496 4 
thor of these letters, than a few single 
occurrences of her eventful life. Cer- 
tainly: but why limit the proposition to 
“so singular a character” as that of Mrs. 
Godwin ? ‘The application of it is univer- 
sal, for no character can be justly esti- 
timated by a few single occurrences. 
Not only her sentiments and views, he 
continues, ought to be maturely weighed 
in the balance of unprejudiced reason, 
but the circumstances which gave them 
birth should be also fairly investigated, 
and allowed to have their natural influ- 
ence upon the subsequent events of her 
life. In delineating her character, there- 
fore, the author has attempted to trace 
the circumstances that formed it, with 
the hopey as he expresses himself, of thus 
finding the best apology that can be 
made for certain individual points of her 
conduct, over which every reflecting and 
sympathizing heart would desire to 
throw an oblivious shade for ever. Surely 
there is more than 2 little inconsistency 
in bringing forward to public investiga- 
tion “certain individual points” of the 
conduct of Mrs. Godwin, over whieh the 
author himself acknowledges it would be 
more charitable to throw the shade of 
oblivion! It is one among a hundred 
other suspicious circumstances belong- 
ing to these pages. 
In another part of his volume, the au- 
thor tells us that he does not pretend to 
vindicate the ‘whole of her conduct, but 
that his object is merely to explain it 
upon her own principles, and to shew 
upon what foundation those principles 
were raised. Now the conduct of Mrs. 
Godwin was too obviously explicable on 
ther own principles to stand in need of 
illustration; and the foundation upon 
which those principles were raised is 
scarcely less open to observation. Her 
contempt of the opinion of the world arose 
from a too flattering estimate of those 
abilities which she was compelled to exer- 
cise by the unkindness of her family ; in 
early life she called them into action for a 
maintenance ; they were luxuriant but 
wild ; they bore fruit, but she mistook 
the nature of it." She mistook genius for 
judgment: of the former she had abun- 
dance, of the latter little; but neverthe- 
less had the rashness to oppose that little 
to the accumulated stock, which age, ex- 
perience, and wisdom united, had pro- 
duced. 
But if the author does not vindicate 
BIOGRAPHY. 
the whole of Mrs. Godwin’s conduct, he — 
may almost as well leave the task of yin- _ 
dication unattempted; there were but 
few parts of Mrs. Godwin’s conduct in- 
differently good or indifferently bad: all 
her deviations from the established stan- 
dard of morality were wide and glaring, 
and these only are those parts of her 
conduct which require vindication. But 
the fact is, that he leaves no part of it 
unapologized. 
Uncharitable as the insinuation may 
seem, a suspicion has come across our 
mind on the perusal of these pages, that 
more is meant by them than meets the 
eye: the panegyric which pervades them 
of the moral character of this “ amia- 
ble,” this “* incomparable” woman, as 
she is continually called, is extravagant 5 
it is certainly unbecoming and unwise in 
the part of an advocate thus to extol a 
client, whose character he acknowledges 
stands in need of apology: it is suspici- 
ous: We find some inconsistencies in 
the detence too, which, notwithstanding 
the adducement of extenuating circum- 
stances, is not such a defence, we suspect, 
as Mrs. Godwin would herself have 
made, or have suffered another to have 
made for her. 
The first object of Mrs. Godwin’s* af- 
fections was .Mr. Fuseli; or, as it is 
coarsely expressed here, ‘ the first sexual ' 
attachment that is plainly avowed,” was 
towards that celebrated gentleman, whom 
she was in the habit of meeting at the hos- 
pitable table of Mr. Johnson. Mr. Fus 
seli was married ; and Mrs. Godwin no 
sooner discovered the impression which 
his fascinating conversation and man- 
ners had made on her too susceptible 
heart, than to avoid the consequences 
which might ensue from an unequal con- 
flict with her passions, she nobly resolved 
to leave the country: she remembered 
the poet’s praise of him 
«« Who quits a ‘ scene’ where strong temp- 
tations try, 
And since ’tis hard to combat, learns to fly :" 
she profited by the praise, and dearly 
earned it for herself. : 
Mrs. Godwin left London; she went 
to France, where she resided between two 
and three years. At Paris she became 
acquainted with a man, the letters even 
of whose name it gives us pain to trace, 
Mr. Imlay, who at that time was enjoy- 
ing considerable reputation on account 
* To avoid confusion of names we shall confine ourselves to that which she carried to 
e graye. - 
the g i 
