A Memoir of Jane Austen

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My Aunt Jane Austen 173
he held the Living of Trowbridge, and had recently married a
second time––
A very warm admirer of my Aunt’s writing but a stranger in
England, lately made the observation that it would be most interesting
to know what had been Miss Austen’s opinions on the
great public events of her time–– a period as she rightly observed,
of the greatest interest–– for my Aunt must have been a young
woman, able to think, at the time of the French Revolution & the
long disastrous chapter then begun, was closed by the battle of
Waterloo, two years before her death–– anyone might naturally
desire to know what part such a mind as her’s had taken in the
great strifes of war and policy which so disquieted Europe for
more than 20 years–– and yet, it was a question that had never
before presented itself to me–– and tho’ I have now retraced my
steps on this track, I have found absolutely nothing!––
The general politics of the family were Tory–– rather taken for
granted I suppose, than discussed, as even my Uncles seldom
talked about it–– and in vain do I try to recall any word or expression
of Aunt Jane’s that had reference to public events–– Some
bias of course she must have had–– but I can only guess to which
quarter it inclined–– Of her historical opinions I am able to record
thus much–– that she was a most loyal adherent of Charles the 1st,
and that she always encouraged my youthful beleif in Mary
Stuart’s perfect innocence of all the crimes with which History
has charged her memory–– °
My Aunt must have spent much time in writing–– her desk
lived in the drawing room. I often saw her writing letters on it,
and I beleive she wrote much of her Novels in the same way––
sitting with her family, when they were quite alone; but I never
saw any manuscript of that sort, in progress–– She wrote very
fully to her Brothers when they were at sea, and she corresponded
with many others of her family––
There is nothing in those letters which I have seen that would
be acceptable to the public–– They were very well expressed, and
they must have been very interesting to those who received
them–– but they detailed chiefly home and family events: and she
seldom committed herself even to an opinion–– so that to strangers