I may
not. I think I can be stout against anything written by her. I have
made up my mind to like no novels really, but Miss Edgeworth’s,
E.’s, and my own.’°
It was not, however, what she knew, but what she was, that
distinguished her from others. I cannot better describe the fascination
which she exercised over children than by quoting the
words of two of her nieces. One says:–– °
‘As a very little girl I was always creeping up to aunt Jane, and
following her whenever I could, in the house and out of it. I
might not have remembered this but for the recollection of my
mother’s telling me privately, that I must not be troublesome to
my aunt. Her first charm to children was great sweetness of
manner. She seemed to love you, and you loved her in return.
This, as well as I can now recollect, was what I felt in my early
days, before I was old enough to be amused by her cleverness. But
soon came the delight of her playful talk. She could make everything
amusing to a child. Then, as I got older, when cousins came
to share the entertainment, she would tell us the most delightful
stories, chiefly of Fairyland, and her fairies had all characters of
their own. The tale was invented, I am sure, at the moment, and
was continued for two or three days, if occasion served.’
Again: ‘When staying at Chawton, with two of her other
nieces,° we often had amusements in which my aunt was very
helpful. She was the one to whom we always looked for help. She