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life of Jane Austen, which extended over only forty-two years, and was chiefly passed among her own nearest relations in the quiet of a country parsonage, varied only by an occasional visit to London, to Bath, or to the sea-side, affords but little material for a biographer to deal with.

Her writings were, in fact, her life, and an attempt to give anything beyond the very briefest sketch of her career must resolve itself into a criticism of those writings. By these she is known to her many admirers, and it is with the hope of making them even better known and more widely appreciated, that this little book is offered to the public.

The writer wishes to express her obligations to Lord Brabourne and Mr. C. Austen Leigh for their kind permission to make use of the Memoir and Letters of their gifted relative, which have been her principal authorities for this work.

S. F. M.

May 1889.