you come, a good-looking lad, civil and quiet, and seeming likely to do.  Good bye.  I am sure Mr. W. D. {162} will be astonished at my writing so much, for the paper is so thin that he will be able to count the lines if not to read them.

   Yours affecly,
   ‘JANE AUSTEN.’

In the next letter will be found her description of her own style of composition, which has already appeared in the notice prefixed to ‘Northanger Abbey’ and ’Persuasion’:—­

   ’Chawton, Monday, Dec. 16th (1816).

’MY DEAR E.,—­One reason for my writing to you now is, that I may have the pleasure of directing to you Esqre.  I give you joy of having left Winchester.  Now you may own how miserable you were there; now it will gradually all come out, your crimes and your miseries—­how often you went up by the Mail to London and threw away fifty guineas at a tavern, and how often you were on the point of hanging yourself, restrained only, as some ill-natured aspersion upon poor old Winton has it, by the want of a tree within some miles of the city.  Charles Knight and his companions passed through Chawton about 9 this morning; later than it used to be.  Uncle Henry and I had a glimpse of his handsome face, looking all health and good humour.  I wonder when you will come and see us.  I know what I rather speculate upon, but shall say nothing.  We think uncle Henry in excellent looks.  Look at him this moment, and think so too, if you have not done it before; and we have the great comfort of seeing decided improvement in uncle Charles, both as to health, spirits, and appearance.  And they are each of them so agreeable in their different way, and harmonise so well, that their visit is thorough enjoyment.  Uncle Henry writes very superior sermons.  You and I must try to get hold of one or two, and put them into our novels:  it would be a fine help to a volume; and we could make our heroine read it aloud on a Sunday evening, just as well as Isabella Wardour, in the “Antiquary,” is made to read the “History of the Hartz Demon” in the ruins of St. Ruth, though I believe, on recollection, Lovell is the reader.  By the bye, my dear E., I am quite concerned for the loss your mother mentions in her letter.  Two chapters and a half to be missing is monstrous!  It is well that I have not been at Steventon lately, and therefore cannot be suspected of purloining them:  two strong twigs and a half towards a nest of my own would have been something.  I do not think, however, that any theft of that sort would be really very useful to me.  What should I do with your strong, manly, vigorous sketches, full of variety and glow?  How could I possibly join them on to the little bit (two inches wide) of ivory on which I work with so fine a brush, as produces little effect after much labour?

’You will hear from uncle Henry how well Anna is.  She seems perfectly recovered.  Ben was here on Saturday, to ask uncle Charles and