76 JANE AUSTEN 



The party from Upper Cross drove in a leisurely 

 way to Lyme, and the afternoon was well advanced 

 as they descended the steep hill into the village. 

 The hill is doubtless much as it was, and nearly at 

 the bottom are the two hotels mentioned ; it is, 

 honestly speaking, impossible to say at which of the 

 two the Musgroves put up. I am inclined to 

 believe it was that on the west side, but my reasons, 

 if indeed they exist, are not worth giving. 



The house in which Miss Austen is known to have 

 stayed is probably Captain Harville's. It is near 

 the Cobb, and presents that air of not having much 

 room inside, which we gather from the description 

 in Mansfield Park. 



But these points are of trifling interest in com- 

 parison with the really important question — ^where 

 did Louisa's accident occur ? There are three 

 separate flights of steps on the Cobb, and the local 

 photographer, in vthe interests of trade, had to fix 

 on one of them as the scene of the jump. I cannot 

 believe that he is right. These steps are too high 

 and too threatening for a girl of that period to 

 choose with such a purpose, even for Louisa, whose 

 determination of character we know to have been 

 one of her charms. Then, again, this particular 

 flight is not (so far as I could make out) in the 

 New Cobb, which is where the accident is described 

 as occurring. It is true that at first sight it 

 hardly looks dangerous enough to bring about the 

 sight which delighted the fishermen of Lyme, 

 namely, a "dead young lady," or rather two, for 

 the sensitive Mary contributed to the situation by 

 fainting. I am, however, confirmed in my belief 



