With that perverse devotion which characterizes the love of so many women, Mrs. Billington clung to her brutal husband in spite of his cruelty and callousness, and she did not separate from him till she feared for her life.  Many times he threatened to kill her, and extorted from her by fear all the valuable jewels in her possession, as well as the larger share of the money received from professional exertion.  Despairing at last of any change, she fled with great secrecy to England, where she arrived in 1801, after an absence of seven years, during which time her name had become one of the most popular in Europe.  There was instantly a battle between Harris and Sheridan, the rival managers, as to which should secure this peerless attraction.  She finally signed a contract with her old friend Harris, for three thousand guineas the season from October to April, and the guarantee of a free benefit of five hundred guineas.  It was likewise arranged that she should sing for Sheridan at similar terms on alternate nights, as there was a bitter dispute between the managers over the priority of the offer accepted by the prima donna.  Her reappearance before an English audience was made in Dr. Arne’s “Artaxerxes,” which the critics of the day praised as possessing “the beautiful melody of Hasse, the mellifluous richness of Pergolese, the easy flow of Piccini, and the finished cantabile of Sacchini, with his own true and native simplicity.”  It is not only the criticism of to-day which has concealed the real form and quality of works of merely temporary interest under flowery phrases, that mean nothing.

It was speedily observed how greatly Mrs. Billington’s style had improved in her absence.  Lord Mount Edgcumbe says she resembled Mara so much that the same observations would apply to both equally well.  “Both were excellent musicians, thoroughly skilled in their profession; both had voices of uncommon sweetness and agility, particularly suited to the bravura style, and executed to perfection and with good taste everything they sang.  But neither was Italian, and consequently both were deficient in recitative.  Neither had much feeling, both were deficient in theatrical talents, and they were absolutely null as actresses; therefore they were more calculated to give pleasure in the concert-room than on the stage.”  It was noticed that her pronunciation of the English language was not quite free from impurities, arising principally from the introduction of vowels before consonants, a habit probably acquired from the Italian custom.  “Her whole style of elocution,” observes one writer, “may be described as sweet and persuasive rather than powerful and commanding.  It naturally assumed the character of her mind and voice.”  She was considered the most accomplished singer that had ever been born in England.