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JAXE TAYLOE, 
 
 Oh, then, thoTigh fainting and distressed, 
 
 I "will my W3y pursue ; 
 There is a home, there is a rest, 
 
 There is a heaven in view. 
 
 JAivE TAYLCB. 
 
 Z^crL^) 
 
 PUBLISHED BY THE 
 AMERICAN TBACT SOCIETY, 
 
 150 NASSAU-STREET, NEW YOKE. 
 
71? ^1 
 
 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 18G8, by the 
 American Tract Society, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court 
 of the United States for the Southern District of New York. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 -♦- 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 Childhood - page 7 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 Home Life 24 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 Taking up the Pen — Family Scenes 41 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Friendships — Letters — - 57 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 The First Break — Literary Ventures - 84 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Kemoval to Ongar — A Winter by the Sea 108 
 
4 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTEE VII. 
 Life in Cornwall— "Display" 135 
 
 CHAPTEE VIII. 
 Home Again — Letters 170 
 
 CHAPTEE IX. 
 Sun-setting - 210 
 
JANE TAYLOR- 
 
 chapter i. 
 
 Will you visit the small village of 
 Lavenham ? It is in the county of Suf- 
 folk, sixty miles from London. In June, 
 1786, a gQntleman with his wife and two 
 little girls, accompanied by trunks and 
 bandboxes, stopped before a large house 
 at one end of the village, a little off the 
 high-road. 
 
 The lady wears a weary and depressed 
 look. There is little eagerness or hope 
 on her countenance as she catches the 
 first glimpses of her new home ; nor is 
 there much in the street through which 
 
6 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 they pass to awaken interest or pleasure. 
 It is called Spinners'-street, and is lined 
 with humble cottages, before which, out- 
 of-doors, mothers and daughters ply the 
 wheel, while the father within works his 
 lumbering loom. The whiz and hum of 
 toil is heard from early morning till late 
 at nighty yet the labor of eighteen hours 
 hardly suffices to keep hunger from the 
 door ; for business is dull, and growing 
 duller. Machinery is beginning to com- 
 pete with handcraft. Carding and spin- 
 ning mills are being built elsewhere, and 
 w T ool is finding shorter cuts to market. 
 What are Suffolk hands and wheels 
 to do ? 
 
 That is not our business to answer ; 
 but you see it does not look like Lon- 
 don. The strangers are from the me- 
 tropolis — Mr. and Mrs.- Isaac Taylor — 
 in quest of more comfort for their grow- 
 ing family than a small income can buy 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 7 
 
 for them in London. The country had an 
 inexpressible charm, as discussed amid 
 city fog and smoke — which a long and 
 tedious journey over poor roads and in 
 poorer conveyances had almost, if not 
 quite, dispelled. 
 
 Mrs. Taylor's heart sunk. Besides, 
 it had been hard to part with London 
 friends. What had Lavenham to offer 
 in their stead? She was a woman of 
 sense, however, and suppressed her dis- 
 gust as well she could, keeping her eye 
 bravely on the advantages of a change. 
 The house, large and commodious, had 
 been rented for six instead of twenty 
 pounds. Attached to it was a garden, 
 with an arbor, walks, flowers, and fruit ; 
 pure air, clear skies, and an abundance 
 of sunshine completed the desirableness 
 of the new location. 
 
 Mr. Taylor was bred an engraver. 
 His father was an engraver ; his brother 
 
8 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 too. The taste ran in the family; a 
 family of large intelligence, great excel- 
 lencies, and untiring industry ; and since 
 his work could be done as well away from 
 London, family interests could be best 
 secured by making a home elsewhere. 
 
 They were Independents. Indepen- 
 dency had more than its usual burden 
 of odium at this time. The French Rev- 
 olution was beginning to convulse the 
 world, and the fair show it was then 
 making in behalf of freedom enlisted 
 many true men on its side. England 
 was alive with discussion. Liberal opin- 
 ions were expressed in sharp and ear- 
 nest words, and national renovation was 
 reckoned among the speedy possibilities 
 of the times. Non-conformity, suppo- 
 sed to be as independent in civil as in 
 ecclesiastical matters, had often to bear 
 injurious suspicions from Tory neighbors 
 and good churchmen. 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 9 
 
 Mr. Taylor had liberal leanings ; his 
 wife was more conservative ; and both 
 were too wise and bnsy to make politics 
 a root of offence unto themselves and 
 others. 
 
 In the earlier years of their married 
 life, Mrs. Taylor had given herself with 
 anxious assiduity to family cares. The 
 accomplishments of her maidenhood were 
 laid aside ; books were rarely opened ; 
 the cultivation of her mind was neglect- 
 ed, and those intellectual tastes which 
 had delighted the lover were lost to the 
 husband in an absorbing monopoly of 
 domestic duties. An old friend saw the 
 danger. 
 
 " Your husband,"' she said, " may in- 
 deed have a housekeeper and a nurse, 
 but I am sure he has no companion ; it 
 will be well if in time he does not grow 
 tired of you. The affections of a man of 
 taste cannot fix permanently on a mere 
 
 2 
 
10 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 plod ; and you are certainly nothing 
 better." 
 
 Hard, but wholesome reproof. A 
 plod ! Mrs. Taylor saw it all at a 
 glance. She already felt herself slip- 
 ping out of sympathy with her hus- 
 band's pursuits : she retrograding, he 
 going on ; of course, the distance must 
 widen, and she become less and less ca- 
 pable of a true wife's place. 
 
 At breakfast and tea-time a book had 
 come with him to table ; reading had 
 taken the place of conversation, and so- 
 cial enjoyment was more rarely one of 
 the pleasures of the board. 
 
 What could she do ? Where was the 
 time ? How could she command any 
 for reading and self-improvement? But 
 one servant; the children to take care 
 of; so much to clo requiring head and 
 hands incessantly. A bright thought 
 shot through the busy brain. 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 11 
 
 " I will propose to read aloud at break- 
 fast and tea/' she said. 
 
 The proposal was made, cordially 
 accepted, and immediately adopted ; 
 and it — the habit of reading aloud at 
 meals and in the evening — became a 
 cherished family institution. Did it 
 work well ? 
 
 "Yes," replies Mrs. Taylor, " it has 
 rescued a mind from inactivity which 
 was rapidly degenerating and losing the 
 few attainments it had acquired ; it has 
 beguiled many a care, and diverted 
 many a pain ; now affording energy to 
 weakness and languor, which in most 
 cases would have been deemed insur- 
 mountable obstacles to such a custom. 
 Besides this, must be taken into account 
 the incalculable benefit arising to the 
 children of the family, from the vol- 
 umes they have thus heard, in addition 
 to their own reading. In a word, the 
 
12 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 custom has proved one of the prominent 
 blessings of our lives." 
 
 Anne and Jane, the two little girls, 
 are five and three on their coming to 
 Lavenham, and are delighted with the 
 freedom of their new home. The old 
 arbor, shady walks, and grassy fields 
 have a world of innocent enjoyment in 
 store for them, besides the bloom they will 
 put on their pale cheeks and the strength 
 they will give to their delicate frames. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Taylor had an ideal 
 of education which they vigorously set 
 themselves to realize in their growing 
 family. The happy mean between inju- 
 dicious indulgence on the one hand, and 
 the severe system of " a word and a blow, 
 and the blow first," on the other, then 
 too common, and from which both had 
 suffered, it was their daily effort to find. 
 
 A strictly home-education was deter- 
 mined upon. The children were to find 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 13 
 
 their mental discipline and daily pleas- 
 ure under the same roof. 
 
 " Their dear father," Mrs. Taylor tells 
 us, "found his utmost energies neces- 
 sary for the support of his family ; nev- 
 ertheless, he as zealously entered into 
 his department of their education as 
 though it had been his sole employment. 
 My own health at this time was consid- 
 erably undermined, and many unavoid- 
 able chasms ensued in my operations in 
 consequence of nearly annual confine- 
 ments, our first six children having been 
 born in little more than seven years ; 
 but neither these hinderances nor indis- 
 pensable household affairs prevented me 
 from devoting a large portion of my time 
 to this darling object. I kept, when not 
 confined to my chamber, regular school- 
 hours ; and when occupied with domestic 
 affairs, my girls, whenever it was possi- 
 ble, have been at my side, and by the 
 
14 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 questions I encouraged them to ask, their 
 minds were stored with such knowledge 
 as my yet scanty store enabled me to 
 dispense ; and that every fragment of 
 time might be gathered up with frugal- 
 ity, a hymn at least could be repeated 
 at our time of dressing. Our evenings, 
 while [ plied my needle, were at once 
 cheerfully and profitably spent." 
 
 Hymns, indeed, formed a favorite 
 means of religious culture ; and is it not 
 one with many advantages? Instruc- 
 tion, warning, penitential confession, 
 petition, promise, praise, every thing 
 which the sincere heart should desire 
 or utter find expression in the hymns. 
 They are easily learned, and readily 
 retained and recalled. The rhythm lin- 
 gers and wanders in the memory, to 
 give, when needed, a form to thoughts 
 too weak to find their own expression, 
 and amid the vicissitudes of life, to re- 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 15 
 
 assert those divine truths which can 
 alone interpret them. Hymns stir the 
 sluggish soul to conflict, and march it 
 on to victory. Their words of trust and 
 pleading have borne the experience of 
 how many "penitents! They have whis- 
 pered the sweetest solace in the hour of 
 sorrow, beguiled sickness of its languor, 
 and banished from many a wakeful mid- 
 night the anxious forebodings which kept 
 eyes from sleeping. 
 
 In no way can parents deposit more 
 religious truth in the minds of children, 
 and leave it safely there to fructify the 
 growing character, than by teaching and 
 having repeated the beautiful and im- 
 pressive lyrics with which our litera- 
 ture abounds. Among the studies of 
 childhood, hymns should have a sure 
 place — not as tasks, but as contributions 
 rather to the family stock of improve- 
 ment and enjoyment. 
 
16 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 It was this, perhaps, which gave bent 
 to the little girls, Anne and Jane, and 
 at an early age fostered a taste for po- 
 etic expression. While yet a mere child, 
 Jane amnsed herself and her parents by 
 presenting in verse requests most doubt- 
 ful of favor. The following scribble, at 
 eight years, foreshadows "Hymns for 
 Infant Minds," which have not yet 
 ceased to please and instruct our little 
 ones : 
 
 " Ah, dear papa, did you but know 
 The trouble of your Jane, 
 I 'm sure you would relieve me now, 
 And ease me of my pain. 
 
 " Although your garden is but small, 
 And more, indeed, you crave, 
 There 's one small bit not used at all, 
 And this I wish to have. 
 
 " A pretty garden I would make, 
 That you would like to know ; 
 Then pray, papa, for pity's sake, 
 This bit of ground bestow. 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 17 
 
 9 
 
 " For whether, now, I plant or sow, 
 The chickens eat it all. 
 I 'd fain my sorrows let yon know, 
 But for the tears that fall. 
 
 " My garden, then, should be your lot. 
 I've often heard you say 
 There useful trees you wish to put, 
 But mine were in the way." 
 
 Jane often used her pen, but rarely 
 confided her stories to any one but 
 Anne. The sisters took great delight 
 in each other's society, and their parents 
 gave them room and time for all inno- 
 cent amusements. The house was large 
 enough to afford a play-room especially 
 for them ; and while money for an occa- 
 sional new toy was never grudged, their 
 ingenuity and interest were oftener exci- 
 ted to manufacture them, thus giving 
 opportunity and means, as far as possi- 
 ble, for entertaining themselves. The 
 listless questions, " What shall we do?" 
 " What can I play ?" so often heard from 
 
 Jane TayJor. 
 
18 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 ■ 
 
 children accustomed to be amused by 
 others, were never asked, since their 
 active minds were too full of projects to 
 admit of idleness or uncertainty. 
 
 Two little girls about their own age, 
 Anne and Jane Wilkinson, were their 
 chosen friends. For a few years the 
 four were daily playmates, until Mr. 
 Wilkinson emigrated to this country, 
 which gave the children their first part- 
 ing pang ; and it was a grief our little 
 Jane did not soon get over. 
 
 She was a sprightly child, full of sym- 
 pathy and intelligence, a favorite every- 
 where, especially at the baker's shop, 
 where she was often hoisted on the 
 bread-board to "speak a piece" for the 
 amusement of all present. Praises 
 never turned her little head, neutral- 
 ized as they were sure to be by a wise 
 mother, intent upon training her aright. 
 
 Other children were born into the 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 19 
 
 family during their stay at Lavenham. 
 The long sickness and slowly-returning 
 health of Mr. Taylor brought its share 
 of care and discouragement into the 
 well-ordered household, while the polit- 
 ical clouds which darkened the sky 
 "sometimes showered terrors on older as 
 well as younger hearts. A thousand 
 rumors floated in the air concerning 
 French atrocities, corrected or corrob- 
 orated by a weekly newspaper, The 
 Bury News. On its arrival, Mr. Tay- 
 lor glanced it over, reserving a fuller 
 acquaintance with its contents for the 
 reading at dinner or the longer leisure 
 of the evening. Who can picture the 
 excitement of the children as, bit by bit, 
 the bloody recitals of the Revolution 
 were read and discussed in their hear- 
 ing? 
 
 " I will never forget," said Isaac, then 
 a small boy, "the terrible impression 
 
20 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 made upon 1113^ own mind by hearing 
 the news of the death of the French 
 king. It was a dismal winter's after- 
 noon, as I perfectly remember, when a 
 neighbor suddenly broke in upon our 
 games, exclaiming, "The}" have cut off 
 the king's head!" And a "reign of 
 terror" pictured its gloomy shades on 
 their fancy, which even the thought- 
 lessness of childhood could not wholly 
 dispel. 
 
 To this were added social disturbances 
 which agitated even the remotest ham- 
 let of England. Party-feeling ran high. 
 Old neighbors became deadly enemies. 
 Friends ceased to be on speaking terms ; 
 and every one suspected of sympathy 
 with democratic movements was pro- 
 nounced disloyal, and fell under the ban 
 of public obloquy. 
 
 Mr. Taylor, as a leading man among 
 the Dissenters, became an object of dis- 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 21 
 
 like to his "church and king" acquaint- 
 ances. There had been riots in many 
 places, and the mob in Lavenham, coun- 
 tenanced as they well knew they should 
 be by the gentry and clergy, longed to 
 attack the "Meetingers," as they called 
 them, and have their share of plunder 
 and excitement. 
 
 One afternoon a friendly neighbor, in 
 hot haste, ran into the Taylors to warn 
 them of approaching danger. A furious 
 mob, with drums beating and flags fly- 
 ing, were assembling on the square, 
 breathing vengeance on Mr. Taylor and 
 his innocent premises. 9 
 
 The terrified children betook them- 
 selves to watch the approaching enemy, 
 and soon the van appeared at the head 
 of the street, brandishing pitchforks and 
 mattocks, and altogether wearing a most 
 threatening aspect. 
 
 What way of escape ? Justices sided 
 
22 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 with the gentry, and there seemed noth- 
 ing to ward off a disastrous issue. De- 
 liverance, however, came. As the mob 
 swept down the street with its noisy hub- 
 bub, a portly clergyman in official rig 
 opened his door, and motioned the lead- 
 ers to stop. An address was made. 
 What its purport, the Taylors could not 
 hear ; but behold, the tumult ceased ; 
 the rioters retired, and peace was re- 
 stored to the quiet street. 
 
 Mr. Taylor and his family breathed 
 freely once more, and a night of quiet 
 restored the hope and courage of the 
 household. 
 
 To whom were they indebted for de- 
 liverance? Under God, to his brother 
 minister ; so thought Mr. Taylor, who 
 early the next morning, called to ex- 
 press the family's gratitude for his kind 
 interference in their behalf. 
 
 "Spare your thanks, Mr. Taylor," 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 23 
 
 was the stately reply; "my wife's sis- 
 ter is very ill, and I thought so much 
 noise and confusion, if the people effect- 
 ed their purpose so near us, might have 
 been very prejudicial to her in her weak 
 state. ;; 
 
 So much for the neighborly courtesies 
 of the times, and for that party spirit 
 which recognizes no neighborly tie. 
 
24 JANE TAYLOR, 
 
 CHAPTEK II. 
 
 11 A rural home is the best home of 
 the domestic virtues and affections. It 
 is within the circle of a detached conn- 
 try-house that family life 'opens itself out 
 at large ; it suns itself, blooms, and at- 
 tains its ripeness ; it preserves itself in 
 the faithful memory of survivors, and 
 so holds itself entire to the end, as if 
 an assured immortality were wrapt up 
 in its folds," writes one in after years of 
 the happy household of Lavenham. 
 
 "A much higher rate of family health 
 may be reckoned on," he goes on to say, 
 " than in city or city suburbs. We are 
 exempt from the visitation of a hundred 
 ills, real or imaginary, to which our city 
 friends are liable. Along with purer 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 25 
 
 air, earlier hours, and country routine, 
 there will be greater simplicity of mind, 
 manners, and tastes. Nor are we tyran- 
 nized over by conventional forms. It is 
 true, we are not able to talk so well of 
 all ,. things, but we think more, and are 
 more reasonable." 
 
 Thus argues Isaac Taylor. Jane's 
 younger brother and all the family agree 
 with him. 
 
 The seclusion of Lavenham, however, 
 is to be abandoned for a "w r ider sphere, 
 opened to Mr. Taylor by a call from a 
 dissenting congregation at Colchester to 
 become their minister. 
 
 Early in 1796, he removed thither. 
 
 Colchester, on the south bank of the 
 river Colne, fanned by the cold breezes 
 of the North sea, is rich in natural sce- 
 nery and antiquarian interest. Added 
 to this, at the advent of the new pastor 
 it was alive with troops, watching their 
 
26 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 dangerous neighbors across the chan- 
 nel. 
 
 The family was soon- reorganized, and 
 a larger circle of out-door interests did 
 not lessen the assiduous industries of 
 home. 
 
 Mr. Taylor himself seems to have 
 been a man of remarkable achievements. 
 As an artist, he continued his labors. 
 Constant and careful with his pulpit ex- 
 ercises, he visited his people regularly 
 and affectionately, was always present 
 at ministers 7 meetings, and never lacked 
 an elaborate essay when it was re- 
 quired. He had pupils at home and 
 abroad, delivered frequent lectures, and 
 in addition to all this, zealously set him- 
 self to the education of his own family. 
 Health and system must have been 
 necessary to accomplish all this. 
 
 Jane was in her thirteenth year on 
 their removal to Colchester. Four years 
 
JANE TAYLOR, 27 
 
 younger was her brother Isaac. Two 
 other brothers and a sister were all who 
 lived to grow up-. 
 
 In addition to the usual studies of 
 girlhood, Mr. Taylor wished to qualify 
 his daughters for supporting themselves. 
 Since engraving was an art in which 
 woman had already distinguished her- 
 self, no branch of business could be so 
 easily and naturally taught them as this. 
 At one time, four of his children were 
 taking lessons by his side. 
 
 "Ann and I often say," said Jane, 
 "that much as we enjoy other things, 
 we are never more happy than when 
 steadily engaged in the room where we 
 engrave ; that is our paradise. You 
 may smile, at the comparison/' she con- 
 tinues, "and we know the inconveniences 
 connected with our engagements there ; 
 but experience teaches us that comfort 
 and happiness are ^compatible with in- 
 
28 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 conveniences. We have every induce- 
 ment to industry, and we are thankful 
 that that which is necessary is also 
 agreeable to us.' 7 
 
 Lest the studio should give them a 
 distaste and inaptness for more womanly 
 occupations, Mrs. Taylor faithfully ex- 
 ercised her daughters in all the duties of 
 the broom and duster, the needle, and 
 the kneading-board. 
 
 The family were early risers, and every 
 moment of the clay was thriftily employ- 
 ed ; not as a task ; there was no feeling 
 of bondage or restraint ; no sense of 
 hurry goaded them on ; but each, incited 
 by a spontaneous and loving impulse, 
 entered heartily on the- work set them 
 to do. "And I believe/ 7 writes Jane 
 to her friend in America, "we enjoy a 
 greater proportion of real happiness than 
 many who live a life of apparent ease 
 and pleasure. We find it is employment 
 
JANE TAYL0K. 29 
 
 that gives recreation its greatest charm ; 
 and we enjoy with a double relish little 
 pleasures which, to those who are already 
 fatigued with doing nothing, appear tire- 
 some or uninteresting. When I see peo- 
 ple perpetually tormented with ennui — 
 satiated with amusements — indifferent to 
 every object of interest, I indeed con- 
 gratulate myself that I have not one 
 spare moment in which these demons can 
 assail me. You, my dear Jane, know 
 the pleasures of industry, and you know 
 that it is essential to our real happiness." 
 
 Nor was it all work. Birthday par- 
 ties, excursions into the country, sum- 
 mer walks contributed to the stock of 
 family enjoyment. 
 
 "Summer is delightful," says Jane; 
 11 but I haye much to love in winter, and 
 I can truly say I enjoy the hours of 
 quiet industry it always introduces." 
 
 Winter evenings were usually spent 
 
30 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 together, each occupied by some lighter 
 work of pencil or needle, while Mrs. 
 Taylor read aloud. 
 
 " And those daily social readings, con- 
 tinued from year to year, while a house- 
 hold is running its course of changes, 
 constitute a bright continuity of its intel- 
 lectual and moral existence, 77 wrote Isaac 
 Taylor in after years, recommending the 
 habit. 
 
 Were not the' youngest sent to bed? 
 Could they keep quiet ? 
 
 •'At that time, a time of old-fashioned 
 discipline, the younger children knew 
 how to sit with their noiseless amuse- 
 ments at a side table, not in terror of a 
 nurse-maid ; and the bairns of even three 
 years were allowed to make acquaint- 
 ance with the English of books." 
 
 What good can children derive from 
 hearing a book which they do not un- 
 derstand ? 
 
'JANE TAYLOB. 31 
 
 "Much, in many ways. A child of 
 any sensitiveness,' 7 replies he, "is alter- 
 nately listening or not listening to a 
 book, the voice being that of one who 
 is ordinarily listened to with pleasure ; 
 the child is caught by the mere rhythm 
 of the sentences — and words that have 
 a rhythm of their own catch the infant 
 ear ; in the frequent hearing they get 
 themselves attended to, and at last in- 
 terpreted. It seems to me a great error, 
 and it is the parent of errors more seri- 
 ous than itself, that, as a child should 
 understand every thing step by step, so 
 he will care for nothing that he does not 
 understand. The very contrary is, I 
 think, the truth. Nor is it the music of 
 the words or sentences only which awa- 
 kens the young brain. At the end of 
 twenty-five years the brain is the tena- 
 cious repository of millions and millions 
 of records, words, things, feelings, until 
 
32 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 the crowded mass has become a con- 
 geries of lexicons and encyclopedias. 
 Family readings are not to supply the 
 lack of regular and stated instruction 
 going on in the schoolroom ; they avail to 
 quicken intelligence rather than impart 
 learning ; not a schooling for the young- 
 er members of the family, but the brisk, 
 unrestrained circulation of the intellec- 
 tual life of the family. 
 
 " For only such books as enrich the 
 understanding and give themes and oc- 
 casion for profitable conversation and 
 thought should be taken : a wide range 
 must be given in the choice of them, 
 with liberty to interrupt the reader in 
 a seasonable manner. Liberty of inter- 
 ruption must indeed always be stipulated 
 for in family readings ; questions and con- 
 versation favor intellectual digestion. 
 
 "In cities, they must be the latest, 
 the noised books of the season, about 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 33 
 
 which one must be prepared to talk 
 a^out in society. In the country, books 
 on the shelves, volumes bound and let- 
 tered, can take their turn of friendly 
 and appreciative notice." 
 
 We can fancy the Taylors in lively 
 wonder over Captain Cook, Mungo 
 Park, and Dr. Johnson in the Hebrides ; 
 while Smollet's fifteen octavos was a 
 stock-book of English history constantly 
 resorted to in dearth of fresher or more 
 attractive material. 
 
 "And my inference is," he says, "that 
 if the daughters of a family have had 
 the advantage of thus listening* to the 
 best samples of our literature, past and 
 recent, they will probably have sur- 
 passed their brothers in that sort of in- 
 telligence which is the best fruit of edu- 
 cation, and which brings with it taste, 
 refinement, and at the least a good prep- 
 aration for further acquirements." 
 
 Jane Taylor. 
 
34 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 What new friendships were formed in 
 Colchester ? 
 
 The Taylors seem to have had no 
 taste, or perhaps time, for general soci- 
 ety. An intimacy sprang up between 
 them and the family of Dr. Stapleton, 
 whose four beautiful daughters were dis- 
 tinguished alike for personal charms and 
 mental endowments. 
 
 Here Jane and her sister for a time 
 found congenial friends. 
 
 A literary club was formed by these 
 young persons, where the productions 
 of their pens, in essays, stories, poems, 
 were contributed, to be read and criti- 
 cised by the members. Though Jane 
 was the youngest, distrustful of her abil- 
 ity, and shy of all notice, she was always 
 ready for the part assigned her, and 
 prized every opportunity of seeing and 
 amending her faults. 
 
 The club indeed had a marked influ- 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 35 
 
 ence in developing her tastes. Her 
 imagination, her delicate observation, 
 and thoughtful habits of mind gave the 
 pen a precedence over the pencil ; and 
 though writing was indulged in only in 
 scraps of time snatched from the orderly 
 industries of the clay, her articles had a 
 fulness and finish which belonged to 
 riper years. 
 
 Effort in this direction might possibly 
 have received little encouragement from 
 her parents. The old prejudice that lit- 
 erary labors disqualified a woman for 
 housewifely occupation w T as then in fash- 
 ion.. "Blue-stocking" was a term of re- 
 proach ; and Mrs. Taylor must overcome 
 more than her natural reserve before 
 consenting to see her daughters among 
 the literary aspirants of the day. But 
 obstacles are of small moment when 
 gifts and qualifications mark out our 
 sphere and assign us our duties. Our 
 
36 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 drift in life is not always determined by 
 the approbation of friends or our own 
 selections ; and Jane Taylor in the bosom 
 of seclusion was preparing to become 
 one of the clearest and wisest writers of 
 her sex. 
 
 Her mother also, in later years, con- 
 tributed a few volumes to the readers of 
 her day. Indeed, the "Family Pen 7 ' 
 bears witness to the literary activity of 
 this gifted family. 
 
 At an early age the instructions of 
 pious parents did not fall unheeded upon 
 Jane. She heard and laid up their 
 words in her heart, and pondered them 
 over, and strove to regulate her feelings 
 and conduct by them. At fourteen there 
 are records of her sense of the supreme 
 importance of religious things. 
 
 The great spiritual conflict between 
 good and evil which discloses itself to 
 our consciousness with the earliest de- 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 37 
 
 sires after a higher life, Jane entered 
 upon and found only incompleteness and 
 failure. 
 
 u Oh/ 7 she says, "it is hard fighting 
 in our own strength against the evil bias 
 of the heart and external enemies. Their 
 united forces are, I am daily more con- 
 vinced, far too much for any thing but 
 grace to overcome. No good resolutions, 
 no efforts of reason, no desire to please, 
 can alone succeed : they may varnish the 
 character ; but, oh, how insufficient are 
 all such motives for the trying occasions 
 of common life. I would shine most at 
 home ; yet I would not be good for the 
 sake of shining, bat for its own sake : 
 and when I thus trace the subject to 
 first principles, I find a change of heart 
 can alone effect what I desire — that 
 'new heart and that right spirit' which 
 are the gift of God." 
 
 To a young friend she wrote: "I 
 
38 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 speak from experience, when I say how 
 much benefit you receive from commu- 
 nicating your feelings to your dear moth- 
 er. Well do I know how difficult it is ; 
 yet the good to be gained is well worth 
 the effort. You say she is a total stran- 
 ger to your feelings. If, then, you con- 
 sider the pleasure it would afford her to 
 find you seriously inquiring on such sub- 
 jects, I think you will feel it to be an 
 additional argument for the disclosure. 
 Two or three years ago my mind was in a 
 state of extreme depression : for months 
 I had been conflicting with the most dis- 
 tressing fears, and longing to disburden 
 myself to my father ; at last I could no 
 longer support myself, and breaking 
 through what I had thought insurmount- 
 able difficulties, I opened my mind to 
 him completely. It was a struggle ; but 
 the immediate relief I experienced fully 
 repaid me ; and the unspeakable benefit 
 
JANE TAYL0K. 39 
 
 I have derived from the conversations I 
 have since from time to time held with 
 
 him, encourage me to persevere 
 
 "Mr. Cecil was very urgent with me 
 not to give way to that unhappy reluc- 
 tance to converse on religious subjects, 
 so common to young persons. If I un- 
 derstand you aright, you are giving way 
 to discontent as to your outward circum- 
 stances. 'The heart knoweth its own 
 bitterness,' and it is not for me to sav 
 you are happy ; yet from all I know of 
 you, j our friends, circumstances, and^ros- 
 pects, you are one of the last persons 
 whose situation would excite my com- 
 miseration. When I feel disposed to 
 indulge discontent or fretfulness, which, 
 alas, is sometimes the case, I always find 
 it a good way to compare myself with 
 the thousands who are exposed to the 
 miseries of poverty and want — miseries 
 which I never knew, and in the absence 
 
40 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 of which I invent calamities which the 
 smallest exposure to those real ones 
 would presently put to flight. But these 
 reflections, consolatory as they may be, 
 will not always avail to restore our com- 
 fort. Discontent, no doubt, much often- 
 er springs from internal causes than 
 immediately from those that are exter- 
 nal : with affectionate friends, affluent 
 circumstances, and while in the posses- 
 sion of all the world calls good, one may 
 be very miserable. Happiness is very 
 much in our own power, for it depends 
 much more upon what we are than upon 
 what we have. But now I cannot help 
 laughing at myself; for at this instant, 
 while recommending contented ness to 
 you, I am indulging an internal murmur, 
 and vexing at what I ought to account 
 a trifle, so much easier is it to talk or 
 to write than to act." 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 41 
 
 CHAPTEE III. 
 
 In the fall of 1802, Jane visited Lon- 
 don, the first time since she left it a lit- 
 tle child. A delightful circle of friends 
 and relatives welcomed her, and she 
 found, what her Colchester associates 
 had lacked, religious culture blended 
 with their social refinement. The visit 
 increased her religious thoughtfulness, 
 and led her to feel more than ever that, 
 beautiful as this life was, neither its 
 beauty nor its engagements could satisfy 
 the soul's deepest needs. 
 
 Anne had already found her way to 
 the pages of a youth's magazine, called 
 the Minor's Pocketbook. With some 
 misgivings, Jane followed her sister, and 
 the "Beggar Boy" appeared, a small 
 
42 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 poem, which attracted sufficient notice 
 to encourage further effort. The pub- 
 lishers sought the sisters out, and be- 
 spoke a book. The result was "Origi- 
 nal Poems for Infant Minds," the delight 
 of both parents and children from that 
 time to this. With the renowned melo- 
 dies of Mother Goose, they formed the 
 chief capital of nursery literature in the 
 last generation ; nor have the fertile 
 pens of the present day been altogether 
 able to supplant them. 
 
 " Original Poems" was quickly re- 
 printed in this country, and translated 
 into Dutch and German ; and such was 
 its sudden and well-merited popularity, 
 that another volume was immediately 
 asked for. 
 
 The minister and his wife were natu- 
 rally pleased by this unlooked-for suc- 
 cess of tlreir daughters ; and the recep- 
 tion of their first earnings, ten pounds, 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 43 
 
 was fall of that proud and joyful excite- 
 ment which belongs, and can only be- 
 long, to first things. 
 
 During the autumn of 1803 and the 
 following winter, the eastern and south- 
 ern coast of England was kept in per- 
 petual agitation by the threatening atti- 
 tude of France. Invasion was feared, 
 and troops were kept in readiness at 
 different points for instant use. Since 
 Colchester was one of the chief military 
 stations, a sense of impending danger, 
 of course, filled the air. Every day 
 rumor whispered fresh fears, and strong 
 probabilities were entertained that this 
 might be the scene of earliest conflict. 
 Several families left town, and others 
 prepared to do so at the shortest no- 
 tice. 
 
 Mr. Taylor still owned his house at 
 Lavenham ; and it being then unoccu- 
 pied, it was deemed safe, at least, to send 
 
44 * JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 a part of the family thither, in order to 
 have a home in readiness for more com- 
 plete removal. Jane, in charge of two 
 brothers and a little sister, led the anti- 
 cipated exodus. Twice a week, a wagon 
 of cumbrous bulk dragged its weary way 
 through the muddy lanes of Suffolk, from 
 Colchester to Lavenham ; and into this 
 Jane and her charge, with packages not 
 a few , were stowed away. 
 
 "And a sorry journey we had of it,' 7 
 she writes home: "upwards of twenty 
 inside, and each woman had a young 
 child. But what we suffered with heat, 
 smells, and bad language during the clay 
 was nothing to what we suffered when 
 night came — the road bad, the wagon 
 so loaded that we expected to break 
 clown, and the horses so tired that we 
 could scarcely get on. The drivers 
 were frightened, and you may be sure 
 the passengers were. However, at half- 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 45 
 
 past nine we arrived at Mr. Langley's 
 door, for they would not drive to ours, 
 and we found them waiting for us with 
 much anxiety and more kindness. They 
 would not hear to our going home that 
 night, and had prepared beds for us. 
 Our coming has excited much surprise 
 and more alarm. We have been this 
 morning and seen every thing safely 
 unpacked at our house. The little par- 
 lor with a nice fire, though unfurnished, 
 looks very comfortable, and we are quite 
 in good spirits. 
 
 "Our garden is a wild paradise. 
 "What noble willows 1" 
 
 A few days later she writes: "I sit 
 down to charm you, my dear mother, 
 with an account of the kindness of our 
 friends; but first I will tell you, for 
 your comfort, that all the china is safely 
 unpacked and locked up in the buffet. 
 We came directly after breakfast, and 
 
46 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 arranged every thing comfortably. Mr. 
 Hickman called about eleven, walked 
 round the garden-, and directed us how 
 to manage it ; and then we had a little 
 consultation as to how to open the little 
 parlor shutter, which, by dint of ham- 
 mers and screwdrivers, was effected ; 
 and no sooner was it done, than we be- 
 held what I think must have been a mill- 
 ion of flies, that, I suppose, having heard 
 of Napoleon's intentions, had, like our- 
 selves, taken up their winter quarters 
 here. We consulted with Mr. Hickman 
 on the propriety of having anybody in 
 the house ; but he says there is no need, 
 that there is no such thing as house- 
 breaking in Lavenham. He only re- 
 members one instance, many years ago, 
 at Langley; and then, the man being 
 hanged, so much terror was excited, 
 that no one has ventured since in the 
 same line. Isaac thinks Lavenham very 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 47 
 
 desolate ; but lie is much pleased with 
 the house and charmed with the Hick- 
 mans. 
 
 " They are much pleased with the 
 children, who behave very well. They 
 have a high idea, they say, of your 
 method of managing a family. Every- 
 body treats us with great attention ; no- 
 body laughs at us for coming ; most think 
 it quite right. Our letter excited much 
 alarm ; everybody has heard of it. The 
 people, by their inquiries, seem to think 
 we have been admitted to Bonaparte's 
 privy council.' 7 
 
 "Lavenham, October 18, 1803. 
 
 1 ' My dear Mother : We have safely 
 received your parcels and letters, which 
 were very acceptable to us. I am now 
 quite comfortably settled in my new 
 house, and feel as if I had taken up my 
 station here for a constancy. I manage 
 capitally, as you may suppose, and 'give 
 
48 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 satisfaction. 7 I rise (I am sorry I can- 
 not use the plural number) between six 
 and seven, and get every thing in order 
 before breakfast ; but with all my en- 
 deavors, I cannot begin engraving before 
 eleven, to which I sit down again half 
 an hour after dinner. We keep school 
 very regularly, and Jemima comes on 
 both in reading and work. As to econ- 
 omy, I study it as much as possible ; 
 and for our employments, they are cer- 
 tainly broken in upon at present, but 
 will be less and less so as we get more 
 settled. We have not indulged in one 
 walk yet, though the country and weath- 
 er have been beautifully inviting; but 
 we sit at the bow-winclow next the gar- 
 den, and quite enjoy ourselves." 
 
 A letter from Mrs. Taylor lets us 
 into the motherly heart. 
 
 "My sweet Darlixgs : Your epistle 
 received last night was truly refreshing. 
 
JANE TAYLOR. . 4Q 
 
 It gratified us in so many points that we 
 read it twice over, and it is now on the 
 road to London to gratify our dear 
 friends there. Your management is un- 
 exceptionable — is admirable, save in one 
 point ; and now I am going to scold you 
 most heartily. You boast that you have 
 not taken one walk since you have been 
 there. More shame for you. I wonder 
 you dared mention such a thing. No 
 exercise ! Perhaps you will say you 
 have enough with household affairs ; but 
 where is Isaac's? where is the chil- 
 dren's? Shame on you! Your father 
 is quite surprised at it, and desires me 
 to say that he expects you to walk every 
 day, when the weather will permit, for 
 an hour. See also that the children run 
 in the garden. Are they good? 
 
 " I am very sorry it is not in my power 
 to send you a seed-cake ; but Tuesday, 
 when we could have baked, we could get 
 
 Jane Taylor. 7 
 
50 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 no yeast ; yesterday, you know, was fast- 
 day ; we cannot therefore bake till to- 
 morrow. I promise to send you one 
 next week. As for the linen, by all 
 means have it washed at Lavenham. 
 Send me home every thing that wants 
 mending; pray let nothing get out of 
 repair, but send every thing home at 
 once. 
 
 "And now for news. All here is per- 
 fectly quiet, and still no thinking people 
 at all doubt our being invaded ; but as 
 to their success, there are different opin- 
 ions. The foolish and uninformed, who 
 you know in Colchester form by far the 
 greatest part, now laugh at the late 
 alarm, laugh at those who left town, 
 laugh at General Craig, laugh at every 
 thing, and think all as safe and secure 
 as if they were in the garden of Eden. 
 Sure this is not one of those awful still 
 calms before a violent storm ; certain it 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 51 
 
 is, General Craig is still indefatigable in 
 spite of all laughing. The Batter mar- 
 ket is being walled up to make a guard- 
 house, and every thing goes on with the 
 utmost vigor. Yesterday was the fast. 
 The volunteers, mayor, etc., all went to 
 St. James' to hear Mr. Bound, who 
 preached from the Maccabees ! Your 
 father entered, for the first time in his 
 life, most seriously and earnestly into 
 the spirit of the fast. He took one half- 
 round of toast for breakfast, and no din- 
 ner ; I took no breakfast, save half a 
 pint of water, and a very little dinner ; 
 no cloth laid ; and Martin and Kitty 
 very compliant. Your father and Mar- 
 tin went to meeting in the morning; in 
 the afternoon we read and prayed at 
 home ; and in the evening had a lecture 
 in our old place. I chose the text ; it 
 was this, David's words to Goliath of 
 Gath : 'Tllou comest to me with a sword, 
 
52 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 and with a spear, and with a shield : but 
 I come to thee in the name of the Lord 
 of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, 
 whom thou hast defied. 7 It was a won- 
 derful discourse. The people came about 
 your father in the vestry, and begged 
 him to have it printed, several of them 
 sa} T ing they would give five shillings 
 towards the expense. 
 
 " I had intended to send you the other 
 three chairs, but Gosling cannot take 
 them. I will, however, try him with 
 the little parlor carpet. Your dear 
 father set off this morning for London 
 with Mrs. Stapleton and the two girls : 
 so here I am all alone ; but God, who 
 always gives strength for the clay, sup- 
 ports my spirits wonderfully. I am tol- 
 erable in health, and Martin is very 
 good. When your father returns, unless 
 things should very much alter for the 
 better, his intention is to send you more 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 53 
 
 and more of his weekly property, and 
 after the wash I propose with Martin to 
 pay you a visit for a week or two. Our 
 dear Anne shall also pay you a visit, for 
 we see no likelihood of your quitting 
 your station all the winter. As for the 
 kindness of your friends, we cannot say 
 enough to express our gratitude. God 
 bless them all, and you, my dear, duti- 
 ful children, the comforts of my life, the 
 solace of my heart. Farewell all. 
 
 "ANN TAYLOR" 
 
 "Thank you for the carpet," replies 
 Jane ; " it is quite a luxury to us. Al- 
 though we brought every thing absolute- 
 ly necessary, we have few conveniences ; 
 and though, if we were all huddled to- 
 gether in a barn, expecting the French 
 to overtake us every instant, we might 
 be very well contented with 
 
 " 'An open broken elbow chair, 
 A candle cup without an ear,' etc. ; 
 
54 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 yet, living quietly, like our neighbors, 
 we rather miss the conveniences we 
 have been used to. I must confess we 
 did not fast on the fast day ; we went, 
 however, in the morning to the prayer- 
 meeting, where we heard an excellent 
 
 prayer from Mr. , of three-quarters 
 
 of an hour. Its length spoiled it, for 
 we were all ready to faint. In the 
 afternoon we walked with the children. 
 I thank you and father for what you 
 say about walking ; but really we seem 
 very little to need more exercise than 
 we have in the house and garden, where 
 the children play continually. If we 
 take a walk once or twice a week, just 
 to look at the old places and show the 
 children the new ones, it is quite suffi- 
 cient." 
 
 Towards the close of her stay at Lav- 
 enham, Jane writes to her mother: 
 " Could you see us just now, I cannot 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 55 
 
 tell whether you would most laugh at or 
 pity us. I am sitting in the middle of 
 the room, surrounded with beds, chairs, 
 tables, boxes, etc. ; and every room is 
 the same ; but our brains are in still 
 greater confusion, not knowing now what 
 to do. Have you heard this new alarm ? 
 It is said the French are actually em- 
 barking. Mr. strongly advises us 
 
 not to move till we hear something 
 more; so we are quite perplexed. We 
 have at length resolved to wait, at all 
 events, till Saturday; and if you write 
 by return of post, we shall be able to 
 act then according to your wishes ; but 
 in the mean time we shall be in a most 
 delightful plight, for most of the things 
 are packed up, ready to go to-morrow : 
 and then if, after all, we must stay, it 
 will be vexatious enough. If you find 
 there is no foundation for the alarm, 
 you will, of course, order us home di- 
 
56 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 • 
 
 rectly. But do not fail to write, for we 
 are quite deplorable." 
 
 All fears from this quarter having at 
 length subsided, Jane and her charge 
 returned to Colchester, and by Febru- 
 ary the family were reunited und( r the 
 home roof. 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 57 
 
 CHAPTEE IV. 
 
 "The more I see of myself and of the 
 performances of others, the more I am 
 convinced nature never intended me for 
 smartist;' 1 Jane savs. She therefore relin- 
 quished engraving with little regret when 
 other engagements opened before her. 
 
 A second volume of original poems 
 was followed by " Rhymes for the Nur- 
 sery," the joint work of both sisters, 
 whose sweet lullabies have not lost their 
 hold on young hearts, since we find them 
 illustrated with all the attractions of 
 modern art, bravely holding their own 
 among the innumerable host which be- 
 siege the nurseries of our day. 
 
 Writing to a friend, she thus describes 
 the favoring circumstances under which 
 they were written : 
 
58 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 "My verses have certainly one ad- 
 vantage to boast beyond any that ever 
 before escaped from my pen — that of 
 being composed in my own study. 
 Whether instigated by the sight of your 
 retired literarium, or what, I cannot ex- 
 actly tell ; but certain it is, that one of 
 my first engagements on my return home 
 was to fit up an unoccupied attic, hith- 
 erto devoted only to household lumber. 
 This I removed by the most spirited ex- 
 ertions, and supplied its place with all 
 the apparatus necessary for a poet, which, 
 you know, is not of a very extensive 
 nature — a few book-shelves, a table for 
 my writing-desk, one chair for myself, 
 and another for my muse, is a pretty 
 accurate inventory of my furniture. But 
 though my study cannot boast the ele- 
 gance of yours, it possesses one advan- 
 tage which, as a poet, you ought to allow, 
 surpasses them all — it commands a view 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 59 
 
 of the country ; the only room in the 
 house, except one, which is thus fa- 
 vored ; and to me this is invaluable. 
 You may now expect me to do wonders. 
 But even if others should derive no ad- 
 vantages from this new arrangement, to 
 me, I am sure, they will be numerous. 
 For years I have been longing for such 
 a luxury; and never before had wit 
 enough to think of this convenient place. 
 It will add so much to the comfort of my 
 life, that I can do nothing but congratu- 
 late myself upon the happy thought. 
 Although it is morning, and, I must tell 
 you, but little past six, I have half filled 
 this sheet, which capability I attribute 
 chiefly to the sweet fields that are now 
 smiling in vernal beauty before me.' 7 
 
 But it was more than a workshop. It 
 became an inner sanctuary — ' ' her closet/' 
 where devotional habits were strength- 
 ened and cultivated, and with them that 
 
60 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 thorough and honest self- inspection 
 which always carefully guarded and 
 guided her spiritual life. 
 
 " Those who are in the habit of read- 
 ing their own hearts," she says, "know 
 that the heart may be as devotedly fixed 
 on what is in itself a truly worthy and 
 proper object of regard, as on the sinful 
 vanities of the world ; and if that object 
 be any thing but God, its intrinsic value 
 diminishes nothing from the idolatry of 
 the feeling. Perhaps I need not blush 
 for those things' on which mv heart is 
 most intent; but I ought to blush, could 
 I disclose the monopolizing place which 
 they hold there ; they reign. When will 
 these idols fall before God ?" 
 
 Nor should we ever forget that the 
 best objects may be idolatrously pur- 
 sued. Even "doing good" is beset with 
 snares. How can we otherwise account 
 for the dwarfed and knurled quality of 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 61 
 
 character which sometimes suddenly 
 startles us in a man or woman long asso- 
 ciated with some noble work, save that 
 God was left out, and it came, perhaps 
 unconsciously, to be sought instead ; and 
 so were lost that enlargement, richness, 
 and flavor which the soul must ever get 
 from having God supremely there, and 
 his work subordinate to his Spirit. 
 
 Dr. Stapleton, who welcomed the Tay- 
 lors to Colchester, suddenly died in the 
 prime of his usefulness — a loss to all, 
 and especially so to his own family. 
 After his death, his brilliant daughters, 
 breaking away from the gentler re- 
 straints of their mother, fell into the 
 fashionable rationalism of the day. Free- 
 thinking was in vogue, and scandals 
 among Christians brought discredit on 
 creeds. They repudiated faith in the 
 word of God, and enjoyed all the intel- 
 lectual excitement, the freshness and 
 
62 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 freedom which emancipation from the 
 " prejudices " of a religious education 
 for a time affords. Consumption entered 
 the family, and one by one swept all 
 away. It swept away also the glittering 
 generalities, which, however they may 
 have animated the hours of health, 
 afforded neither comfort nor support in 
 a path to the grave. 
 
 The eldest, entangled more than con- 
 vinced, in her long illness tried to retrace 
 her steps. Her new instructors could 
 throw no light on the dark future. As 
 her end drew near, she implored her 
 sisters to return to a devout study of 
 the Scriptures, and died praying to be 
 saved in " God's own way." 
 
 Their intimacy with the Taylors had 
 naturally declined. Jane continued in 
 friendly correspondence with Eliza, 
 nearest her own age, who, attacked by 
 the same fatal malady, was journeying 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 63 
 
 from place to place in a fruitless quest 
 of health. At a small inn by the road- 
 side she stopped to rest, but was never 
 able to resume her journey. The extent 
 of her danger flashed upon her ; con- 
 science was aroused ; the perils of un- 
 settled accounts in the great Hereafter 
 filled her with alarm. She felt herself 
 exposed to the penalties of Divine law 
 without shelter or excuse. After a long 
 and agonizing conflict, she accepted the 
 "only hope set before us." The Re- 
 deemer of lost men became her refuge. 
 Renouncing the sophistries of a Christ- 
 less system, she lived long enough to 
 rejoice in the promises of salvation, and 
 commend them to others. 
 
 "My hope," she said, "is in Christ — 
 in Christ crucified, and I would not give 
 up that hope for all the world." The 
 precious and ever-repeated experience 
 of believing trust. 
 
64 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 Youth, with its elastic hopes and eager 
 outlooks, did not dissipate the influence 
 which events like these must have on a 
 thoughtful mind, and Jane's character 
 was visibly shaped by them. 
 
 The skepticism of her friends had not 
 been whollv lost on her sensitive nature. 
 Doubts, fears, the sophisms of error, and 
 the difficulties of truth often harassed 
 and perplexed her ; and while they did 
 not materially shake her belief, delayed 
 a clear apprehension of the fulness and 
 sufficiency of atoning love, tinging her 
 early religious life with sadness and dis- 
 trust. 
 
 "You have well described," she says 
 to a friend, "the difficulty, the exertion 
 requisite for real and fervent prayer. I 
 am glad I do know the difference be- 
 tween that and the offering of lifeless 
 petitions. You rightly affirm that true 
 prayer surpasses every other mental 
 
JANE TAYLOR. G5 
 
 exercise, and is certainly beyond human 
 attainment, without Divine aid. Cer- 
 tainly no one ever prayed who was not 
 a Christian ; but though sometimes I have 
 found every faculty, for a few moments, 
 .intently engaged in the exercise, how 
 can I hope that this is really prayer, 
 when I remember the indifference, the 
 coldness, the reluctance that character- 
 ize the general state of my mind. Yet 
 in the midst of the darkness which sur- 
 rounds my own mind, I rejoice, my dear 
 friend, in the light which shines upon 
 yours. ?; 
 
 Her friends, not unaware of the mis- 
 givings which clouded her hopes, often 
 vouchsafed their counsel and encourage- 
 ment. 
 
 "With sincere gratitude and love,' 7 
 writes Jane, "I would thank you again, 
 my dear Anne, for your tender concern 
 in my behalf. Your visit was truly a 
 
 June Taylor. 
 
66 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 visit of sunshine ; and how sweetly 
 refreshing are snch occasional gleams, 
 breaking forth from a cloudy sky — and 
 such indeed is mine. I could bear the 
 roughness of the road, if it were but 
 bright overhead : however, I dare not 
 turn back ; and you, dear Anne, while 
 going on your way rejoicing, will not, I 
 am sure, be unmindful of your benighted 
 friend. It may be long before we meet 
 again ; but my heart has been accus- 
 tomed to love the absent, and my 
 thoughts will frequently attend you, 
 laden with sincere affection.' 7 
 
 To another friend she says: "I own, 
 indeed, I do feel a backwardness in in- 
 troducing these topics, and, as you say, 
 arising from a false shame, it ought not 
 to be encouraged. But I have other 
 impediments ; and if I cannot speak with 
 entire freedom on religions subjects, it 
 is not indeed because I cannot confide 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 67 
 
 in you, but for want of confidence in 
 myself. I dread much more than total 
 silence falling into a commonplace, tech- 
 nical style of expression, without real 
 meaning and feeling, and thereby de- 
 .ceiving both myself and others. I well 
 know how ready my friends are to give 
 me encouragement, and hope the best 
 concerning me ; and as I cannot open to 
 them the secret recesses of my heart, 
 they put a too favorable construction on 
 my expressions. 
 
 "Yet I do hope that I have of late 
 seen something of the vanity of the 
 world, and increasingly feel that it can- 
 not be my rest. The companions of my 
 youth are no more ; our own domestic cir- 
 cle is breaking up ; time seems every day 
 to fly with increased rapidity ; and must 
 I not say, 'the world recedes?' Under 
 these impressions I would seek consola- 
 tion where only I know it is to be found. 
 
68 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 I long to be able to make heaven and 
 eternity the home of my thoughts, to 
 which, though they must often wander 
 abroad on other concerns, they may 
 regularly return and find their best en- 
 tertainment. But I always indulge with 
 fear and self-suspicion in these most 
 interesting contemplations ; and doubt- 
 less the enjoyments arising from them 
 belong rather to the advanced Christian 
 than the doubting, wandering beginner. 
 I am afraid I feel poetically rather than 
 piously; and while I am indulging in 
 vain conjectures on the employments 
 and enjoyments of a future state, I must 
 envy the humble Christian who, with 
 jnster views and better claims, is long- 
 ing* to depart and be with Christ. 
 
 "Nor would I mistake a fretful im- 
 patience with the fatigues and crosses of 
 life for a temper weaned from the world, 
 I could indeed sometimes sav : 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 69 
 
 " 'I long to lay this painful head 
 
 And aching heart beneath the soil — 
 To slumber in that dreamless bed 
 From all my toil. ' 
 
 And I have felt, too, these lines : 
 
 " ' The bitter tear — the arduous struggle ceases here— 
 M The doubt, the danger, and the fear, 
 All, all for ever o'er. ' 
 
 But these feelings, though they may 
 afford occasional relief, I could not in- 
 dulge in." 
 
 Her discernment of the true question 
 at issue in cases like these is not with- 
 out interest. 
 
 "I cannot think what has given you 
 the idea so strongly that I advocate the 
 theatre, unless it be my going one even- 
 ing, five years ago ; and though I am not 
 aware of having sustained any material 
 injury, I have ever since decidedly re- 
 solved never to repeat the visit; and I 
 hope you will believe me when I assure 
 vou that I disapprove of such amuse- 
 
70 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 ments, and should think it very danger- 
 ous to be in the habit of frequenting 
 them. 
 
 "You mention novels. I would as 
 soon read some of Miss Edgeworth's or 
 Miss Hamilton's novels, with a view to 
 moral improvement, as Foster's Essays ; 
 and I have too high an opinion of your 
 good sense and liberality to suppose that, 
 after a careful perusal of these and some 
 few other good novels, (for the number 
 of good ones I readily allow to be very 
 small,) you would repeat that 'to read 
 them was incompatible with love to 
 God.' You oblige me to recur to a hack- 
 neyed argument, that the abuse of a thing- 
 should not set aside its use. 
 
 "Do not say, then, I am pleading for 
 an indiscriminate indulgence in novel- 
 reading, or a frequent perusal of the very 
 best of novels ; that, in common with 
 every innocent recreation, may be easily 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 71 
 
 carried to a hurtful excess ; but you seem 
 to me to fancy some fatal spell to attend 
 the very name of novel, in a way that 
 we should smile at, as narrow-minded 
 and ignorant, in an uneducated person. 
 All I wish you to admit — all I think 
 myself is, that it is a possible thing for 
 a book to be written, bearing the gen- 
 eral form, appearance, and name of a 
 novel, in the cause of virtue, morality ; 
 and religion ; and then, that to read such 
 a book is by no means 'incompatible 
 wtth love to God,' or in the least dis- 
 pleasing in his sight. I think you will 
 not hesitate to admit this ; and then we 
 exactly agree in our opinions of ' plays 
 and novels.' That plays and bad novels 
 are 'poisons which Satan frequently in- 
 sinuates' with too great success, I have 
 no more doubt than yourself. Yet, if I 
 am not mistaken, he has some still more 
 potent venoms ; if I might judge from 
 
72 JANE TAYLOlt. 
 
 myself, there are ways, in the most pri- 
 vate life, in domestic scenes, in solitary 
 retirements, by which Satan can as effec- 
 tually operate on the heart as in a crowd- 
 ed theatre. I believe I might read a 
 hundred novels, and attend as many 
 plays, and have my heart less drawn 
 from God than by those common pur- 
 suits and interests which, while it would 
 be sinful to avoid them, I cannot engage 
 in without sin. It is in the realities of 
 life, and not merely in the fictions that 
 occasionally amuse us, that I find the 
 most baneful poisons, the most effectual 
 weaners from ' love to Grod. ? 
 
 "•I think many people 'strain at a 
 gnat and swallow a camel' in these very 
 circumstances ; and Satan willingly suf- 
 fers them to abstain from the theatre, or 
 throw aside a novel with abhorrence, if 
 the idol, the real idol he has erected in 
 their hearts, receive its daily worship. 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 73 
 
 You cannot suppose I am bringing this 
 forward by way of argument for the 
 one or the other ; but it always appears 
 to me that people begin at the wrong 
 end when they attack such errors as 
 these. One might as well expect to 
 demolish a building by pulling down 
 some external ornament, while the pil- 
 lars were left nnmoved ; and I think 
 many who exclaim with vehemence 
 against those who indulge in some of 
 the vain pleasures of the world, would 
 do well to examine if there be not some 
 favorite idol within their own breasts 
 equally displeasing in the sight of a 
 heart-searching God. I do not say this 
 
 to you, dear E . I know you watch 
 
 your heart as well as your conduct, and 
 earnestly desire to guard it in every 
 quarter from the incursions of the great 
 adversary." 
 
 10 
 
74 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 " Colchestee, Feb. 14, 1808. 
 
 "Nothing less, my dear Eliza, than 
 your actual presence would, I believe, 
 just now rouse me from the stupor of a 
 long evening's application. I alwa}^s 
 grow quite rusty in winter, and almost 
 forget that the world reaches farther 
 than from one end of the house to the 
 other. 
 
 " You, who have seen us only in sum- 
 mer, when we are never so regular in 
 our movements, can scarcely form an 
 idea of the retirement and uninterrupt- 
 ed regularity of our winter life. We 
 seem more like the possessors of some 
 lone castle in the bosom of the moun- 
 tains, than the inhabitants of a populous 
 town. I enjoy this retirement, this 
 peaceful and happy home, where my 
 heart and my happiness are centred. 
 When I look round on the dear and yet 
 unbroken circle, I reproach myself if I 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 75 
 
 have ever iudulged a feeling of fretful- 
 ness ; jet we have troubles and anxie- 
 ties that will sometimes destroy cheer- 
 fulness. But I feel persuaded that, how- 
 ever I may feel their pressure now, I 
 shall never know happier days than 
 these. And one advantage I have ; I 
 am still young, and feel that flow of 
 spirits, that bounding joy of heart which 
 always attends the spring of life. The 
 spirits may indeed be depressed, but 
 they will rise again ; and I have often 
 been surprised at the joyfulness return- 
 ing to my heart from no apparent cause, 
 and when circumstances which had 
 plunged me in dejection remained un- 
 changed.' 7 
 
 "But this is not all." Jane says as to 
 motives: "He who searches the heart 
 will not afford me strength to over- 
 come my temper unless he sees a right 
 motive urging me to attempt it. If I wish 
 
76 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 to be amiable for the same reason that 
 I might wish to be accomplished or beau- 
 tiful, that is, that I may be admired, or 
 loved, or respected, can I hope for suc- 
 cess ? Oh, no. If I be not actuated by 
 a humble desire to obey the commands 
 of G-od, and follow the bright example 
 of Jesus Christ, by a hatred of all that is 
 sinful, and an ardent desire to be 'holy, 
 as he is holv, 7 I must still strive and 
 pray in vain. How does this increase 
 the difficulty of the work, and show the 
 absolute necessity of Divine help: not 
 that I think a modest wish to please can 
 be sinful ; indeed, without it how can we 
 ever expect to please ; but this must not 
 be the spring of action, unless we prefer 
 the approbation of friends to the favor 
 of God." 7 
 
 11 My dear Luck," she writes to a 
 London friend, Sarah L. Condor, "much 
 as I love London for the friends it con- 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 77 
 
 tains, I think my delight in country sce- 
 nery increases every year ; and while I 
 occasionally cast a wistful look towards 
 places where I feel a heart interest, yet, 
 when I contrast smoke, noise, and dark- 
 ness with the smiling landscape and clear 
 sky and all the beauties of a country 
 walk, which is here always within reach, 
 I forget my privations of other kinds, 
 and acknowledge that my lines have 
 fallen to me in pleasant places. 
 
 "That I have an eye to see and a 
 heart to feel the beauties of nature, I 
 cannot feel too thankful for, because 
 they afford me constant and unsatiating 
 pleasure, and form almost my only recre- 
 ation ; and I trust that, having acquired 
 a love for these simple enjoyments, I 
 shall never lose it, but that in seasons 
 of solitude and of sorrow I shall continue 
 to find a sweet solace in them. When 
 I am in low spirits, weary, or cross, one 
 
78 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 glance at the landscape from the window 
 of my attic never fails to produce a sal- 
 utary effect on me. And when "tis 
 night, and the landscape is lovely no 
 more, 7 if moon, planet, or star conde- 
 scend to beam through my casement, I 
 retire under its benign influence. To a 
 Londoner I might apologize for dwelling 
 on such a theme, but to a poet I cannot ; 
 and though to a correspondent I ought 
 to apologize for so much egotism, to a 
 friend I need not." 
 
 " You ask me to define a compliment, " 
 writes Jane to Josiah Condor, Luck's 
 brother. "I thought we had agreed 
 that praise bestowed upon real merit by 
 the honest judgment, and administered 
 temperately, ought not to be termed a 
 compliment. Whenever praise exceeds 
 these limits, it deserves no better name. 
 But I fear, unless we have courage to 
 violate the common laws of good-breed- 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 19 
 
 ing, we must all confess ourselves faulty 
 in this respect. Indeed, it seems to 
 depend more upon the character of our 
 associates than upon ourselves, to what 
 degree we offend. I have friends whom 
 I -cannot compliment; and I have ac- 
 quaintances whom, unless I transgress 
 these laws, I must need compliment 
 whenever I am in their company. In 
 this view, if I have accused you of such 
 a practice, I am willing to take the blame 
 upon myself ; and I will consider myself 
 bound, for your sake as well as for my 
 own, better to merit these commenda- 
 tions which neither your politeness could 
 entirely withhold, nor my vanity wholly 
 dispense with. It is difficult to distin- 
 guish accurately between an honest de- 
 sire to please, and that poisonous love of 
 admiration which acts rather as a clog 
 than a stimulus to mental improvement — 
 to judge between a laudable ambition to 
 
80 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 excel and a vain and selfish desire to 
 outshine others. A proud indifference 
 to the opinion of the world is no amiable 
 feeling; but to be independent of its 
 smiles, by valuing chiefly the sweets of 
 inward tranquillity, is indeed a most 
 desirable state of mind, only to be at- 
 tained by cultivating the best principles 
 and by seeking approbation from the 
 highest source." 
 
 In relation to her religious perplexi- 
 ties, "prayer," she says, "is to me so 
 difficult a task, that when I have per- 
 formed it with any degree of correctness, 
 I rise from my knees exhausted in mind 
 and body ; every power is on the full 
 stretch to gain a glimpse of Him whom 
 I desire to see, to realize his presence, 
 and even his existence ; and if I relax 
 for a moment, then all is lost, and J 
 seem to be addressing a shadow ; in- 
 deed, I fear that I never did address a 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 81 
 
 single petition, or direct a single thought 
 to God. Do you know what I mean by 
 saying that my prayers seem to fall short 
 of the object to whom I would offer them? 
 "Nor can I describe the perplexity 
 with which my mind is entangled when- 
 ever I try to direct a thought towards 
 the Saviour ; I feel no powers capable 
 of viewing or even thinking of him ; and 
 though I am interested whenever I hear 
 or read his name, and feel encouraged 
 and affected when I meet with the free 
 and gracious invitations and promises of 
 the gospel, yet when I attempt to apply 
 them, they seem to lose their value and 
 importance. If I did did but feel sin to 
 be a burden, surely I should soon learn 
 to fly to Him who alone could release me 
 from it. But this is my misery : I do not 
 see the evil of sin; and though I know 
 myself to be in cruel bondage to it, yet 
 my chains do not gall me ; and with my 
 
 Jin> Tavlor. 1 1 
 
82 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 eyes open, the word of God before me, 
 knowing every thing, hut feeling nothing, 
 I am afraid I shall never have other 
 views. It seems impossible that so great 
 a change can take place in me. 
 
 "Were any thing less than the wel- 
 fare of my soul concerned, I should hes- 
 itate to trouble you so often with the 
 detail of my fears and difficulties ; but 
 it is my life, and I cannot refrain. The 
 knowledge that your disease — in some 
 respects similar to my own — has been 
 so completely cured, has awakened a 
 hope which has encouraged me to per- 
 severe, when I believe I should other- 
 wise have given over ; and you have 
 instructed me in the way." 
 
 To those struggling in the same con- 
 flict, the assurance that in holding on 
 there is final victory, is emphasized in 
 the life of Jane Taylor. 
 
 Her brother Isaac in after years char- 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 83 
 
 acterized her early intimacies and in- 
 structions by "Christianized intellectu- 
 alism," in which, no doubt, " the sure 
 foundation, 7 ' Christ's finished work, was 
 not set forth with that clearness and 
 directness with which she afterwards 
 saw and apprehended it. 
 
84 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 CHAPTEB Y. 
 
 The sad excitement of the first break 
 in the family circle began to agitate this 
 quiet home when Isaac and Martin were 
 of age to go out and find what life had 
 for them to do ; and it weighed on Jane 
 as it must ever weigh on a thoughtful 
 and loving nature. 
 
 In a letter to "clear. Luck," in May, 
 1809, she opens thus her heart : 
 
 " This letter was begun some time ago. 
 Many things have prevented my finish- 
 ing it ; and I have been in a state of 
 
 anxiety about the settlement of , 
 
 which has so much occupied my thoughts 
 that I have not had the heart to resume 
 my pen. His affairs are }^et undecided, 
 and we are waiting very anxiously to 
 see what is the will of Providence con- 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 85 
 
 cerning him. When I remember how 
 kindly our heavenly Father has hitherto 
 led us as a family, in credit and comfort, 
 through so many struggles, I feel a sweet 
 consolation in committing all our tem- 
 poral affairs to him, and hope that my 
 clear brothers, for whose welfare we feel 
 unspeakable solicitude, may be guided 
 by that ' pillar of cloud and of fire ; by 
 which we have been so far directed. 
 Yet again, when I see that many a one, 
 equally deserving and equally dear to 
 parents and sisters, becomes a prey to 
 misfortunes, and encounters in life noth- 
 ing but neglects and disappointments, 
 how can I be sure this may not be the 
 case with my dear brothers ? 
 
 "Dear Luck, you would pity me if 
 you knew the many tears I have shed 
 over these forebodings ; but all this is 
 foolish and wrong. I do try cheerfully 
 to commit them to God. and hope I may be 
 
136 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 able to say with some submission, what- 
 ever be their fate, ' Thy will be done. 7 
 The separation which now draws so near 
 I hardly know how to fortify myself to 
 bear ; for though the distance is short, 
 and our interviews may be frequent, 
 yet I must view it as the breaking up of 
 our family, so long and so closely uni- 
 ted, and a part of it so dear to us leaving 
 home — safe, happy, affectionate home— 
 for ever. Excuse me, dear Luck; my 
 heart is very full on this subject, and in 
 writing to a friend, I could not avoid it. 
 "Oh, when the mind is weary and 
 heavily laden with these worldly cares, 
 how refreshing it is to look beyond them 
 all to that rest, to those happy, peace- 
 ful mansions that are prepared for the 
 people of God. The delightful hope of 
 seeing all my dear family and all I love 
 below safely landed there makes these 
 fears and anxieties fade into insignifi- 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 87 
 
 cance. But oh, what new fears and anx- 
 ieties arise here! It may be well that 
 our minds are not capable of measuring 
 the vast disproportion between the con- 
 cerns of this life and those of eternity, 
 or we should not be able to give a suffi- 
 cient degree of attention to our present 
 duties. Could we view the most impor- 
 tant events that can ever occur to us 
 here in the same light as we shall look 
 back upon them from the other world, 
 we should scarcely be able to exert a 
 proper degree of energy in the pursuit 
 or management of them." 
 
 The brothers went to London ; engra- 
 ving still ; and painful as this parting 
 was in anticipation, their absence, when 
 it came, flooded her with those sorrow- 
 ful forebodings which every dear old 
 home has felt when its sons go out from 
 its sheltering love. 
 
 "I regard this separation as one of 
 
88 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 the greatest sorrows I have known," she 
 says. "I cannot view it merely as a 
 parting with a friend whom I may hope 
 to meet again in a few months ; for though 
 our interviews may be frequent, our sep- 
 aration as companions is final ; we are 
 to travel different roads ; and all the 
 time we may actually pass together in 
 the course of occasional meetings in our 
 whole future lives may not amount to 
 more than a year or two of constant 
 intercourse." 
 
 In a letter written to her brothers 
 during this separation she says: " Oh, 
 this cruel separation! It would have 
 killed me to have known, when we first 
 parted, how complete it would be. I 
 am glad we deceived ourselves with the 
 hope of keeping up frequent intercourse 
 by letters and visits ; it saved us a se- 
 verer pang than any we then endured. 
 These painful reflections are revived by 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 89 
 
 the disappointment of our fond hopes of 
 a speedy reunion, which is now rendered 
 not only distant, but very doubtful. You, 
 engaged in business and surrounded with 
 friends, cannot feel as we do on this sub- 
 ject. We have nothing to do but to con- 
 template our cheerless prospects, or to 
 think of the days that are past. I do 
 not mean it reproachfully when I say 
 that you will soon learn to do without 
 us ; it is the natural consequence of your 
 situation, and we ought to be reconciled 
 to the ' common lot.' But how can I for- 
 get the happy years in which we were ev- 
 er} 7 thing to each other ? I am sometimes 
 half-jealous of our friends, especially of 
 
 , who now has that confidence which 
 
 we once enjoyed. But I will not pro- 
 ceed in this mournful strain ; and do 
 not think, my dear brothers, that I am 
 charging you with neglect, or any de- 
 crease of affection ; though I do some- 
 
 12 
 
90 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 times anticipate, and that with bitter 
 regret, the natural effect of a long-con- 
 tinued separation. 
 
 " We have not yet tried separation 
 long enough to know what its effects will 
 eventually be. I clread lest, in time, 
 we should be so accustomed to it as to 
 feel contented to live apart, and forget 
 the pleasure of our former intercourse : 
 and I cannot suffer myself to believe 
 what, after all, is most probable, that* 
 we never shall be united again. It is a 
 forlorn idea ; for what will two or three 
 flying visits in the course of a year 
 amount to ? Life is short, and we are 
 perhaps half- way through it already. 
 Well, I ought to be thankful that so 
 large a portion of it we have passed in 
 company, and that the best part too. 
 As to the future, if I could be sure that 
 years of separation would not in the least 
 estrange our love, I would strive to be 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 91 
 
 content ; but the idea of becoming such 
 brothers and sisters as we see every- 
 where is incomparably more painful than 
 that of a final banishment, in which we 
 ^should love each other as we now do." 
 
 No such assurance, alas, can be given. 
 
 Happily a new literary enterprise 
 helped to divert Jane's mind from its 
 sad regrets. A volume of poems was 
 projected by some of her London friends, 
 in which she was persuaded to take part. 
 Consenting with her usual distrust, she 
 gained courage by her humility. 
 
 "Since I have had time to think so- 
 berly about the 'Wreath,'" she says, 
 " for this must be its title, I have felt 
 far less anxious about the share I am to 
 have in it. Now I am not going to tease 
 you with any of my 'morbid humility/ 
 for I am as weary of it and as angry with 
 it as you are ; but I must just tell you 
 how it affects me. I think I know pretty 
 
92 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 well how to estimate my poetical talent ; 
 at least, I am perfectly persuaded I do 
 not underrate it ; and, in comparison with 
 my blooming companions in this garland, 
 I allow my pieces to rank as the leaves ; 
 which are, you know, always reckoned 
 a necessary and even pleasing part of a 
 bouquet: and I may add that I am not 
 only contented, but pleased with this 
 station. It is safe and snug, and my 
 chief anxiety is not to suffer any thing 
 ridiculous or very lame to appear. With 
 these views, I consent. The opinion of 
 the little hallowed circle of my own pri- 
 vate friends is more to me than the ap- 
 plauses of a world of strangers. To them 
 my pieces arc already known ; by them 
 their merits and their faults are already 
 determined ; and if they continue to 
 smile kindly upon my simple muse, she 
 will not, I think, easily be put in ill- 
 humor." 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 98 
 
 The book came to light under the 
 
 name of "The Associate Minstrels/' 
 
 which the Christmas greetings of 1810 
 
 placed upon many a parlor table of that 
 
 - day. 
 
 Jane Taylor, up to this time, had 
 chiefly written for her own amusement, 
 the spontaneous expression of feelings 
 whose natural outlet seemed to be the 
 pen. A conviction that she had a lal- 
 011 1 to be Used for service began now to 
 dawn upon her — work for the Master, 
 usefulness — and with this deeper sense 
 of accountability for the written word, 
 her writings grew in earnestness and 
 vigor. 
 
 Under this new stimulus, in connec- 
 tion with her sister Anne, " Hymns for 
 Infant Minds" were composed, supplying 
 a want then deeply felt by the religions 
 teachers of the young. 
 
 Dr. Watts' "Divine Songs " was al- 
 
94 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 most the only book of the kind, and a 
 pioneer the sisters hardly dared follow. 
 Yet as excellence serves to inspire ra- 
 ther than discourage, the popularity of 
 Dr. Watts, disclosing as it did a real 
 need, animated their exertions ; and 
 though nothing perhaps will ever quite 
 equal the charming simplicity and truth- 
 fulness of "Busy Bee' 7 and "The Cra- 
 dle Song," "Hymns for Infant Minds' 7 
 became permanent stock in juvenile lit- 
 erature, and multitudes of little ones, 
 wherever the English language is spo- 
 ken, have been taught their first lessons 
 in God and his truth through its sweet 
 and attractive numbers. 
 
 "I think, 77 says Jane, "I have some 
 idea of what a child's hymn ought to be ; 
 and when I commenced the task, it was 
 with the presumptuous determination 
 that none of them should fall short of the 
 standard I had formed in my mind. In 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 95 
 
 order to this, my method was to shut my 
 eyes, and imagine the presence of some 
 pretty little mortal, and then endeavor 
 to catch, as it were, the very language 
 -it would use on the subject before me. 
 If in any instances I have succeeded, to 
 this little imaginary being I should at- 
 tribute my success. And I have failed 
 so frequently, because so frequently I 
 was compelled to say: 'Now }^ou may 
 go, my clear ; I shall finish the hymn 
 myself.' " 
 
 It cost the sisters more real work than 
 any thing they had written. Some of the 
 hymns were written and re-written over 
 and over again, without even then satis- 
 fying their ideal of what a child's hymn 
 should be, to answer all the conditions 
 of sense, shortness, and simplicity. 
 
 It was a work, however, well-pleas- 
 ing to Jane, since no expectations of 
 literary distinction came in to jar her 
 
96 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 desire for doing good, and nothing 
 more. 
 
 A letter to Mrs. Taylor, away from 
 home, lets us into the happy excitement 
 which occasionally stirs up the quiet of 
 an author's home : 
 
 ' ' My dear Mother : A parcel has at 
 length arrived, and I sit down immedi- 
 ately, according to promise, to commu- 
 nicate its principal contents, though I 
 tell }^ou beforehand, that you may not be 
 disappointed, there is no particular news 
 on the subject which most interests us. 
 
 11 1 will now proceed to make extracts 
 from the letters we have received. The 
 parcel contained the sheet of hymns, and 
 letters from Josiah, Isaac, Martin, Luck, 
 Susette, Emma, Sarah, Professor Smythe 
 of Cambridge, Walter Scott, and our 
 dear James Montgomery." 
 
 After making the extracts, both appre- 
 ciative and encouraging, she concludes : 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 07 
 
 " And now, dear mother, you have 
 • had the best of the juice. I have writ- 
 ten in a wild hurry. We have no fresh 
 news of any sort. Indeed, this might 
 -content you. 
 
 " Your affectionate jane. 
 
 Towards the close of this year, Mr. 
 Taylor resigned his parish, and the fam- 
 ily were for some months uncertain what 
 their future destination might be. 
 
 "It is a strange sensation,' 7 wrote Jane 
 to a friend, " to survey the map of Eng- 
 land without an idea as to what part of 
 it we are to occupy. Yet perhaps we 
 feel less anxiety about it than you sup- 
 pose. Not to be farther removed from 
 London than we now are is our chief 
 solicitude, and to be nearer would be 
 very desirable; more so, on account of 
 being able to see our dear brothers more 
 frequently. For my own part, might I 
 choose a situation, it would be a very 
 
 Juno Tajlor. 1 <> 
 
98 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 retired one, among plain, good people, 
 whom we could love — a village, not a 
 town. My love of quiet and retirement 
 daily increases, and I wish to cultivate 
 this taste ; it suits me, and does me good. 
 To part with our house here, the high 
 woods and the springs, will cost me a 
 struggle ; and more especially my dear, 
 quiet attic. Might I hope to find such 
 another in our next encampment, I 
 should be less uneasy. 
 
 " I am looking forward with the great- 
 est pleasure to your promised visit. Nor 
 
 will I allow, dearest L , that even if 
 
 it were to happen at the time of our ex- 
 pected family meeting, you would be 
 thought an intruder. Indeed, I must 
 say that, if ever we regarded any friends 
 with that kind of confidence and affec- 
 tion which is current in one's own fam- 
 ily, you and S may claim that dis- 
 tinction. Perhaps you may be the last 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 99 
 
 visitor we may receive at Colchester. It 
 does seem at last as if some important 
 changes must take place in our family. 
 Our clear brothers' leaving us was the 
 a first signal, though we did not then 
 perceive it. From that hour we might 
 have bid adieu to the many uninterrupt- 
 ed years of quiet family happiness with 
 which we have been indulged. Yet I 
 am well persuaded it is all for our 
 good.' 7 
 
 To Josiah Condor: 
 
 "Colchestek, April, 1811. 
 
 . ... "In the present unsettled and 
 uncertain state of our family affairs, you 
 may perhaps imagine that I am able to 
 think and write of little else ; but I am 
 indeed surprised to find so little pertur- 
 bation occasioned by them. There was 
 a time when such events would have 
 excited strong emotions of interest and 
 anxiety, and when I could not have be- 
 
J 00 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 lieved that I should ever contemplate 
 such changes with composure; but now 
 I have lived long enough to feel assured 
 [hat life is life everywhere, and that no 
 materia] augmentation of happiness is to 
 be expected from any external sources. 
 Tare, I know, will both follow and meet 
 me wherever I may go — even should I 
 be transplanted From this cheerless des- 
 ert into (lie bosom of my dearest friends. 
 Friendship, far from its availing to shield 
 us from the shafts of care, does but ren- 
 der us vulnerable in a thousand points. 
 Yet, notwithstanding many anticipated 
 I roubles, there are times when I regard 
 the possibility of a reunion with my dear- 
 brothers, and of joining the beloved cir- 
 cle from which we have hitherto been 
 banished, with feelings* of real delight. 
 But our future destination is still so un- 
 certain, that we have no distinct feeling 
 or very decided wish on the subject. 
 
JANE tavldi; 101 
 
 When the idea of our leaving Colches- 
 ter was first started, l dei sired nothing 
 so much asastill more retired situation ; 
 I longed for the seclusion and tranquil- 
 lity of an insulated village. A Few 
 months, however, have produced a great 
 change in my views, if not in my wishes. 
 STet I believe it would be bui loo easy, 
 even now, to persuade me to relinquish 
 qther projects, fraught as they are with 
 anxiety and danger, to take refuge in 
 souk; • holy shade,' where I might wel- 
 come that 'silence, pence, and quiet' 
 lor which l feel my heart and soul are 
 made. 
 
 '"Though ilie harassing circumstances 
 of the last year have driven poetry and 
 its smiling train far from my thoughts, 
 jret l am not forgetful of the kindness 
 which prompted you to speak a word of 
 cheer to a fainting muse. I know I can* 
 not bettor thank you for your excellent 
 
102 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 but long-neglected letter than by saying 
 it has fully answered the kind intention 
 of the writer. What do you say then 
 to my being quite convinced ? Shall I 
 tell you that I am thoroughly satisfied 
 with my talents and attainments, and 
 feel an agreeable confidence in my own 
 powers? and that however injured by 
 envious contemporaries, I am convinced 
 that posterity will do me justice? Do 
 not you believe it? Well, then, shall I 
 tell a more probable story, and say that, 
 in this respect at least, I have learned 
 to be content with such things as I have, 
 and that I have in some degree subdued 
 that unworthy ambition which exposes 
 one to mortification and discontent? 
 Fatiguing and sickening is the struggle 
 of competition. I desire to withdraw 
 from the lists. But if this be all, you 
 may still think your friendly endeavors 
 were unavailing. You did not, I am 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 103 
 
 sure, expect that your letter would make 
 any material alteration in my opinions 
 and feelings ; yet it was cheering and 
 encouraging. I assure you I felt it so, 
 m and therefore you will not think your 
 pains unrewarded. As a source of harm- 
 less, perhaps even salutary pleasure to 
 myself, I would not totally despise or 
 check the poetical talent, such as it is ; 
 but it would be difficult to convince me 
 that the world would have been any 
 loser had I never written verses — such, 
 I mean, as were composed solely for my 
 own pleasure. I do, however, set a 
 much higher value on that poetical taste, 
 or rather feeling, so far as I have it, 
 which is quite distinct from the capabil- 
 ity of writing verse, and also from what 
 is generally understood when people say 
 they are very fond of poetry. But while 
 I desire ever to cherish the poetical taste, 
 I own it appears to me to be as little my 
 
104 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 duty as my interest to cultivate the talent 
 for poetry. With different sentiments I 
 am compelled to regard my own share 
 in what we have published for children. 
 The possibility of their fulfilling in any 
 degree the end desired gives them im- 
 portance, and renders future attempts of 
 a similar kind a matter more of duty 
 than of choice. I dare not admit all 
 the encouraging considerations you have 
 suggested ; nor can I fully explain what 
 I feel on the subject. That ' such reflec- 
 tions arc not of a nature to inspire van- 
 ity' is true indeed. No, I desire to be 
 humbled by the thought; a conscious- 
 ness of unworthiness makes it hard for 
 me to indulge the hope of being instru- 
 mental of the smallest good." 
 
 "Having a leisure evening, the last 
 probably before our removal, I devote 
 it to fulfilling my promise to write 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 105 
 
 you once more from Golchester. Yes, 
 we arc really going, and in a few days 
 the place that has so long known us 
 shall know us no more. Before I quit 
 ,the scene of the varied interests of my 
 childhood and youth, I ought to give my 
 mind a long leave of absence, and send 
 it back leisurely to revisit the past ; but 
 in the hurry of the moment, the feeling 
 of it is lost ; and even if I could afford 
 to send my thoughts on this retrograde 
 excursion, I ought not to ask you to ac- 
 company thorn ; for they would stay to 
 contemplate scenes and gaze on faces 
 unknown and uninteresting to you. I 
 can invite my friends to sympathize in 
 my present interests, and to survey with 
 me my future prospects ; but oUhat fairy 
 land they could only discern a line of blue 
 distance ; while to me, ' Here a cot and 
 there a spire still glitter in the sun.' 
 
 But a melancholy retrospection is an 
 
 14 
 
106 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 unprofitable indulgence — a kind of lux- 
 ury which perhaps I have no right to 
 allow myself. Let me rather, if I have 
 time for contemplation, take a more 
 humbling and painful survey ; and, re- 
 viewing the sins and follies of child- 
 hood and youth, resolutely say : ' The 
 time past of my life shall suffice to 
 have wrought them.' But I want ener- 
 gy to commence a new career. Wheth- 
 er my mind will recover vigor under 
 new circumstances, or will faint under 
 the exertion I have in prospect, re- 
 mains to be seen — it is a fearful exper- 
 iment. 
 
 "Here I sit in my little room. It 
 looks just as it always did ; but in a few 
 days all will be changed ; and this con- 
 secrated attic will be occupied — how 
 shall I tell you ? — by an exciseman ; for 
 his wife observed to me when survey- 
 ing the house: 'Ah, this room will do 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 107 
 
 nicely for my husband to keep his books 
 in.' Well, I shall take with me all that 
 has rendered it most interesting ; and 
 as for the moon and sunshine that will 
 m still irradiate its walls, I would not with- 
 hold them from my successor." 
 
108 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Mr. Taylor received a call from a 
 dissenting church at Ongar, and the fam- 
 i\y removed thither, the change gratify- 
 ing them all in one respect — it was near 
 London, only twenty miles off, north- 
 east, in the county of Essex. 
 
 "Ongar, September 23, 1811. 
 
 "My dear E : This is the first 
 
 time I have elated from our new habita- 
 tion. Having at length restored things 
 to something like order, I sit down in 
 my new room to address an old friend. 
 At present I scarcely know where I am 
 or who I am ; but now that I find my- 
 self at the old favorite station, my wri- 
 ting-desk, and suffering my thoughts and 
 affections to flow in an accustomed chan- 
 nel, I begin to know myself again. And 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 109 
 
 were it not for this, there are certain 
 cares and troubles bearing my name 
 and arms which will never suffer me 
 long to question my personal identity. 
 -It is, however, by a pleasure that I as- 
 certain it this evening ; I ought not, 
 therefore, to begin by complaining. 
 
 "But, my dear friend, you are look- 
 ing forward towards a change so much 
 more important than a merely local one, 
 that it may well appear to you compar- 
 atively trilling. That you are about to 
 undergo is, of all changes, the greatest 
 and the most interesting but one ; and 
 that one, if brought into comparison, 
 makes even this appear insignificant. 
 A recollection of the certain and speedy 
 termination of every earthly connection 
 is, at such a season, likely rather to 
 tranquillize than to depress the spirits ; 
 it is calculated to allay anxiety, not to 
 damp enjoyment. When marriage is 
 
110 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 regarded as forming a connection for 
 life, it appears indeed a tremendous ex- 
 periment ; but in truth, it is only choos- 
 ing a companion for a short journey ; yet 
 with this difference, that if the fellow- 
 travellers become greatly endeared to 
 each other, they have the cheering hope 
 of renewed intercourse and perpetual 
 friendship at their journey's end." 
 
 The marked success which attended 
 these sisters in their efforts for the young 
 made their friends not only suggest, but 
 urge their opening a school. The plan 
 had its lights as well as shades ; and un- 
 der their shining, Anne and Jane spent 
 the following winter in London, to per- 
 fect themselves in some higher accom- 
 plishments which had been overlooked 
 or neglected in their early education. 
 
 The winter had its pleasures, but ob- 
 stacles crossed their projects j the school 
 was given up, and the sisters joyfully 
 
JANE TAYLOR. Ill 
 
 returned to Ongar in the spring, loving 
 better than any thing else the sweet se- 
 clusion of their happy home. 
 
 Several of Jane's friends entered upon 
 - married life at this time, and among 
 them her dear Luck, to whom she thus 
 writes : 
 
 "Ongar, March 24, 1812. 
 
 "My very dear L : Though in 
 
 much uncertainty whether this letter will 
 reach you amid the bustle of preparation 
 or after the grand event has taken place, I 
 shall venture to despatch it, hoping that, 
 under whatever circumstances it may 
 arrive, you will not deem it too great a 
 trespass on your time to receive my 
 kindest wishes and most affectionate 
 farewell. Though I have no apprehen- 
 sion of feeling any diminution of interest 
 and regard towards my friend in a new 
 character, yet I cannot but feel that I 
 am taking leave of a name endeared by 
 
112 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 many a year of friendly intercourse ; 
 and while most sincerely rejoicing in a 
 change which seems in every respect 
 likely to promote your comfort and hap- 
 piness, you will forgive me for mingling 
 with my heartfelt congratulations some 
 tears of tender regret. There are no 
 forms of expression — at least I cannot 
 command any — which seem adequate to 
 an occasion like the present. With ev- 
 ery thing to feel, there seems little to 
 be said. The best wishes are so com- 
 prehensive that they occupy but a small 
 space ; and the strongest emotions are 
 usually the least eloquent. You have, 
 
 my dear L , my most earnest wishes 
 
 and prayers for every blessing to attend 
 you in your new and important situation. 
 May } r ou look back upon the transac- 
 tions of the approaching clay with in- 
 creasing satisfaction and pleasure every 
 future 3^ear of }^our life.' 7 
 
JANE TAYLOR. Ho 
 
 "Onqab, May 11, 1812. 
 
 "My dear E : There is no part 
 
 of your kind letter more agreeable to 
 me than that which expressed a wish 
 for maintaining a more regular and fre- 
 quent epistolary intercourse. On this 
 the existence of our friendship must 
 now more than ever depend; at least, 
 without this kind of communication, it 
 cannot be either pleasant or profitable. 
 You will give me credit for the sincer- 
 ity of this declaration, although my ap- 
 parent inattention might well awaken 
 contrary suspicions, at least in a more 
 recent friendship. But you and I, dear 
 
 E , are too old and sober-minded to 
 
 indulge dreams of cruel neglects and 
 faithless friendships; having, as I be- 
 lieve, entertained a sincere regard for 
 each other for many years ; a regard 
 which, though formed in the doubtful ar- 
 dor of youthful enthusiasm, has health- 
 
 Jana Taylor, -LO 
 
114 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 fully survived those short-lived trans- 
 ports ; it is no longer romantic to in- 
 dulge the hope that the mutual affec- 
 tion will be as permanent as it is sin- 
 cere. I am not, indeed, insensible to 
 the disadvantageous consequences of an 
 almost total suspension of personal in- 
 tercourse, and the still more unpropi- 
 tious effects of an entire dissimilarity of 
 interests and of occupations ; still, I am 
 inclined to believe that there is a pecu- 
 liar interest attached to the connections 
 formed in childhood or early youth which 
 is not easily lost; and that those who 
 are inseparably united with the history 
 of ouy fairy -years may insure a place in 
 the lively and affectionate recollections 
 even of declining age. I have wandered 
 so far from my unfinished apology, that 
 I think you will not wish me to retrace 
 my steps in search of it ; I will there- 
 fore only add my sincere wish and inten- 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 115 
 
 tion to atone for past remissness by fu- 
 ture regularity. 
 
 "Letter-writing is much more of a 
 task to me than it used to be. Often, 
 when I should enjoy a tete-&-tete, to con- 
 verse on paper with a friend is almost 
 burdensome. I know not whether it is 
 that I am growing old or stupid or lazy, 
 though I rather suspect all three. Seri- 
 ously, however, I am certainly experi- 
 encing some of the disadvantages of 
 increasing years. With the follies of 
 youth, a portion of its vigor too is fled ; 
 and being deficient in constitutional or 
 mental energy to supply its place, my 
 mind is hanging as limp as a dead 
 
 leaf. But perhaps, dear E , you 
 
 will scarcely thank rae for talking of the 
 effects of years, in which respect I am 
 so little beforehand with you. I do not, 
 however, ascribe all to the depredations 
 of time; many a gay lady of five-ami- 
 
11G JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 forty retains more of youth than I do ; 
 and you, though not a gay Judy, will 
 long, I hope, appear a young and lovely 
 wife. So I will take this opportunity to 
 turn to a more pleasing subject, and tell 
 how much I rejoice to hear from your- 
 self how agreeably you are realizing the 
 fair prospects which but lately opened 
 upon you ; and from others, with what 
 grace, and propriety you occupy the new 
 and important station upon which you 
 have entered. May you long enjoy and 
 adorn it, my dear friend. Earthly hap- 
 piness — comfort, 1 should rather say, for 
 I believe the former exists only in the 
 Dictionary— is indeed to be prized when 
 it does not interfere with higher pur- 
 suits; and still more so when it tends 
 to assist and stimulate them. 
 
 "The ease and leisure afforded by such 
 a lot as yours is, in this view, highly 
 desirable. It presents the most favora- 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 117 
 
 ble opportunities of usefulness to others, 
 and to yourself, of growing in meetness 
 for the heavenly inheritance. Happy 
 
 are you, dear E , that it is your 
 
 highest ambition thus to improve them. 
 While souk; are driven through life as 
 over a stormy sea, incessantly toi 
 and thwarted by the restless billows till 
 they arrive, faint and weary, at the ha- 
 ren of rest, Others are permitted to ram- 
 ble at Leisure through a pleasant vale, 
 till they gradually ascend to the ever- 
 lasting hills j and of how little conse- 
 quence is it by which course we are led, 
 so our wanderings do but terminate in 
 the same blissful country. We all re- 
 ceive that kind of discipline which our 
 peculiar dispositions require; and if it 
 is severe, we may be sure it is neces- 
 sary too." 
 
 Isaac, a favorite brother, to whom 
 Jane seems drawn with peculiar tender- 
 
118 JANE TAYLOlt. 
 
 ness, was out of health. London air and 
 occupations did not agree with him ; and 
 on the following winter he was obliged 
 to sock the milder climate of Deyonshire. 
 The two sisters accompanied him. 
 
 [lfracombe, a picturesque town on Bris- 
 tol channel, was their winter quarters. 
 But Jane shall describe them, which she 
 docs in a letter to Josiali Condor, in No- 
 vember, 1812 : 
 
 " [lfracohibe is situated in a deep val- 
 ley, Surrounded On one side by barren 
 
 hills, and on the other by stupendous 
 rocks, which skirt the sea,. Our lodg- 
 ings very pleasantly overlook the har- 
 bor, which affords us constant entertain- 
 ment. The sea, is close behind the house, 
 and is so near a neighbor that, during 
 (he last high tides, the waves rose in 
 immense sheets of foam, and fell over a 
 high wall opposite our chamber win- 
 dows. It also flowed into the house in 
 
JANE TAYLOB. J ID 
 
 front, and kept as close prisoners, Our 
 walks in ever)' direction are so interest- 
 ing that, when the weather admits, we 
 .spend a great part of the day abroad. 
 . Our rambles among the rocks I enjoy 
 most, though at first they excited sensa- 
 tions of awe and terror rather than of 
 pleasure; but now we climb without 
 fear amid a wilderness of rocks, where 
 nothing else can be seen, and nothing 
 heard but the roar of the distant sea. 
 Besides these, we have several cheerful 
 walks commanding the sea, bounded on 
 the north by a beautiful line of Welsh 
 mountains. Their aspects are v('\-y va- 
 rious; at times appearing only like faint 
 clouds in the horizon ; but when the 
 weather is clear, and the sun shines 
 upon them, they exhibit an exquisite 
 variety of light and shade and delicate 
 coloring, finished by distance, like the 
 finest miniature. 
 
120 .IAN 10 TAYLOR. 
 
 Iii a February letter to " dear father, 
 mother & 0o,," she writes: "The ap- 
 pointed interval of silence being nearly 
 expired, I undertake to despatch another 
 sheet, though with no news (<> communi- 
 cate ; but ns no news is good news, you 
 cannot complain. We have had lately 
 some very mild spring weather, and 
 I often Hi ink how pretty the Ongar gar- 
 den is looking with snow-drops, just as 
 it did this time l&st year, when we re- 
 turned from our London expedition. 
 Here we do not see much to denote the 
 change of seasons, as the barren hills 
 and pocks owe little (o these variations. 
 
 "About ii week ago we had some 
 rough weather, and u great deal of thun- 
 der and lightning Ihe first storm since 
 ( )ctober. The sea was very line — I only 
 wish I could (ell you how line. We 
 were called out of bed one morning by 
 the Fortescues to go and see it. The 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 121 
 
 same day we went out among the rocks, 
 and took shelter from an approaching 
 storm in a fine but tremendous cavern. 
 The sea was then rolling like the loud- 
 est thunder, the clouds hanging heavily 
 over it, and we expected lightning as 
 well as rain. Nothing could have been 
 finer, if we had not been frightened. At 
 last we set out, in hopes of escaping the 
 storm. Our way home was over peril- 
 ous fragments of rock, among which we 
 had to scamper at full speed. I got a 
 heavy fall and sprained my arm. The 
 rain came on in torrents, and we were 
 soaked through. 
 
 "We have been very busy lately 
 helping Mr. Gunn form a Book Society 
 here. He is soliciting everybody for 
 presents to it. We promised to ask fa- 
 ther if he had any thing to bestow, think- 
 ing he might very well spare a copy of 
 
 'Lowell's Sermons.' If he is willing, let 
 
 16 
 
122 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 it be sent with any thing else he does 
 not care for." 
 
 Has Jane written much else besides 
 letters ? 
 
 11 As to my employments during the 
 winter, I have been disappointed in my 
 expectations of writing ; but I have not 
 neglected a favorable opportunity, for 
 none has presented itself. I went to 
 Ilfracombe expecting to find there com- 
 plete retirement and much leisure. You 
 know how mistaken we were in this cal- 
 culation. The engagement of the even- 
 ing with our welcome visitors completely 
 deprived me of the only time I can ever 
 profitably devote to writing. I am far, 
 however, from thinking this a lost win- 
 ter, or that I have enjoyed a too expen- 
 sive pleasure ; for I would not but have 
 known and seen what I have at Ilfra- 
 combe for twice the expense of time and 
 money. I do, however, look forward 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 123 
 
 with much satisfaction to the prospect of 
 resuming my former habits after this long 
 relaxation ; and whenever I take up the 
 pen again, I hope to reap the advantage 
 of the past winter." 
 
 Yet was she impatient under this long- 
 continued inaction : 
 
 "I have found — but not now for the 
 first time — that any great external in- 
 terest, for a continuance, will not agree 
 with my mind ; it is living upon dain- 
 ties instead of plain food. Accustomed 
 to expect my evening's entertainment 
 from myself, in some kind of mental ex- 
 ertion, a complete relaxation from this, 
 and depending wholly, for many months, 
 on external means of gratification, is a 
 kind of indulgence which will not do to 
 live upon ; my mind never had eo long 
 a holiday, and I feel it is time to send it 
 home." 
 
 Early in the spring of the year 1813 
 
124 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 the} r prepared to leave Ilfracombe, and, 
 
 in the expectation of doing so, she 
 
 savs : 
 «/ 
 
 '"Ina week or two we expect to take 
 our leave of Ilfracombe. Thus ends an- 
 other short chaper of the little history 
 of life. Like many others, its con- 
 tents have not corresponded with the 
 title. It has disappointed our fears, 
 and greatly exceeded our expectations 
 of enjoyment. May it end with a hymn 
 of praise.' " 
 
 The Tavlors seem to have fallen among 
 agreeable people, which in its way is a 
 fine tonic for invalids in search of health. 
 Jane was not, indeed, the invalid; but 
 this interlude from more weighty work 
 improved her general health, enlivened 
 her spirits, and broadened her acquaint- 
 ance with the world. 
 
 Much as the winter was to Jane and 
 Isaac, it brought more important issues 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 125 
 
 to their sister Anne. Some happy arti- 
 cle in the Eclectic Review found a de- 
 lighted reader in Rev. Joseph Gilbert ; 
 who, on learning the author's name — 
 Anne Taylor — was anxious to know her. 
 An introduction took place. On this 
 visit to Ilfracombe, the acquaintance ri- 
 pened into intimacy, and the prospect 
 of a new home for their eldest daughter 
 gladdened and saddened the Taylor 
 household. 
 
 This summer was passed at Ongar. 
 The sisters had been more to each other 
 perhaps than sisters often are, since sim- 
 ilarity of tastes and a partnership of pur- 
 suit and aim ennobled the tie of kindred, 
 and made them congenial as well as lov- 
 ing companions. 
 
 A. newly-established Sunday-school, 
 struggling into life in an outlying ham- 
 let of the town, was a new interest to 
 Jane, and she entered upon its labors 
 
126 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 with that grave earnestness which mark- 
 ed her growing piety. 
 
 In the autumn Isaac's delicate health 
 compelled him again to migrate to milder 
 airs, and a second winter at Ilfracombe 
 was talked of. Should Jane accompany 
 him ? This was a trying question. It 
 was hard to leave Anne in the midst of 
 her bridal-preparations; hard indeed to 
 leave home at all. But her brother 
 needed both her care and her society, 
 and she cheerfulty relinquished her own 
 preferences for his sake. Accordingly, 
 by October Jane and Isaac were again 
 comfortably settled on the borders of 
 the sea. 
 
 In December Anne was married to 
 Mr. Gilbert, tutor in the Independent 
 college of Rotherham. The absentees 
 were there in heart. 
 
 " I cannot suffer this interesting morn- 
 ing to pass, my dear Anne, without sal- 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 127 
 
 utations from Ilfracombe ; and I dare 
 say this letter will arrive in good com- 
 pany ; but I am sure no one will address 
 you who can feel on this occasion either 
 so glad or so sorry as I clo. So far as 
 you are concerned, I am entirely glad, 
 and feel as perfectly satisfied and happy 
 as one can do about untried circumstan- 
 ces. But I cannot forget that this morn- 
 ing, which forms one indissoluble part- 
 nership, dissolves another which we had 
 almost considered so. From the early 
 days of 'Moll and Bet' down to these 
 last times, we have been more insepa- 
 rable companions than sisters usually 
 are ; and our pursuits and interests have 
 been the same. My thoughts of late, 
 have often wandered back to those dis- 
 tant years, and passed over the varied 
 scenes which checkered our childhood 
 and youth. There is scarcely a recollec- 
 tion in all that long period in which we 
 
128 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 are not mutually concerned and equally 
 interested. If this separation had taken 
 place ten years ago, we might by this 
 time have been in some degree estranged 
 from each other ; but having passed so 
 large and important a portion of life in 
 such intimate union, I think we mav con- 
 fidently say it never will be so. For 
 brothers and sisters to separate is the 
 common lot; for their affection and in- 
 terest to remain unabated is not com- 
 mon, but I am sure it is possible ; and 
 I think the experience we have already 
 had proves that we may expect its con- 
 tinuance. Farewell, my dear Anne! and 
 in this emphatical farewell, I would com- 
 prehend all the wishes, the prayers, the 
 love, the joy, and the sorrow which it 
 would be so difficult to express in more 
 words. If there is a dash of bitterness 
 in the grief with which I bid you fare- 
 well, it is only from the recollection that 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 129 
 
 I have not been to you the sister I might 
 have been. My feelings have been so 
 strongly excited to-day, that I cannot 
 bear more of it, and must leave you to 
 imagine what more I would say on this 
 occasion. 
 
 1 ' I cannot — no I cannot realize the busy 
 scene at the Castle-house, nor fancy you 
 in your bridal appearance. I intend to 
 place myself before the view of the house 
 about the time I imagine you are walk- 
 ing down the gravel -walk, and stand 
 there while you are at church, and till 
 I think you are coming back again. 
 How strange, how sad that I cannot be 
 with you ! What a world is this, that 
 its brightest pleasures are almost inva- 
 riably attended with the keenest heart- 
 rendings." 
 
 The mother's feelings in parting with 
 her daughter, though she had every 
 reason to rejoice on the occasion, were 
 
 Jane Taylor. 17 
 
130 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 very strongly excited. With the hope 
 of administering comfort, Jane address- 
 ed to her a letter, of which the follow- 
 ing is a part : 
 
 "I hope that, even so soon as this, 
 Time has performed his kind office, and 
 taken off the edge of your sorrow. If I 
 did not know that he can perform won- 
 ders even in a few clays, I could not 
 venture to say so. I was grieved, in- 
 deed, but not much more surprised to 
 hear that you felt the parting so acutely, 
 and when reading your description of it, 
 almost congratulated myself that I was 
 so far off. Now, however, I would glad- 
 ly come and be your comforter, if I could. 
 My dear father and mother, we have felt 
 much for you ; believe that you have the 
 love and the prayers of your absent chil- 
 dren. I seldom close my eyes without 
 thinking of you, and hoping you are 
 comfortable. I feel the separation more 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 131 
 
 this time than I did before, though in all 
 other respects I enjoy as much comfort 
 as I can expect to do in this world. I 
 I am rejoiced to know that you have had 
 
 the solace of dear S 's tenderness ; 
 
 and in this respect you have indeed been 
 gainers by my absence ; she has, I know, 
 done all that human s} r mpathy can do to 
 console and soothe you. 
 
 "I walked here — to Barnstaple — last 
 
 Wednesday with Miss M without 
 
 any fatigue, though it is ten miles of 
 incessant up and down hill. The deep- 
 est snow remembered in Devonshire set 
 in the day after I came, and has so block- 
 ed up the roads that I am detained a 
 close prisoner. I intended to return 
 on Monday ; but they are so unused 
 to snow here, that no one will ven- 
 ture to go, though I should not be afraid. 
 I cannot tell, therefore, how long I may 
 be detained. Though I am very com- 
 
132 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 fortable at Mr. 's, I am now impa- 
 tient to return home, as I left my brother 
 only for a day or two." 
 
 The snow rendered the road between 
 Barnstaple and Ilfraeombe nearly im- 
 passable for more than a month ; but 
 Jane's anxiety for her brother would 
 not admit of waiting, and she returned 
 to him on horseback, long before a car- 
 riage ventured on the difficult enterprise. 
 
 With the loss of Anne, society at Il- 
 fraeombe possessed few attractions ; and 
 neither brother or sister regretted more 
 seclusion and leisure for their studies 
 and pens. Isaac sometimes joined his 
 sisters in their literary gypsying. Al- 
 ready he had entered on that field of 
 study of which " Antient Christianity," 
 "The Natural History of Enthusiasm," 
 and "Saturday Evening" were after- 
 wards the fruits. 
 
 The winter saw Jane at her old hab- 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 133 
 
 its of work. "Display 77 was wrought out, 
 one of those charming stories in which 
 human nature is mirrored with that qui- 
 et fidelity which convinces the judgment 
 and wins us to amendment. 
 
 To the often-asked question, "How 
 to write a book V 1 Isaac's description of 
 the birth of "Display" will answer for 
 one at least : 
 
 "My sister began it with a specific 
 idea of the qualities she designed to ex- 
 hibit, but with no definite plan for its 
 execution. In pursuit of the same gen- 
 eral object, she followed every day the 
 suggestion of the moment ; and this was 
 perhaps the only way in which she would 
 ever have written. It was her custom, in 
 a solitary walk among the rocks, for half 
 an hour after breakfast to seek that pitch 
 of excitement without which she never 
 took up a pen. This fervor of thought 
 was usually exhausted in two or three 
 
134 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 hours' writing ; after which she enjoyed 
 a social walk, and seldom attempted a 
 second effort in the day ; for she now 
 had adopted the salutary plan of writing 
 in the morning only, and to this plan 
 she adhered ever after." 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 135 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 "In consequence of strongly urged 
 advice," Jane tells us, "we determined 
 early in the year to remove to Cornwall 
 during the summer months." She thus 
 describes their new quarters at Mara- 
 zion, June, 1814 : 
 
 "As this is one of our saint's days, I 
 cannot do better than devote it to my 
 friends. One letter I have already de- 
 spatched to Ongar ; and I am sure it is 
 quite time to address you, as I believe 
 ray last letter was written to inform you 
 of our arrival at Ilfracombe, though I 
 think the fault has not been all on my 
 side. The interval has been pretty well 
 
 filled with incidents : S and A 
 
 have not been idle ; you and the prince 
 regent have been receiving company; 
 
136 JANE TAYLOB. 
 
 father and mother have left the Castle- 
 house; we have removed to Marazion, 
 and Bonaparte to Elba ; so that the 
 world does not pay us the compliment 
 of standing still till we have time to 
 animadvert on its revolutions. 
 
 . ..." I told S that we did not 
 
 think of leaving Ilfracombe till August ; 
 but finding that, during the summer, it 
 does not often happen that vessels from 
 Cornwall put into Ilfracombe, we deter- 
 mined to avail ourselves of the first good 
 opportunity. We regretted that one 
 offered so soon ; we had scarcely twen- 
 ty-four hours' notice. But our little 
 affairs were soon arranged, and at nine 
 o'clock on the evening of the 9th, we set 
 sail, and a mild breeze wafted us from 
 our dear Ilfracombe. We were tolera- 
 bly well till about the middle of the 
 night, when a fresh gale sprang up, and 
 from that time to the moment of our 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 137 
 
 landing, at nine o'clock the following 
 evening, we suffered continued sickness. 
 We landed at St. Ives, and took lodg- 
 ings there for a week ; on Friday even- 
 m ing we reached this place, where w T e had 
 before engaged lodgings : they are not 
 so pleasantly situated as those we occu- 
 pied at Ilfracombe ; but they are com- 
 fortable, and our hostess is a good wom- 
 an, who takes pains to please us. 
 
 "Marazion is pleasantly situated on 
 the margin of Mount's bay, which forms 
 a fine sweep. On the western side lies 
 Penzance, nearly opposite to us, at the 
 distance of three miles ; it is a fine ride 
 by the sea-side. This morning we have 
 been there ; it is a large and very pleas- 
 ant town, and being so near, we can 
 have many of the conveniences it affords. 
 The views here are open and agreeable. 
 St. Michael's mount is a fine object, dis- 
 tant about half a mile, and Penzance 
 
 18 
 
138 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 and the adjacent villages very prettily 
 skirt the bay. We were recommended 
 here in preference to Penzance, as being 
 milder, and it suits us better on account 
 of its being more retired. In spite of 
 our nonconformity, we shall probably 
 attend at the chapel of ease, at which 
 Mr. Melville Home now officiates, whose 
 name, I dare say, you have heard. 77 . . . 
 •'My dear, dear family, 77 writes Jane 
 July 5, 1814, "I wish you could just 
 look in and see me, in a beautiful study, 
 with my windows open to the bay, ves- 
 sels passing before me, and the sea- 
 breeze wafting a delicious coolness. The 
 offer of Mrs. Grenfell's house, which I 
 mentioned in my last, we accepted and 
 took possession last Monday ; and we 
 find it so cool, so airy, and so extremely 
 pleasant, that we esteem it quite a prov- 
 idence for us, for I do think it likely to 
 be essentially beneficial to Isaac during 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 139 
 
 the heat of summer, besides the change 
 of scene and cheerfulness, which produce 
 a real effect. My bedroom has a fine 
 sea view, and I see the vessels passing 
 . as I lie in bed. Isaac's is very large 
 and airy, with a view likewise. Our 
 only difficulty is to know where to sit, 
 we have such a choice. There is the 
 dining-room, the drawing-room, and the 
 sitting-room, and this charming study, 
 besides our own rooms. 77 
 
 This beautiful residence was the home 
 of Mrs. Grenfell and her daughter Lydia, 
 known better to us as the lady whom 
 Henry Marty n was compelled to leave 
 behind when he left England for mis- 
 sionary life in India. Her love for him 
 and her Saviour was equal to any sacri- 
 fice it might have cost to accompany 
 him; but Mrs. Grenfell withheld her 
 consent and filial duty triumphed over 
 tender ties. 
 
140 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 Lydia Grenfell was in some respects 
 unlike in her religious character any one 
 whom Jane had known before. Her 
 piety had the glow, fervency, and sin- 
 gleness which marked the great evan- 
 gelical impulses of that clay — impulses 
 which had not yet consciously quickened 
 the Christian feeling and profession of 
 the Taylor family. Many a good Non- 
 conformist heard suspiciously of the 
 transports of Methodism, and was far 
 less likelv to fall into the rising swell of 
 spiritual renovation than some of his 
 untaught and more thoughtless neigh- 
 bors. Lyclia was of the English church, 
 one of that earnest band of "evangeli- 
 cal" believers which has provoked the 
 illiberality of liberal Christians from 
 that time to this. Jane's acquaintance 
 with her and with Methodism as she 
 afterwards found it in Cornwall, helped 
 not only to allay prejudice, but to en- 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 141 
 
 lighten and enrich her religious charac- 
 ter. Under these quickening influences 
 she engaged in active charities, and 
 became a teacher in a Sabbath-school 
 under Miss Grenfell's care during her 
 entire stay at Marazion. 
 
 "I am surrounded with those who 
 know that I am Miss Taylor, but not 
 that I am ' Jane ;' and it sometimes 
 makes me sigh for a renewal of inter- 
 course with those who, for that simple 
 reason, have yielded me an unmerited 
 share of their regard. The many fol- 
 lies, infirmities, and deficiencies which 
 are intimately known to them, may, it is 
 true, be partially and for a time con- 
 cealed from strangers ; but yet I would 
 rather be with those w T ho, ' with all my 
 faults, have loved me still.' .... 
 
 "Nothing can be more tranquil and 
 agreeable than the manner in which 
 
142 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 our time passes here ; we are both suffi- 
 ciently occupied to preserve us from 
 dullness ; nor do we need other relaxa- 
 tion than the pleasure of conversing with 
 each other in those hours of the day 
 which we spend together. We have, 
 however, some society here, more indeed 
 than at Ilfracombe. I would gladly 
 avoid the trouble of it, but I know it is 
 good for me to be obliged to exert my- 
 self in conversation sometimes 
 
 "I do not think my attachment to 
 nonconformity is likely to be at all sha- 
 ken by my present circumstances ; on 
 the contrary, I long to attend 'among 
 my own people,' and to worship in the 
 simplicity of the gospel. Yet it is both 
 pleasant and useful to associate with 
 good people who differ from ourselves. 
 
 "St. Michael's mount, directly oppo- 
 site to us, and accessible at low water, 
 is the most striking object in the scene. 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 143 
 
 We have not yet thoroughly explored 
 it ; but it is much finer and more pic- 
 turesque than we had expected, from 
 such views as we had seen of it. Alto- 
 gether we are pleased with our situation ; 
 it is a complete contrast to the wild and 
 solitary scenery of Ilfracombe. Being 
 prone to form local attachments, I can- 
 not at present decide impartially to 
 which I should give the preference." 
 
 "How long we shall sojourn in this 
 land of strangers is quite uncertain. I 
 feel with you, that I dare not look for- 
 ward to distances I may never reach ; 
 and I too could think of next summer 
 with the delightful hope of again seeing 
 many that are dear to me; but I am 
 afraid of expecting it, or of forming any 
 plan beyond to-day : by painful lessons 
 I have learned that it is vain and dan- 
 gerous to do so. Seldom, perhaps, till 
 
144 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 we have lived long enough to observe 
 that the wishes we form for ourselves 
 are either directly thwarted, or if in- 
 dulged, that they wholly disappoint our 
 expectation, we are sincerely disposed 
 to say, ' Choose thou mine inheritance 
 for me. 7 When such wishes appear yery 
 moderate and limited, falling far short 
 even of the common objects of worldly 
 pursuit ; when we ask neither for length 
 of days, riches, nor honors, but only for 
 some one favorite comfort, we are almost 
 ready to expect that such a reasonable 
 request will be granted ; and it is well 
 if we are taught, either by being disap- 
 pointed of it, or with it, that eager de- 
 sires for any thing short of the favor of 
 God are displeasing to him and injuri- 
 ous to ourselves. There is a sweet feel- 
 ing of security in committing our future 
 way to him, with an entire dependence 
 on his wisdom and goodness, and a 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 145 
 
 cordial acquiescence in his appoint- 
 ments." .... 
 
 They passed the summer in Mrs. 
 Grenfell's house, and then took lodgings 
 elsewhere — agreeable ones, if we may 
 judge, for she writes home : 
 
 "The ease, tranquillity, and comfort 
 of my present lot, so perfectly conge- 
 nial to my temper and feelings, demand 
 my constant thankfulness. It is no busi- 
 ness of mine to inquire how long it will 
 last. Long, I know, it will not last ; and 
 this I feel so sensibly, that my anxiety 
 for myself and my dear family lessens 
 as it respects our prosperity in this 
 world, and increases for better things — 
 that it may be well with us all in the 
 next." 
 
 And again, in a letter to her mother : 
 
 11 Notwithstanding the toil of writing, 
 it has its pleasures ; and often, both this 
 winter and last, when I have sat down 
 
 Jane Taylor. lb 
 
146 JANE TAYLOR 
 
 at ten o'clock, all alone, in oar snug par- 
 lor, with a cheerful fire, and with noth- 
 ing to interrupt me for four hours, I have 
 really felt very happy. As to my wri- 
 ting 'under disadvantageous circum- 
 stances,' it is so far from being the case, 
 that I am sure I can never expect to be 
 more favored. All domestic cares, ex- 
 cept just giving orders and settling my 
 accounts, are completely taken off my 
 hands by Mrs. Thomas ; the afternoon 
 suffices for the needlework I have to do, 
 and we are little interrupted by visit- 
 ors, besides the rare privilege of having 
 a room and fire quite to myself during 
 the morning. I therefore cannot plead 
 my present circumstances in excuse, 
 either for the poverty or slowness of my 
 writing, for I do actually what you de- 
 scribe as so desirable, ' sit down com- 
 posed and unembarrassed in my study.' 
 Indeed, I cannot be sufficiently thankM 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 1 17 
 
 for the large share of comfort I have 
 enjoyed the last three years, with noth- 
 ing to try my temper, and exempt from 
 most of those unpleasant realities which 
 - you mention as inseparable from the 
 * charge of a household. But I do not 
 wish to fly from family eares ; and one 
 of the satisfactions of returning to you 
 for a time would be that I might share 
 them with you." 
 
 Besides Miss Grenfell, Anne Max- 
 well, who afterwards became the wife of 
 Rev. Henry Lyte, some of whose sweet 
 hymns have found their way over the 
 waters; and the family of Rev. Melville 
 Home, once missionary to Africa, then 
 officiating at the Established church, ail 
 earnest and devoted Christians, gave 
 great interest to her life at Marazion. 
 There was no dissenting chapel in the 
 
 town, and the Taylors worshipped with 
 Methodists or at the Established church. 
 
148 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 " We are surrounded by Metho- 
 dists.," Jane tells us, "and have the 
 opportunity of knowing what Methodism 
 really is. We usually attend at their 
 chapel. Their preachers appear to be 
 zealous and devoted men, and their 
 preaching well adapted to be useful to 
 the class of persons who are their hear- 
 ers. I have never anywhere before seen 
 so general a profession of religion ; and 
 there is every reason to believe it is 
 more than a profession with many. A 
 little romantic fishing town just oppo- 
 site to us, across the bay, contains, we 
 are told, a large society of experienced 
 and fervent Christians ; and it is the 
 case with many of the forlorn, desolate- 
 looking villages in the neighborhood, 
 that seem in all things else a century or 
 two behind the rest of the world. . . . 
 
 "I am indeed much inclined to be- 
 lieve that the poor in every sense, the 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 149 
 
 mentally poor, are generally the richest 
 in faith— that they receive the gospel 
 more simply as it is, without reasonings 
 and disputings, and live upon it more 
 entirely and more, happily. ... 
 
 "You have indeed been led to the 
 true, the only way of solving your diffi- 
 culties on some of the deeper doctrines 
 of religion. Every attempt to explain 
 them has, to me, always rather increased 
 than removed the difficulty and my own 
 discouragement. But certainly I should 
 not fly to Arminianism in order to escape 
 from it. This system may indeed seem 
 to remove the difficulty a step farther 
 off; but there it meets us again, just the 
 same as before, unless the omnipotence 
 and omniscience of God be disputed. 
 But let us wait ; it is but a little while, 
 and we shall comprehend something of 
 the depths of the wisdom and knowledge 
 of God, though now 'unsearchable and 
 
150 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 past finding out/ How chilling are the 
 very terms of controversy, and how un- 
 like the language of the Bible. To live 
 near to God, and to walk humbly with 
 him, is the surest way of having our 
 minds satisfied on these points. ' The 
 secret of the Lord is with them that 
 fear him: he will show them his cove- 
 nant. 7 ?? 
 
 Jane resumed her story, and late in 
 the fall "Display" issued from the press. 
 It was received with great favor, and 
 the commendations bestowed by those 
 whose judgment and sincerity could not 
 be questioned, comforted and strength- 
 ened the distrustful author. 
 
 As to criticisms made on its strict- 
 ness, she utters some wise words, not 
 untimely for us in these days : 
 
 "As to the dancing, I certainly did 
 not think I had erred on the strict side; 
 and I think I have observed the distinc- 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 151 
 
 tion you mention, of not objecting to 
 dancing in itself. The children at Stoke- 
 ly, you may remember, were all dancing 
 very merrily one evening. But, in fact, 
 except with mere children, there is no 
 such thing as 'select Christian dances. 7 
 Go where you will, it is the world who 
 dance, and the serious who do not. 
 
 E= is an instance of what is said 
 
 about Emily : her newly acquired reli- 
 gion is so far from making her dull or 
 precise, that there are many whom I 
 have seen shake their heads at her 
 youthful sprightliness. Yet, since she 
 has been a Christian, she says she does 
 not wish to dance, especially as it could 
 not be without associating with those 
 who think only about this world. As 
 to what Mr. Leddenhurst says about 
 ' dancing through the world/ it is a re- 
 mark I have heard made by those who 
 are very far from being puritanical in 
 
152 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 their manners, or narrow in their views ; 
 and I merely understand by it, that a 
 person of a contemplative and serious 
 turn of mind, impressed with the grand 
 realities of religion, and intent upon 
 remedying, as far as possible, the sin 
 and misery of the world, will not be 
 much disposed to go 'dancing through 
 it.'" 
 
 " What you told me in your last let- 
 ter, made me almost envy the situation 
 of those to whom religion appears as a 
 glorious novelty, and who embrace it 
 with all the ardor and gratitude and joy 
 of a newly received message from heav- 
 en. They who ' ' from their childhood 
 have been taught the Holy Scriptures/ 
 have, no doubt, their advantages ; but 
 how liable are these advantages to be 
 abused ! It often happens, I believe, 
 that persons who have been long famil- 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 153 
 
 iar with the name of Jesus as the sin- 
 ner's friend, are shamed out of their 
 coldness and negligence by the warmth 
 and energy of those whose eyes are 
 newly opened to behold him. 
 
 " To inquiries such as those you make 
 relative to your not having felt the 
 strong convictions and the overwhelm- 
 ing fears that many experience in the 
 commencement of their religious course, 
 I have heard the most judicious Chris- 
 tians reply, that a holy walk with Grocl, 
 a humble consciousness of preferring 
 him and his service to any other thing, 
 is a better and safer evidence of a real 
 change of heart, than a reference to the 
 most remarkable emotions of mind at 
 any particular time. The Bible does 
 not specify any certain measure of ter- 
 ror, or any violent apprehensions of the 
 Divine anger, as essential to true coiir 
 
 version. ' Believe on the Lord Jesus 
 
 20 
 
154 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 Christ, and thou shalt be saved, ' is its 
 simple declaration ; and as the evidence 
 that we do believe, and that our repent- 
 ance is genuine, we must bring forth the 
 'fruits of righteousness.' True sorrow 
 for sin, flowing from a contemplation of 
 Divine mercy, which is called in the 
 Scriptures 'a broken heart,' is surely a 
 more acceptable sacrifice than the most 
 fearful apprehensions of Divine wrath." 
 Jane employed her leisure at Mara- 
 zion to much account. "Display 77 was 
 no sooner disposed of, than she began a 
 volume of "Essa} r s in Rhyme on Morals 
 and Manners," which interested her own 
 mind more than any thing she had ever 
 written. "She was indeed almost lost 
 to other interests," says her brother. 
 " Uven her prevailing domestic tastes 
 seemed forgotten, and in her daily walks 
 she was often quite abstracted from the 
 scene around her." 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 155 
 
 Her religious views, which had ga ; ned 
 in depth and clearness, were more forci- 
 bly and vigorously expressed in the 
 Essays, and she thus replies to the stric- 
 tures of a friend to whom the manuscript 
 was sent previous to its publication : 
 
 "You will not be surprised, and I 
 am sure you will not be offended, to see 
 in how few instances I have availed my- 
 self of your criticisms, if you consider 
 the nature of them ; that is, how very 
 few are merely literary. To that few I 
 paid every attention ; most of them had 
 been marked for correction either by 
 myself or other friends ; but I was dis- 
 appointed to find so few of that descrip- 
 tion ; and still more, to find so many 
 relating to matters of opinion, which you 
 would expect me to give up. I cannot 
 guess why the very same opinions, or 
 creed, if you please, (for I know that is 
 a word you are particularly fond of,) 
 
156 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 i 
 
 which were, I believe, expressed with 
 quite as much plainness in 'Display/ 
 should offend you so much less there. 
 You sa}^, indeed, that you have only 
 remarked upon that style of language 
 which refers to a party, not to a princi- 
 ple ; but on the contrary, I found not a 
 single note upon those few passages in 
 which I write as a Dissenter. If you 
 mean to call religious sentiment party, I 
 shall not dispute the term with you. 
 Christianity has had a great many ill 
 names from its commencement till this 
 day. But they have never done it the 
 least harm, nor ever will. Do you think 
 I would condemn you for using a prayer- 
 book, or kneeling at an altar, for going 
 under water, or even for wearing a 
 broad brim? No. But as I would not 
 make my creed narrower than that of 
 the Bible, so I dare not make it wider. 
 ' There is no other name under heaven 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 157 
 
 whereby we must be saved.' 'He that 
 believes shall be sated; lie thai be- 
 lieves Dot shall be damned.' This is 
 all I would contend for, and all, I think, 
 that I have contended for, as essential; 
 and if it is to this you object, I fear not 
 boldly to say that you are wrong. And 
 my heart's desire and prayer is, that 
 you may be led, as many a confident 
 opposer lias been, to what I must still 
 maintain to be 'the only place the feet 
 of Jesus. 7 
 
 " I think your prejudice, may I say 
 your party spirit, (for never" does party 
 spirit show itself so openly, or speak so 
 narrowly, as when it embraces the skep- 
 tical creed,) has got the better of your 
 good taste in the present instance. Your 
 taste is good when left to its free exer- 
 cise; but in several of your criticisms f 
 Scruple not to say you have, under the 
 influence of other feelings, betrayed a 
 
158 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 very bad one. Where, for instance, you 
 object to passages that are simple quo- 
 tations from the Bible ; here I can speak 
 quite confidently, in a literary view, 
 that the effect of such quotations is good, 
 and that they confer a dignity on the 
 verse. Where, for instance, I have in- 
 troduced almost literally those passages : 
 ' In thy presence is fulness of joy ;' ' in 
 my Father's house are many mansions.' 
 To call such language 'religious cant/ 
 is, in my opinion, 'irreligious cant.' " 
 
 Jane Taylor now began her regular 
 contribution's to the Youth's Magazine, 
 with some dread about the bondage of 
 an engagement, lest writing "to order," 
 whether she felt like it or not, might 
 impair the sincere and genuine interest 
 which she had taken in her work. Her 
 objections, however, were overruled, 
 and she found that habitual employment 
 wrought as successfully, usefully, and 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 159 
 
 pleasurably as spontaneous impulse and 
 excitement. 
 
 These articles, running through seven 
 or eight years of her life, were after- 
 wards collected in a small volume, en- 
 titled the " Contributions of Q. Q." 
 Clearly traced in them are the increas- 
 ing depth and vigor of her Christian 
 life, the result of her Cornwall sojourn. 
 Many, we doubt not, can trace the seri- 
 ous impressions of their early days to 
 these wisely-put instructions. 
 
 "Marazion, Sept. 19, 1815. 
 
 "My dear Friend: It is quite time 
 to ask you how you do once again upon 
 paper, though, if you did but know it, I 
 am very often making the inquiry in my 
 thoughts. I have so many far distant 
 and dear friends to think of now, that 
 my thoughts are become quite expert at 
 the business, and fly from Ongar to Both- 
 
160 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 erham, and from thence to Axminster, 
 Bridport, or London, with wonderful 
 ease and expedition. There was a pas- 
 sage in your last letter which brought 
 old days so forcibly and suddenly to my 
 recollection, that it made my tears over- 
 flow before I was aware. There is a 
 long train of recollections, you know, 
 connected with those days ; but they are 
 over and gone ; all is settled, and well 
 settled. For myself, as to external 
 things, I was never so happy — I should 
 rather say so comfortable, for that word 
 best suits this world — as I am now. The 
 last two years of my life have been so 
 tranquil, so free from irritation, passed 
 in a manner so suited to my taste and 
 temper, with such a beloved and conge- 
 nial companion ; they have been so oc- 
 cupied with agreeable employments, and 
 so enlivened at times by pleasant soci- 
 ety, that I have often thought, should 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 161 
 
 any thing occur to alter my present lot, 
 I should look back upon it as the bright- 
 est spot in my life. Ah, well. I hope 
 I am in some degree willing to commit 
 the future to One who knows how to 
 control it, and who will certainly pro- 
 long my present comfort, if it is for my 
 good. 
 
 "I heard from , a little news 
 
 which did but serve to set off our perfect 
 tranquillity to more advantage. . . . 
 
 "Oh, what a world it is! Well indeed 
 if we learn from such things to despise 
 it in the right way, and to be looking 
 toward a better country." 
 
 " My dear Father and Mother : We 
 thank you, dear father, for your kind 
 remembrance of us. We need not such 
 assurances of your affection ; but still 
 they are gratifying, long as we have 
 been banished from a nearer enjoyment 
 of it. I never think without pain of the 
 
 Jaa« Taylor. 2*1 
 
162 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 very long time out of our short life that 
 we have been separated, especially from 
 dear father's society, as for the best part 
 of a twelvemonth before we left Colches- 
 ter he was from home, and since our 
 removal we have been almost entirely 
 away ; so that our recollections of him 
 are almost entirely confined to dear old 
 engraving days ; and they will ever be 
 among my most delightful recollections. 
 I doubt not, that whenever we arc per- 
 mitted to meet, we shall all see in each 
 other that Time has not been still ; but 
 I am sure from both your letters you 
 think I suffer more from anxiety than I 
 do. I have, like Mrs. Palmer, an ex- 
 treme dislike of 'being uncomfortable, ' 
 which generally disposes me to make 
 the best of things ; so that rny letter 
 gave you really a false idea if it made 
 you think I 'was bowed down under a 
 weight of cares.' 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 163 
 
 " In her last letter Anne tells me that 
 James Montgomery has seen my speci- 
 mens. I could not repeat all the hand- 
 some things he says of them, and only 
 refer to his opinion as another weight in 
 the scale. As a poet he is a judge, and 
 is by no means given to flatter." 
 
 To a young friend, she writes some 
 golden words, as true and wise for us as 
 for her : 
 
 "From bitter experience, my clear 
 Emma, I can warn you from indulging 
 in that kind of discontent with yourself 
 which, as a little self-examination will 
 convince you, has its source in any thing 
 rather than true humility. You mention 
 jin your letter being in the habit of ma- 
 king painful comparisons between your- 
 self and your friends ; and so far as such 
 comparisons tend to stimulate us to an 
 imitation of their perfections, it is well j 
 but it, too, has a contrary effect, and 
 
164 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 leads us to view our own real or sup- 
 posed defects with fretful despondency. 
 I would not put such an affront on your 
 understanding, dear Emma, as to try to 
 persuade you that you have no cause for 
 dissatisfaction, though, from general ob- 
 servation, I might say with perfect truth 
 that you have no occasion for discour- 
 agement, but that you possess many 
 advantages, both personal and relative, 
 which demand your gratitude. 
 
 "But we are too apt, I fear, instead 
 of looking within, to look without; and 
 even when regarding the perfections of 
 our most valued friends, are we not too 
 apt to envy them the less important 
 advantages, and those which are least 
 attainable, rather than to emulate those 
 solid advantages which are within our 
 reach ? It is their beauty, their accom- 
 plishments, their talents, their taste that 
 we desire to possess ; while their piety, 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 1G5 
 
 their usefulness, their sweetness, and 
 humility are, attainable, if we pursue the 
 same end and make the same sacrifices 
 to attain them. Eeligion will not indeed 
 do every thing for us. It will give us 
 neither graces, nor accomplishments, nor 
 taste ; but the blessings it offers are a 
 humble mind, a meek and lowly spirit ; 
 and it will enable us, not only with res- 
 ignation, but with cheerfulness and grat- 
 itude, to take an allotted portion, and 
 will teach us. industriously to cultivate 
 our one talent, if we have no more. 
 
 "A large family is a large field for 
 the exercise of all virtues, calling for 
 self-denial, patience, and forbearance, 
 and demanding our activity, kindness, 
 and generosity ; and how much the com- 
 fort of our future lives must depend on 
 present conduct ! When our parents are 
 no more, and every opportunity of show- 
 ing them respectful attention and grate- 
 
166 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 ful love is over ; when our brothers and 
 sisters are dispersed, and no longer re- 
 quire our affectionate attention, it will 
 be an unspeakable happiness if we can 
 look back upon those days without pain- 
 ful reflection or self-reproach. I said 
 respectful attention ; respect is a word I 
 am fond of, for if well attended to in a 
 family, it will go a great way towards 
 promoting its order and happiness. A 
 respectful conduct should by no means 
 be confined to strangers, where common 
 politeness demands it, nor even to our 
 parents and acknowledged superiors. 
 The familiarity which breeds contempt 
 should be carefully avoided even among 
 brothers and sisters of equal ages. Af- 
 fection loses its gracefulness without that 
 accompanying respect which should 
 never be lost sight of, even among per- 
 fect equata ' Honor to whom honor is 
 due' is a text well worth studying. 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 167 
 
 You have a brother, and I am sure you 
 are not insensible to this privilege. If 
 you are really solicitous to reap benefit 
 from his society, be not contented to 
 love and admire him, but let the defer- 
 ence you pay to his superiority influ- 
 ence your conduct and your manner tow- 
 ards him, and you will find it greatly 
 promoting and dignifying your mutual 
 affection." 
 
 Again she writes Emma: "Self-dis- 
 approbation, my dear, is the first step 
 towards improvement ; without this, 
 nothing can be done. Nor need any one 
 be greatly discouraged even should they 
 find much to be done. It should stimu- 
 late to extra exertion, and by no means 
 lead to despondency. From sad expe- 
 rience I know the wide difference be- 
 tween our planning and reforming : weak 
 resolutions and half-efforts will never 
 do. If we wish to amend, we must make 
 
168 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 up our minds to hard work; nothing but 
 real fighting can insure victory. 
 
 Cl You know far better than I on what 
 your dissatisfaction is grounded ; it is 
 not my business to inquire. I would 
 only urge you by every argument not to 
 rest contented at this critical period with 
 careless complaints or faint endeavors, 
 but to be absolute and prompt; and that 
 the disease may not be 'healed slightly/ 
 do not set about external reformations, 
 nor rest satisfied till you really are what 
 you would appear to be. Desire to be- 
 come a sterling character ; and whether 
 or not you excite the admiration of 
 strangers, be ambitious to respect your- 
 self, and to win the esteem of your best 
 friends and nearest associates. A pre- 
 vailing desire for admiration, if not 
 wholly incompatible with moral and re- 
 ligious improvement is, I believe, the 
 greatest bar to it. 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 169 
 
 "How encouraging too are the prom- 
 ises of a new heart and a right spirit to 
 those earnestly seeking them ; so that 
 we have no right to despond. Only 
 this must not tempt us to relax our own 
 exertions. We must watch as well as 
 pray, for heavenly arms are provided 
 on purpose that we m&yjight with them." 
 
 22 
 
170 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 In beautiful June, 1816, the brother 
 and sister bade adieu to Marazion, with 
 its balmy airs, sea-girt views, and Chris- 
 tian friends, bending their steps slowly 
 and circuitously towards home. In the 
 journey Anne's new home was inclu- 
 ded, and a six weeks 7 sojourn in York- 
 shire yielded them the liveliest enjoy- 
 ment. The home was all they could 
 desire : affection within, agreeable so- 
 ciety in the neighborhood, hearts and 
 opportunities for Christian influence and 
 usefulness. By the last of August, how- 
 ever, she dates from Ongar, and thus 
 describes her return : 
 
 "I think my last was written from 
 Sheffield. We soon after took a painful 
 leave of our dear sister, and returned, 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 171 
 
 after a three years' absence, to Ongar. 
 Oh, what a pleasure it was to be wel- 
 comed by kind parents to a home! Noth- 
 ing could exceed their kindness and in- 
 dulgence. And after so long an inter- 
 val, we knew how to value this affection. 
 They thought me not looking well ; and 
 it has been my dear mother's constant 
 business to nurse me up again during 
 my stay. Our house stands alone in a 
 pretty country. It is an old farm- 
 house, more picturesque than splendid, 
 and therefore it suits both our tastes 
 and our fortunes. All my love of na- 
 ture returned in a scene so well adapted 
 to excite it; and it was delightful to see 
 our dear father and mother enjoying, in 
 their declining years, so peaceful a re- 
 treat, and wishing for no other pleasures 
 than their house and garden and their 
 mutual affection afford. 
 
 " I wish this fine morning," she writes 
 
172 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 to another, "I could take a turn with 
 you in your pleasant garden, and talk 
 instead of write ; or rather, if wishing 
 were of any avail, I would wish that 
 you could take a turn with me in mine, 
 which I think you would enjoy. I must, 
 however, tell you something of our move- 
 ments. We stayed a fortnight longer with 
 Anne than we proposed ; the time passed 
 pleasantly, and we were unwilling to 
 part. I think, however, you, who know 
 my taste for retirement and my dislike 
 of general company, would have pitied 
 me if you had seen the continued bustle 
 of visiting with which my time was oc- 
 cupied. The contrast with our mode of 
 life at Marazion was as great as it could 
 be ; perhaps the total change of scene 
 was what I needed. 
 
 " On the 13th of August we left Eoth- 
 erham, and in a few days reached our 
 clear paternal home, after an absence of 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 173 
 
 three years. It was indeed a joyful 
 meeting. And when, that evening, we 
 once more knelt around the family altar, 
 I believe our hearts glowed with grati- 
 tude to Him who had permitted us thus 
 to assemble in peace and comfort, and 
 had disappointed all our fears. Here 
 we are again in complete retirement; 
 and a sweeter retreat I do not wish for. 
 We are nearly a mile from the town, and 
 surrounded with the green fields. The 
 house is an old-fashioned place, with a 
 pretty garden, which it is the delight of 
 my father and mother to cultivate. At 
 the door is a rural porch, covered with 
 a vine. Here we are rarely interrupted 
 by any one ; and although only twenty 
 miles from the great world, we enjoy the 
 most delightful seclusion. The rooms 
 are large and pleasant, and the whole 
 has exactly that rural air which we all 
 so much admire." 
 
174 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 It was at this time that Jane and her 
 mother began the "Correspondence be- 
 tween a Mother and a Daughter at 
 School," for the Youth's Magazine — a 
 series of articles full of good sense and 
 that remarkable insight of character 
 which distinguishes her. 
 
 To Miss S G : 
 
 "Ongak, August 23, 1817. 
 
 "My dear S : When I heard of 
 
 your being suddenly summoned to at- 
 tend your brother, I felt an immediate 
 desire to write to you — not from the idle 
 expectation that I could say any thing 
 i to lessen your uneasiness, but from a 
 feeling of true sympathy which similar- 
 ity of circumstances awakened. I asked 
 for your address when I wrote to Anne, 
 but was still dubious whether to trouble 
 you with a letter, when the arrival of 
 yours quite determined me. I thank 
 you for it, and I thank you still more 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 175 
 
 for finding any pleasure in writing to 
 me, and for the assurances of your kind 
 recollections. They are, I assure you, 
 acceptable. I have learned to value a 
 little love more than many times the 
 quantity of praise; and when I receive 
 expressions of affection from any one 
 who I know in some degree understands 
 me, and who has had opportunity of ob- 
 serving many of my faults, I feel both 
 obliged and comforted. 
 
 "I was truly glad to hear a better 
 account of your brother's health. I 
 think you cannot yet have felt more 
 desponding than I have formerly done 
 about my brother. For a considerable 
 time I was quite persuaded that he could 
 not recover ; and whenever I allowed 
 myself to entertain any hope, I felt all 
 the time a secret conviction that it was 
 wilful flattery. Yet now — I would say 
 it with thankfulness — he is so far recov- 
 
17 6 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 ered as to remove all immediate anxi- 
 ety. I know not whether there is any 
 thing encouraging to you in this ; but it 
 is encouraging to know that the same 
 almighty Friend who spoke the healing 
 word in one case can do so in another ; 
 and assuredly will, if it be really desira- 
 ble. He who is ' the same yesterday, 
 to-day, and for ever' still regards the 
 prayers and tears of a sorrowing sister. 
 I used very often to say : ' Lord, if thou 
 art here my brother shall not die ;' and 
 I used to try to add : ' Thy will be done ;' 
 and if ever I can say this with sincerity, 
 it is when I take pains to reflect on the 
 wisdom and goodness of God, and think 
 how certainly what he does is best. And 
 even with respect to the spiritual inter- 
 ests of beloved friends, where certainly 
 acquiescence in disappointment is most 
 difficult — perhaps in this world impossi- 
 ble — even in this case there is great con- 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 177 
 
 solation in recollecting that the Judge of 
 all the earth will do right. We are not 
 more benevolent or more compassionate 
 than he ; and it is with this simple per- 
 suasion that I find it easiest to repel 
 those hard and rebellious thoughts of 
 God which certain passages to which 
 you allude are so apt to excite. We 
 may be sure that if we put any con- 
 struction upon them that is in any way 
 injurious to the Divine character in our 
 minds, it is — it must be — a false construc- 
 tion. I think there is greater encour- 
 agement to pray for the salvation of 
 those dear to us than for any thing ex- 
 cept our own 
 
 " I am sorry to hear of the unpleas- 
 ant circumstances at . People will 
 
 never understand that it is not religion, 
 but irreligion, that causes these mischiefs. 
 If ' the children of God are peace-ma- 
 kers,' surely the breakers of peace can- 
 
 Jane Taylor. 23 
 
178 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 not claim him for their Father. I re- 
 member Miss , and that she was 
 
 what you describe. I knew one in still 
 
 humbler life at , of the same sort. 
 
 She was a servant in the house we oc- 
 cupied there for a few months — a Meth- 
 odist ; and of such slender abilities that 
 she could rarely understand a common 
 order till it had been repeated once or 
 twice. Yet she was indeed ' wise unto 
 salvation. 7 Her conversation — perfectly 
 unaffected and unassuming — was, on re- 
 ligious subjects, enlightened and edify- 
 ing. Her plain face beamed till it was 
 beautiful with Christian love and peace. 
 I remember her with affection and re- 
 spect. How strange it seems, that in 
 Christian societies so few should be 
 found who thus ' adorn the doctrine they 
 profess in all things.' Nothing is more 
 discouraging than such a state of things. 
 But in one sense we have nothing to do 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 17!) 
 
 except with ourselves. I Four own lamps, 
 be not burning, we might find better em- 
 ployment than to lament Hie lukewarm- 
 ness of others." 
 
 Jane's religious belief had long been 
 settled. Jler life corresponded to it. Be- 
 sides her distinct choice, all her predilec- 
 tions, leanings, inspirations, desires, and 
 associations were; on the side of Christ. 
 Yet she failed to appropriate to her- 
 self that comfort in the hope set before 
 us which it is the believer's peculiar 
 privilege to enjoy ; consequently, her 
 hope had always been trembling and 
 afraid. 
 
 Faint she was, yet always pursuing. 
 " A duty-Christian/' as some one called 
 liis friend who, with grave fidelity, did 
 liis Master's work with little present 
 comfort or future; hope. But the joy 
 came;. Singleness, sincerity, and fidel- 
 ity never lose their reward, They are 
 
180 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 crowned at last with a great rejoU 
 cing. 
 
 It was so with Jane. 
 
 "My mother told you," she wrote 
 her sister, "of my having joined the 
 church. You may have supposed that 
 I was frightened into it by my com- 
 plaint ; but I feel thankful that this was 
 not the case ; for it was not till after I 
 had consulted Mr. Clyne that I felt any 
 alarm about it ; nor had I before any 
 idea of its being of a formidable kind. 
 Mv mind, all the summer, had been 
 much in the state it has been in for 
 years past ; that is, unable to apply the 
 offer of the gospel to myself, and all 
 confusion and perplexity when I at- 
 tempted to do so. One evening — about 
 three weeks before going to London for 
 advice — while alone in my room, and 
 thinking on the subject, I saw by an in- 
 stantaneous light that God would, for 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 181 
 
 Christ's sake, forgive my sins. The ef- 
 fect was so powerful that I was almost 
 dissolved by it. I was unspeakably hap- 
 py. I believe that had I died that mo- 
 ment I should have been safe. Though 
 the strength of the emotion soon abated, 
 the effect in a great degree remained. 
 A fortnight afterwards I told Isaac what 
 had taken place, and he urged me to be 
 proposed immediately to the church. It 
 was in this state I went to London ; and 
 when I heard what was to me wholly 
 unexpected, I could not but consider 
 the change in my feelings as a most kind 
 and timely preparation for what, but a 
 few weeks before, would have over- 
 whelmed me with consternation and 
 distress. As it was, I heard it with 
 great composure, and my spirits did not 
 at all sink till after I returned home. 
 Since then I have had many despond- 
 ing hours from the fear of death. The 
 
182 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 happiness I enjoyed for a short time has 
 given place to a hope which, though faint, 
 secures me from distress.' 7 
 
 She joined the Ongar church, under her 
 father's pastoral care, in October, 1817 ; 
 and though active religious labors were 
 not easy from early habit, nor did they 
 suit her natural tastes, yet she promptly 
 engaged in them as she had strength and 
 opportunity, from a deep conviction that 
 Christians should not live "to please 
 themselves," but be "always abounding 
 in the work of the Lord." 
 
 Serious premonitions of the disease — 
 induration of the heart — which ended 
 her days, had disclosed themselves. 
 No immediate clanger caused alarm 
 either to Jane or her friends, only the 
 "occasional pain" which kept alive 
 anxiety. 
 
 "But I endeavor to cast this care on 
 God," she says, "and especially to im- 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 183 
 
 press on my mind that if ever the most 
 sanguine hopes of recovery should be 
 realized, it would make no essential dif- 
 ference in my prospects. There is no 
 cure for mortality. Supreme regard to 
 my eternal interests is absolutely neces- 
 sary, independent of all immediate con- 
 siderations. Yet I feel the benefit of 
 this perpetual monitor, and pray that 
 its voice may not be heard in vain. 
 How encouraging the simple promise, 
 ' Ask, and ye shall receive,' especially 
 when we reflect that God, who cannot 
 lie, has given it to us. And it encour- 
 ages us to ask not only for salvation 
 from the wrath to come, or for just grace 
 enough to save us at last, with which it- 
 would be easy to be contented, but for 
 great spiritual blessings, eminent spirit- 
 uality of mind — a mind ' hid with Christ 
 in God, 7 so as to have at last an abun- 
 dant entrance into the kingdom of God." 
 
184 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 "London, May 20, 1819. 
 
 "I am come to London for a few 
 days to execute some home-commissions. 
 These fine showers that are making the 
 hills and vales rejoice are making Lon- 
 don more dreary than usual ; and they 
 confine me to a dull apartment, where, 
 in rather lower spirits than are common 
 to me even in London, I sit clown in 
 perfect solitude to seek your distant 
 society. My brother is out for the 
 whole day on business. Solitude in the 
 country is sweet ; but in London it is 
 forlorn indeed. So you see all things 
 conspire to make this a very animated 
 composition ! 
 
 " My health has not been so good this 
 spring as during the past winter and 
 summer. For this there is 'a needs-be.' 
 But though I believe these continual 
 warnings to be good and necessary, yet 
 fear seems to have an unfavorable influ- 
 
JANE TAYL0K. 185 
 
 ence upon my mind, inasmuch as I am 
 to suspect the genuineness of prayer that 
 is rendered more fervent than usual by 
 an apprehension of danger. I feel re- 
 gret unspeakable in looking back upon 
 those past years of health and vigor that 
 were devoted to self-pleasing. And yet 
 is there not ' all consolation 1 and conso- 
 lation for all in the unqualified offers of 
 the gospel and in the simplicity of its dec- 
 larations, ' Daughter, be of good cheer, 
 thy sins, which are many, are forgiven 
 thee?' What needs one more than this? 
 and surely nothing less will do — not at 
 least for those who are obliged by some 
 threatening disease to realize their own 
 mortality, and to look at eternity as 
 those who are in sound health cannot 
 see it. In comparing the temperature 
 of my feelings with yours, I was discour- 
 aged ; yet I know that religion does not 
 
 alter the constitution of the mind any 
 
 24 
 
186 JANE TAYLOR 
 
 more than that of the body. In you 
 ardent and energetic, in me languid and 
 phlegmatic, it would never assume the 
 same appearances. They, however, are 
 doubtless the happiest Christians, the 
 constitution of whose minds is the most 
 favorable to the life of religion. But I 
 feel that these considerations will not 
 serve as an excuse for me, seeing that 
 1 God is able to make all grace abound 
 to us also.' " 
 
 ''Monday morning. I heard yester- 
 day three good sermons That in 
 
 the evening by a plain Methodist preach- 
 er — the best, I thought, of the three ; 
 that is, the most to the grand purpose 
 of preaching. Why do not we hear 
 such sermons oftener ? Some ministers 
 appear to be under an unaccountable 
 infatuation, as if they were afraid or 
 ashamed to come to the point ; as if ev- 
 ery subject connected with religion were 
 
JANE TAYLQE. 187 
 
 to be discussed in preference to that 
 which is the foundation of all — as if they 
 would rather direct their hearers to any 
 surrounding objects than immediately 
 to ' the Lamb of God, that takes away 
 the sin of the world.' How little do 
 they consider the disappointment they 
 occasion to those of their congregations 
 who go, Sabbath after Sabbath, hunger- 
 ing; for 'the bread of life' — who need 
 the consolations of the gospel! 
 
 "It is not strange that the wicked 
 should go on in their wickedness ; but is 
 it not strange that those who know any 
 thing of religion should not adorn it 
 more? This is the discouragement. Yet 
 perhaps there are many 'hidden ones' 
 who, unknown to their fellow- Chris- 
 tians, are living near to God, while 
 those who stand foremost in the church 
 are content ' to follow Christ afar off.' 
 . . . . I rejoice to hear from a mutual 
 
188 JA«NE TAYLOR. 
 
 friend that you are actively engaged in 
 doing good. There is something stimu- 
 lating in reading Paul's salutations to 
 the good women of his acquaintance. 
 He evidently singles out those for spe- 
 cial notice who were most active and 
 zealous in good works : ' Priscilla, his 
 helper in Jesus Christ;' 'Mary, who 
 bestowed much labor on them ;' ' Phebe, 
 a succorer of many.' While we may 
 imagine that his more general remem- 
 brance — ' to all the saints that are with 
 you ' — refers to others a little resem- 
 bling those modern professors of Chris- 
 tianity of whom charity is bound to 
 'hope all things.' 
 
 " This increase of piety in our dearest 
 friends is real prosperity ; and when we 
 think prosperity of any other kind very 
 desirable, we forget ourselves, and view 
 the world unwisely." 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 189 
 
 To Mks. W (Miss E. M .) 
 
 "Ongab, September 14, 1819. 
 
 "I truly rejoice with you in the 
 happiness of seeing another of those 
 most clear to you ' walking in the truth.' 
 There is indeed no greater joy than this. 
 2his is family prosperity . How weak is 
 our faith when we suffer anxiety for any 
 other kind of success to exceed the de- 
 sire for the endless happiness of those 
 we love ! and how little do we feel like 
 Christians, when we are surprised and 
 mortified to see them encountering those 
 trials and disappointments which we 
 know to be the most usual and effectual 
 means of promoting spiritual life. I 
 have just received an account of the 
 severe trial of one of whom, judging as 
 the world judges, one should say that 
 severe affliction was not needed. But 
 God sees not as man ; those whom he 
 loves best he ordinarily chastens most, 
 
190 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 that they may be ' seven times refined/ 
 • To him that hath shall be given, that 
 he may have abundantly.' .... 
 
 "Poor Mrs. , what an unhappy 
 
 life must hers be ! unspeakably more 
 unhappy than it would be if she were 
 wholly destitute of that 'little religion. 7 
 as it is called, that she has ! To see 
 age tenaciously clinging to the rece- 
 ding world is the most melancholy and 
 disgusting sight this evil world pre- 
 sents 
 
 "In so small a society as that with 
 which we are connected here, zeal, for 
 want of stimulus, is apt to sink into total 
 torpor. In this respect there are ad- 
 vantages in living in a large town, where 
 the zeal of the few keeps the lukewarm- 
 ness of the many from freezing. I feel 
 heavily the peculiar responsibility that 
 attaches to me as a single woman, re- 
 membering that of such it should be said 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 191 
 
 that ' she careth for the things of the 
 Lord f while, partly from indolence and 
 partly from a sort of infelicity in dealing 
 with others, I am too apt to recoil from 
 those very duties which seem to lie most 
 in my way. ' She hath done what she 
 could,' is a sentence which often strikes 
 painfully on my conscience. It is high 
 praise ; and what sacrifice can be too 
 great to deserve it ?" 
 
 The orphan family of a friend, James 
 Medland, Esq., of Newington, came in 
 for a large share of her affection and 
 counsel during those later years. Eliz- 
 abeth, the second daughter, had still 
 stronger claims on her as the dear and 
 intimate friend of her brother Isaac, 
 whom she afterwards married. 
 
 A letter addressed to Sarah Medland 
 and her sisters and brothers, written 
 from Ongar, August, 1822, is running 
 
192 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 over with that loving solicitude which ex- 
 perienced and faithful hearts feel for new 
 hands entering on the great work of life : 
 "As my time is much limited, I can- 
 not devote much of it to subjects of infe- 
 rior moment, but will speak at once on 
 that which is all-important, and in which 
 all other advices are included. But I 
 know not where to begin, or how to find 
 language to express the sense of this 
 boundless subject. No language, in- 
 deed, can do this, and therefore we find 
 in the Scriptures no attempt is made 
 beyond the most plain and simple state- 
 ments, but which are, on that very ac- 
 count, the most striking. What can add 
 fervor to the question, ' What shall it 
 profit a man if he gain the whole world 
 and lose his own soul?' Yes, my dear 
 friends, there is very great danger, not- 
 withstanding all the warnings and admo- 
 nitions we receive ; there is very great 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 193 
 
 danger of losing our souls. It is so easy 
 to pass on from one stage of life to an- 
 other, from youth to age, with good inten- 
 tions towards religion, and with a com- 
 mon, respectable attention to it, without 
 once coming to the point, without once 
 tasting the happiness of a good hope, or 
 enjoying the supreme satisfaction of ma- 
 king a full surrender of our hearts and 
 lives to God. Multitudes of the profes- 
 sors of religion thus live and thus die — 
 making their comfort and prosperity in 
 this life their chief object of pursuit, and 
 paying only so much attention to reli- 
 gion as they deem absolutely necessary to 
 escape eternal destruction. But this is 
 not Christianity as the Scriptures de- 
 scribe it ; and it is surprising that, with 
 the Bible in their hands, any person can 
 make so great a mistake about it. If 
 God has not our hearts, we are not his — 
 he will accept nothing less. If our affec- 
 
 Jane Taylor. 25 
 
194 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 tions are not in heaven, we shall never 
 reach it. 
 
 "I remember that, during my youth, 
 I was for many years greatly discour- 
 aged, and almost in despair at last, on 
 this account — feeling the impossibility 
 of bringing my earthly mind to prefer 
 spiritual things ; to love God better than 
 the world. At length, in a letter from 
 a pious friend, I was reminded that this 
 great work, though impossible to me, 
 was easy to Him, and that he had prom- 
 ised to do it for all who ask. Prom that 
 time my difficulties began to yield. I 
 saw how absurd it was to doubt the prom- 
 ise of God, and that it was in respect 
 to these very difficulties that he says: 
 'Seek, and ye shall find.' So that I be- 
 gan to see with unspeakable joy that the 
 hardness, reluctance, and earthliness of 
 my heart were no real obstacles, provi- 
 ded that I did but apply to him for a 
 
JANE TAYLOH. 195 
 
 cure. Yes, to cast ourselves entirely on 
 God to do all for us, in the diligent use 
 of means, is the sure, the only way to 
 obtain th'e benefit, But it is surprising 
 what reluctance there is in the mind to 
 do this, and how ready we are to try 
 every other means first; especially we 
 are unwilling to come by a simple act 
 of faith to the Saviour, and to accept 
 from him a remedy for all the evils of 
 our nature; although there is no other 
 way, how much labor is often lost for 
 want of this. Come to him, my dear 
 friends, and ' he will not cast you out.' 
 lie declares he will not; and come as 
 you are. It is Satan's constant artifice 
 to persuade us that we must wait till we 
 arc fit to come; and as this faith that 
 believes and lives, however simple, is 
 the gift of God, pray incessantly, impor- 
 tunately, till you receive it. 
 
 "I am sure you are all convinced 
 
196 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 already that delay, neglect, or indiffer- 
 ence in religion is the greatest folly, the 
 deepest cruelty we can practise towards 
 ourselves, as it respects our interests in 
 the future world. And indeed it is so 
 as to this world too. I have seen some- 
 thing more of life than you ; and I have 
 lived long enough to see that promise in 
 numerous instances fulfilled, that ' they 
 who seek first the kingdom of God' have 
 other things added to them in a more 
 especial and desirable way than those 
 who make them the primary object. I 
 am firmly convinced that, taking the 
 whole of life together, the most pious 
 and devoted persons, such as made an 
 early and complete surrender of heart 
 and life to God, have most real pros- 
 perity and success in this world, as well 
 as infinitely more enjoyment of earthly 
 good. But really this is a point scarcely 
 worth proving, when the interests of a 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 197 
 
 boundless futurity are concerned ; yet 
 as it is one of the chief illusions of ' the 
 father of lies' to persuade persons that, 
 in becoming decidedly religious, they 
 _must sacrifice the choicest pleasures of 
 life, and that God's ways are not ' ways 
 of pleasantness,' it is desirable to expose 
 the falsehood. All the real and reason- 
 able enjoyments of life are entirely com- 
 patible not only with an ordinary pro- 
 fession of religion, but with the highest 
 spirituality of mind, and are generally 
 sweetened by it, if kept in their subor- 
 dinate place ; and as for the rest— the 
 gayety, the vanity, the evil tempers, the 
 restless desires of a worldly heart, its 
 selfishness and frowardness, and all those 
 indulgences which are forbidden to us — 
 they are as certainly destructive of our 
 true interests and happiness here as of 
 our eternal happiness. Of this truth 
 experience too late convinces the most 
 
198 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 successful votaries of this world. But 
 let us rise above these lower considera- 
 tions. The question is, x\re we desirous 
 to secure the salvation of our souls ? 
 And it is impossible to fix a steady 
 thought on eternity without being so. 
 Then let us take the Bible for our rule, 
 and never rest till we have a scriptural 
 foundation for our hope ; nor till our 
 life, as well as our creed, is conformed 
 to its precepts and examples. Allow 
 me then to mention those means which 
 are most essential to the attainment of 
 this happiness. 
 
 11 To use means is our part; it is a 
 comparatively easy part ; and if we will 
 not even do this, it shows that we are 
 not at all in earnest on the subject. I 
 will mention then, as the first and the 
 last — as that which is indispensable to 
 our making any progress in religion — 
 daily, constant, private prayer . I am aware 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 199 
 
 that where this habit has not been formed 
 very early, there may be a sort of awk- 
 wardness and false shame felt in the 
 commencement of it in a family ; but it 
 is false shame, which a little effort will 
 conquer, and a short time entirely re- 
 move. I believe you know that it was 
 my intention to have recommended this 
 practice to you, if not already adopted ; 
 and now I cannot feel satisfied without 
 doing so ; for if ever I was sure that I 
 was giving good advice, I am sure of it 
 in this instance ; and I will, I must most 
 cordially request your attention to it. 
 Perhaps some of you might reply that, 
 seldom feeling inclined to prayer, it 
 would generally be a formal and heart- 
 less service ; but this is the very rea- 
 son why it must never be neglected. 
 This reluctance to spiritual engagements 
 is what the best of Christians have to 
 combat with ; and it can only be over- 
 
200 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 come by prayer. If then you are to 
 wait till you are of yourselves so dis- 
 posed, depend upon it you would pass 
 through life and plunge into eternity in 
 a prayerless state ; and although you 
 may often engage in private devotion 
 with little feeling and no apparent ben- 
 efit, yet there is one certain advantage 
 gained by it, namely, that the habit is 
 strengthened ; and as we are creatures 
 of habit, and God has made us so, he re- 
 quires us to avail ourselves of its impor- 
 tant advantages. If there is any one 
 thing more than another among the many 
 privileges of a religious education for 
 which I feel thankful, it is the having 
 been trained from my early years to 
 retire morning and evening for this pur- 
 pose. I found that a habit thus early 
 and strongly formed was not easily bro- 
 ken through, notwithstanding all the van- 
 ity of my youthful years ; and however 
 
JANE TAYLOE. 201 
 
 much I have to lament the abuse of it, 
 yet if ever I have known any thing of 
 religion, it is to the closet that I must 
 trace it; and I believe that universal 
 experience testifies that our comfort and 
 progress in the divine life are entirely 
 regulated by the punctuality and fer- 
 vency of our engagements there. There 
 is no need that the exercise should be 
 tedious ; a short portion of scripture, 
 read with thought, and a few simple 
 sentences uttered with the whole heart, 
 are far preferable to a much longer 
 address, in which the same heartless 
 phraseology is continually repeated. 
 But as your desires enlarge, so will 
 your petitions ; and the more you are 
 in earnest, the less liable you will be 
 to fall into hackneyed and formal ex- 
 pressions. 
 
 "There is another practice which, next 
 to prayer and reading the Scriptures, I 
 
 20 
 
202 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 have found most profitable ; I mean read- 
 ing once every day, at the time either of 
 morning or evening retirement, a few 
 pages of some pious book — selecting for 
 this purpose, not the light productions 
 of the day, but the writings of the most 
 eminently useful and impressive authors. 
 Christian biography, also, is peculiarly 
 profitable. This custom need not add 
 more than ten minutes to the time of 
 retirement ; and it is, I think, one of the 
 very best means for retaining a daily 
 impression of serious things. Habit, 
 also — try it for one month, and see if it 
 is not so — will render this pleasant, even 
 though it should seem irksome at first. 
 If you will excuse my entering into such 
 minute particulars — which I should not 
 do on any other subject — I will add that 
 the most advantageous time for the pur- 
 poses I have recommended is not that of 
 retiring for the night ; drowsiness will 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 203 
 
 generally invade us then ; besides, few 
 young people can be quite alone at that 
 time, and a prayer said by the bedside, 
 with a companion present, is not — I 
 might almost say cannot be personal 
 prayer. It is a good, I will call it a 
 blessed custom, for a family to disperse 
 to their respective places of retirement 
 half an hour before supper. Nor is it, 
 you must be aware, from my own expe- 
 rience alone that I recommend it ; for it 
 is a practice which I know to be strictly 
 observed by all my pious friends, and 
 which I have remarked in every serious 
 family in which I ever visited. As to 
 the morning, it is highly desirable that 
 it should take place before breakfast, as 
 afterwards it interferes with other du- 
 ties, and is in great danger of being quite 
 neglected. Besides, it is as essential to 
 the health of the body as of the soul to 
 rise at least early enough for such a pur- 
 
204 JANE TAYLOK. 
 
 pose. I fear I shall tire you, and will 
 mention but one other thing, and that 
 is, the advantage of a more particular 
 improvement of Sabbath evenings, as 
 the time most suitable for longer re- 
 tirement and deeper though tfulness than 
 the engagements of other days will 
 admit. 
 
 "My dear friends, be not contented 
 with low aims and small attainments in 
 religion ; they are indeed fearful signs 
 of insincerity ; or, at best, proceed from 
 a merely slavish fear of the consequen- 
 ces of quite neglecting it. Oh, do aspire 
 to something beyond an ordinary repu- 
 table profession of it. Here ambition is 
 sanctified. Determine to number your- 
 selves among the happy few ; and do not 
 be discouraged by difficulties, nor think 
 it too much for you to attain. It is not 
 humility, but inactivity and desponden- 
 cy, that leads us to think so. God will 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 205 
 
 give us all the grace and strength and 
 ability we really desire and ask for. 
 
 "And let me affectionately recom- 
 mend you early to seek to be engaged 
 in some sphere of active usefulness. 
 Doing good is the most excellent means 
 of getting good. There is no mistake 
 greater than to suppose that we are sent 
 into the world only to attend, however 
 industriously, to our own personal or 
 even family interests. Love to our 
 neighbor demands our active exertions 
 in his behalf; and we are all required, 
 more or less, ' to go and work in the 
 vineyard. 7 We have all a talent in- 
 trusted to us; and what shall we say 
 when our Lord comes, if we have not 
 improved it? Did you never remark, 
 in reading the sixteenth chapter of the 
 Epistle to the Romans, how St. Paul, in 
 his salutations, particularizes those who 
 were most zealously engaged in good 
 
206 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 works — ' Phebe, a servant of the church, 
 and a succorer of many j' 'Priscilla and 
 Aquila, his helpers in Christ;' 'Mary, 
 who bestowed much labor on them ;' 
 ' Persis, who labored much in the Lord ' — 
 while he passes over with a slight re- 
 membrance, or notes with censure, oth- 
 ers, who 'minded only their own things, 
 and not the things that are Jesus 
 Christ's. 7 It must have been gratifying 
 to have been thus distinguished by the 
 apostle ; but oh how much more so to be 
 approved by Him who, for our good, 
 requires these services from us, and to 
 hear him say at last, 'Well done, good 
 and faithful servant !' We should suffer 
 no day to pass without thinking of and 
 acting for that day when we shall be 
 'judged according to our works,' as the 
 evidences of our faith ; and very en- 
 couraging is that kind and considerate 
 expression of our Lord concerning a poor 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 207 
 
 woman, showing that he is no hard mas- 
 ter, and not unreasonable in his requi- 
 sitions : ' She hath done what she could.' 
 But how few of us deserve this praise ! 
 I am persuaded you would find useful 
 activity one of the best preservatives 
 against the innumerable temptations to 
 which, as youth advances, you will be 
 exposed. How many young persons 
 have blessed God that ever they were 
 led to engage in Sunday-school teach- 
 ing. It profitably occupies the time 
 which, if wasted in frivolity and in- 
 dulgence, leads to the worst conse- 
 quences ; and in teaching others, a 
 double blessing often descends upon 
 the teacher. 
 
 " With regard to our conduct, whether 
 at home or abroad, we cannot mistake 
 if we will but follow the precepts of Scrip- 
 ture in their plain and literal sense. This 
 is too much neglected ; strangely neglect- 
 
208 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 ed, even by those who profess to make 
 the Bible their rule. If we had no other 
 directions whatever for our conduct than 
 those contained in that beautiful chap- 
 ter, the twelfth to the Romans, it would 
 make a heaven of earth, were they but 
 attended to. It is an excellent chapter 
 to read very often, and deeply and daily 
 to study. It would make a little para- 
 dise of any society or family where its 
 spirit was imbibed ; and after all, it is 
 at home — in the bosom of our families, 
 in our daily and hourly tempers and 
 conduct — that we have the best oppor- 
 tunity of practising holy obedience to 
 the commandments of Christ. Keeping 
 these commandments, ' which are not 
 grievous ' — though we are prone to think 
 they are till we try — implies a contin- 
 ual exercise of self-denial; and if we 
 are conscious that we make no such sac- 
 rifices — that we are not in the habit of 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 200 
 
 denying ourselves — it is plain that we 
 are not following him at all ; for those 
 who do must bear some cross. There 
 is, indeed, something in the very sound 
 of the word self-denial which alarms our 
 indolence, indulgence, pride, and wilful- 
 ness ; but it is a false alarm ; for these 
 very qualities — indolence, indulgence, 
 pride, and wilfulness — are the greatest 
 enemies to our peace and happiness ; 
 and one day's experience is enough to 
 show that, in proportion as they are 
 resisted and mortified, we are comforta- 
 ble, tranquil, and happy. 
 
 "May God bless you all, and lead ev- 
 ery one of you safely through this. dan- 
 gerous world to his eternal rest! This 
 is the earnest hope, and will be the fre- 
 quent prayer, of your sincere and affec- 
 tionate friend, j, x." 
 
 Jana Taylor. £( 
 
210 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 CHAPTEE IX. 
 
 Jane's interests and affections cen- 
 tred very much in Ongar during the 
 rest of her life, though frequent visits 
 and journeys drew her away, chiefly at 
 the solicitation of friends, who urged 
 that change of scenes and social pleas- 
 ures were among the best means of re- 
 cruiting if not recovering her health. 
 
 "But I find," she says, "that home 
 is the place which suits me best.' 7 
 
 Amid all the usual alternations of 
 hope and fear, her disease slowly and 
 steadily gained on her. 
 
 "And it requires much,' 7 she says, 
 "utterly to extinguish the hope of re- 
 covery." 
 
 Yet her chief anxiety related to a 
 hope of the better life beyond. The 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 211 
 
 doubts which now cast their shadows on 
 her, if doubts they were, arose from her 
 high standard of Christian character. A 
 full and free salvation she clearly ap- 
 prehended ; but from want of a suffi- 
 ciently explicit and authoritative expo- 
 sition of the law of Christ, she felt the 
 gospel was often fatally abused by the 
 professedly Christian world. And she 
 rejoiced in the glad tidings with trem- 
 bling, unless accompanied with a fear- 
 less and uncompromising declaration of 
 the truth, that every one shall receive 
 " according to their works." 
 
 "I have no doubt," she often said to 
 her brother, "as to the way of salva- 
 tion ; it lies upon the surface of the 
 Scriptures ; but those who shall receive 
 the benefit of this free salvation, and 
 who shtill be accounted worthy to stand 
 before the throne, are those who on earth 
 are meet for heaven by being truly like 
 
212 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 Christ; and am I — are the mass of those 
 of whom we are accustomed to think 
 well — are they like Christ ?" 
 
 And who will not sa}^ if this be error, 
 it is at least erring on the safe side ? 
 
 If Jane felt her own literary aspira- 
 tions extinguishing, we can well fancy 
 them kindling anew in her brother Isaac. 
 Their friend Josiah Condor was at that 
 time editor of the Eclectic Beview, then 
 in the zenith of its fame, with Eobert 
 Hall, John Foster, and Olinthus Greg- 
 ory among its able supporters. An- 
 other thinker was added when Isaac 
 Taylor joined its staff of contributors. 
 
 His first independent venture was 
 made in 1822, in a small volume, called 
 " Elements of Thought," succeeded by a 
 new translation of the "Characters of 
 Theophrastus," accompanied by pictorial 
 renderings of the characters, drawn and 
 etched by himself. And since Jane's 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 213 
 
 pen was slowly slipping out of her hand, 
 we can see how her fine sympathies and 
 intellectual keenness were kept in vigor 
 by daily participation in the congenial 
 pursuits of one so dear to her. 
 
 In the autumn of 1823, accompanied 
 by Isaac and Elizabeth Medland, she 
 spent a few weeks at Margate, visited 
 several friends, walked in Cowper's gar- 
 den, and was returning, much invigora- 
 ted, home, when an unusual exposure to 
 wet and rain imperilled the benefit of 
 the trip. Still at her desk, we find her 
 writing to Elizabeth's young brother, 
 then at school : 
 
 " I have heard with very great pleas- 
 ure, dear John, the good accounts that 
 have reached your sister respecting your 
 conduct at school, and hope you will 
 feel ambitious to maintain this good 
 character. We all know that it is easier 
 to set out well, while there is the stiru- 
 
214 JANE TAYLOB. 
 
 ulus of novelty to excite us, than stead- 
 ily to persevere in a good course ; yet I 
 need not remind you that nothing short 
 of such steady perseverance in well- 
 doing will avail any thing to your real 
 advantage ; and it is this alone that truly 
 merits praise. You cannot therefore 
 guard too carefully against the first 
 small temptations that may present 
 themselves, of whatever kind. If these 
 are yielded to, others more powerful 
 will quickly follow ; and thus, for want 
 of a little timely effort, every good res- 
 olution may eventually fail. 'He that 
 despise th small things shall fall by little 
 and little.' 
 
 "It has been frequently remarked 
 that pupils who show most quickness and 
 make most progress in their studies, are 
 the least worthy of praise in other and 
 more important respects. Dear John, 
 do not let this be your case ; never be 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 215 
 
 content with half a character, but be 
 still more ambitious to distinguish your- 
 self for obedience, gentleness, kindness, 
 and a resolute resistance to all you know 
 to be wrong, remembering that brillian- 
 cy, unconnected with goodness, proves 
 a curse rather than a blessing. 
 
 " On the other hand, let me remind 
 you of the importance of diligently im- 
 proving your present opportunities for 
 acquiring knowledge. 
 
 "How valuable it is, and how glad 
 you will be of it in future, you can 
 scarcely at present imagine ; and be as- 
 sured, no time will ever arrive when the 
 business you now have to attend to can 
 be better done, even if it could be done 
 at all. Nor can time or opportunities 
 lost at one period ever be recovered in 
 another, because every period of life is 
 fully occupied with its own proper en- 
 gagements ; so that what is lost in youth 
 
216 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 is lost, irrecoverably lost. Now the 
 only way to make real proficiency in 
 learning of any kind, is to acquire a 
 love of it for its own sake, and this may 
 always be done by taking pains. Never 
 be contented with merely getting through 
 your daily tasks in order to escape fines 
 and punishments. A boy of sound sense 
 and strong mind can find pleasure in 
 that daily round of business which to the 
 sluggish or trifling is all toil ; and those 
 difficulties which discourage and disgust 
 the idle, do but stimulate the diligent to 
 greater efforts. 
 
 11 But, my dear John, let me still more 
 urgently entreat you not to suffer either 
 business or pleasure to divert your 
 mind from what you know is all impor- 
 tant. Oh, do not indulge that foolish 
 and false idea, that the great concerns 
 of religion may be put off to a future day. 
 Do but try, and you will find that 'the 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 217 
 
 fear of the Lord is' indeed 'the begin- 
 ning of wisdom,' and that they who seek 
 him early enjoy his peculiar favor and 
 blessing on all the pursuits and events 
 of life ; and you, bereaved as you are of 
 early friends, how much more than you 
 can possibly at present imagine, do you 
 need God to be your Father and the 
 Guide of your unprotected youth ! Study 
 his will then by constantly reading the 
 Scriptures, and seek him for yourself by 
 earnest prayer, and be assured you will 
 not seek in vain. I will not apologize 
 for not writing you an entertaining let- 
 ter, since it is the desire I feel for your 
 truest good that induces me to fill it 
 with such plain advice, persuaded that 
 you will not only receive it kindly, but 
 peruse it with attention and serious 
 thought. You have heard how much 
 your sister and I were disappointed in 
 not being able to visit you while we 
 
 28 
 
218 JANE TATLOK. 
 
 were at Bedford ; the bad weather ren- 
 dered it quite impossibla. Believe me, 
 dear John, 
 
 "Your affectionate friend. " 
 
 In November she went to London to 
 take leave of an old friend who was 
 about to leave England, and thus end a 
 long and endeared intercourse. The 
 interview was prolonged, and to its 
 excitement was added a chilly rain, in 
 which she returned to Ongar. 
 
 A cold thus taken aggravated her dis- 
 order and wasted her strength, and the 
 winter set in under unfavoring circum- 
 stances. Yet she always joined the fam- 
 ily circle ; and when unable to do so of 
 herself, Isaac brought her in his arms. 
 
 Jane was slight in figure, and her 
 features, regular and delicately formed, 
 were full of that varying expression 
 most difficult for the pencil to catch and 
 portray. Every motion revealed the 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 219 
 
 activity of her mind, and a peculiar arch- 
 ness and sprightliness of manner lent a 
 charm to all she did. 
 
 "I need not tell you," she writes 
 Anne, "how kindly I am nursed, and 
 how tenderly all is done for my relief 
 and comfort. I am thankful for being 
 so free from pain ; my suffering is almost 
 entirely from languor and weariness and 
 difficulty of breathing. I often think I 
 ought to rejoice in this gradual decay, 
 in being thus secured from far greater 
 suffering; but I desire to leave it all 
 with God. 
 
 "You do not forget that this summer 
 is your time for coming to Ongar. I 
 have been looking forward to it for a 
 long time. 
 
 "Dear Anne and Mr. Gilbert, re- 
 member me in your prayers, as I am 
 sure you do. ;; 
 
 Winter passed, the singing birds re- 
 
220 JANE TAYLOR. 
 
 turned to their spring boughs, and Jane 
 had time often to inquire : 
 
 "Saviour, what means this breadth of death, 
 This space before me lying ; 
 These deeps where life so lingereth, 
 This difficulty of dying ? 
 
 1 ' So many turns, abrupt and rude, 
 Such ever-shifting grounds ; 
 Such a strangely peopled solitude, 
 Such strangely silent sounds !" 
 
 One day in early April. 1824, she 
 came down stairs for the last time. It 
 was at the usual hour, and the dear old 
 family room seemed full of the calm 
 which filled her own bosom. Her speech 
 was faint and low ; but Isaac was at her 
 side. Into his ear she whispered her 
 last wishes, and with them words of love, 
 which through long years seemed ever as 
 fresh as the recollections of yesterday. 
 
 In the afternoon she took up her pen ; 
 only a few words more. She could not 
 indeed sit at the desk, but supported in 
 
JANE TAYLOR. 221 
 
 Isaac's arms, a few lines were wearily 
 traced upon the page. 
 
 "Monday. Oh, my dear friends, if 
 you knew what thoughts I have now, 
 you would see, as I do, that the whole 
 business of life is preparation for death. 
 Let it be so with you. If I have ever 
 written or spoken any thing you deem 
 good advice, be assured I would, if I 
 could, repeat it with tenfold force. Think 
 of this when I am gone. 
 
 " May God bless you all. Farewell, 
 
 farewell ! Dear S , dear E , dear 
 
 P , dear J , farewell ! Yours 
 
 till death, and after that, I hope. 
 
 "JANE TAYLOR" 
 
 Martin arrived from London, and 
 Anne was hurrying on the way. 
 
 A quiet night, but morning found her 
 unable to rise. The sweet ministry of 
 father, mother, sister, brothers floated 
 through the chamber of death. Anne 
 
222 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 not come, a letter was despatched. But 
 Jane felt her life ebbing away. Never 
 a sight of the dear face again on earth. 
 
 What does she say ? Is the distrust- 
 ing woman still vexed by fears ? Is she 
 alone in that narrow way where the 
 nearest and dearest part company ? 
 
 '"Though I walk through the valley 
 of the shadow of death, I will fear no 
 evil, for thou art with me ; thy rod and 
 thy staff they comfort mc,'" she said, 
 breaking on the stillness of the hour. 
 
 And soon after, with the same em- 
 phasis : 
 
 " ' Jesus, to thy dear, faithful hand 
 My naked soul I trust ; 
 And my flesh waits for thy command 
 To drop into the dust.' " 
 
 Repeating with victorious fervor the 
 words : 
 
 " ' Jesus, to thee my naked soul, 
 My naked soul I trust.' " 
 
 That evening she slept in Jesus. 
 
JANE TAYLOK. 223 
 
 A simple monument marks her final 
 earthly resting-place in the chapel-yard 
 at Ongar. 
 
 The next year, Isaac Taylor married 
 Elizabeth Medland, and made a home at 
 Stanford Rivers, a secluded country 
 village two miles from his father's house 
 at Ongar. This was the scene of his 
 literary labors. 
 
 The "Natural History of Enthusi- 
 asm," "Fanaticism," and "Spiritual 
 Despotism," followed by "Saturday 
 Evening," w r ere read and welcomed by 
 a large circle of admirers. Their au- 
 thor was unknown. Who is he ? was 
 the question of the day : not answered 
 till called upon to stand for the vacant 
 chair of Logic in the University of Ed- 
 inburgh, in 1836. His anonymous shield 
 was then put by, and Isaac Taylor be- 
 came a marked man. 
 
224 JANE TAYLOE. 
 
 His biography of Jane, which prece- 
 ded the above-named works, is warm 
 with the love which knit them together. 
 
 Isaac Taylor died in the spring of 
 1865, and the parted ones met in "the 
 land beyond the sea."