fact her view will be generally accepted, since God rules this world, and brings good out of evil.  Some maintain we have made no advance over ancient India in either morals or literature or science, or over Greece in art, or Rome in jurisprudence; and yet we believe the condition of humanity to-day is superior to what it has been, on the whole, in any previous age of our world.  But let us give the credit of this advance to God, and not to man.

Her other book, “Delphine,” published in 1802, made a great sensation, like a modern first-class novel, but was severely criticised.  Sydney Smith reviewed it in a slashing article.  It was considered by many as immoral in its tendency, since she was supposed to attack marriage.  Sainte-Beuve, the greatest critic of the age, defends her against this charge; but the book was doubtless very emotional, into which she poured all the warmth of her ardent and ungoverned soul in its restless agitation and cravings for sympathy,—­a record of herself, blasted in her marriage hopes and aspirations.  It is a sort of New Heloise, and, though powerful, is not healthy.  These two works, however, stamped her as a woman of genius, although her highest triumphs were not yet won.

With the eclat of these two books she traversed Germany, studying laws, literature, and manners, assisted in her studies by August v.  Schlegel (the translator of Shakspeare), who was tutor to her children, on a salary of twelve thousand francs a year and expenses.  She had great admiration for this distinguished scholar, who combined with his linguistic attainments an intense love of art and a profound appreciation of genius, in whatever guise it was to be found.  With such a cicerone she could not help making great acquisitions.  He was like Jerome explaining to Paula the history of the sacred places; like Dr. Johnson teaching ethics to Hannah More; like Michael Angelo explaining the principles of art to Vittoria Colonna.  She mastered the language of which Frederick the Great was ashamed, and, for the first time, did justice to the German scholars and the German character.  She defended the ideal philosophy against Locke and the French materialists; she made a remarkable analysis of Kant; she warmly praised both Goethe and Schiller; she admired Wieland; she had a good word for Fichte, although she had ridiculed his obscurities of style.

The result of her travels was the most masterly dissertation on that great country that has ever been written,—­an astonishing book, when we remember it was the first of any note which had appeared of its kind.  To me it is more like the history of Herodotus than any book of travels which has appeared since that accomplished scholar traversed Asia and Africa to reveal to his inquisitive countrymen the treasures of Oriental monarchies.  In this work, which is intellectually her greatest, she towered not only over all women, but over all men who have since been her competitors.  It does