MA'S. SO.MAT//././-. 31 



much as he did. In the evening she played piquet 

 with her father, or practised music. Ordinary indi- 

 viduals find it rather appalling to go over the list of 

 her achievements ; but they ought to remember that 

 the student was by no means an ordinary individual. 



One or two characteristics of this great woman 

 ought not to be passed over in silence. In reading 

 her "Recollections," we rarely find her giving any in- 

 formation about her personal feelings during the 

 solemn crises of life. Her marriage, the birth of her 

 children, the bereavements she had to endure, and 

 similar events, are passed over with a mere mention of 

 the date of their occurrence. 



She was a woman of strong affections, and of course 

 no one could live to a great age, as she did, without 

 having to go through sorrow ; but she shrank from 

 making a display of her feelings. In opinion, too, 

 she was very broad and liberal. When quite young, 

 she dared to think for herself, and rejected beliefs 

 which science taught her were incompatible with the 

 greatness and goodness of the Creator. Yet she had a 

 very clear and simple faith, which influenced every 

 thought and action of her life. But she did not care 

 to talk in general company either about religion or 

 about her own affairs ; and she specially directed her 

 daughter to suppress everything in her "Recollections" 

 which would merely gratify curiosity. The conse- 

 quence is, that though we hear all about her studies, and 

 about the interesting people whom she met, we hear 



