The Sun.
London, England, 1864-05-03 00:00:00

LITERATURE,

Janita's Cross. By the Author of " St. Olave's."
Three Vols. Hurst and Blackett.
The author of " St. Olave's," already well be-
loved by many readers, has given us a charming
work in " Janita's Cross"—a work that will very
greatly enhance her popularity. It is a pleasant,
homely, domestic story, containing many delight-
ful and most natural characters. Janita herself
is a very loveable heroine—friendless and home-
less, born at sea, and named after the vessel—the
" Janita "—which is her cradle—she happily falls
into good hands. First adopted by the kind family
at the Manse of Inverallan, the dear playmate of
Agnes and Willie Home, she grows up a wild and
joyous Scottish lassie, free from thraldom and free
from care. Then transplanted to the (at first)
ungenial soil of Meadowtiaorpe, she is domi-
ciled with her mother's relations, gcol old
Professor Ruthven and his strong - minded
sister Hepzibah. This lady's portrait is delineated
with some happy touches, very stern and strict is
her guardianship of the young Janita, whose name
she abbreviates to the more proper appellation of
Jane. Miss Hepzibah believes herself to be endowed
with three talents—one for cookery, one for house-
hold management, and one for conversation. Tao
two latter gifts are matters of incredulity to her
friends, but the first, the gift of cookery, no one dis-
putes with her. It is on the frequent occasions,when
damson cheese, and orange marmalade demand
the good lady's incessant care, that Janita is
enabled to enjoy a little freedom. One of her
greatest pleasures in her new and lonely life is the
friendship of Miss Alwyne, an authoress, and also
a very delightful and amiable personage. We can
fancy that the writer of Janita's history has, in
depicting Miss Alwyne, taken, perhaps uncon-
sciously, some traits from a portrait near home.
It is by Miss Alwyne that Janita, when eager, with
the impetuous longing of youth, for work to do,
and good to accomplish, is reminded of the real
lesson of life—a truth which her history afterwards
admirably fulfils, and which gives its title to the
book. "My child," said Miss Alwyne, in that grave
sweet voice of hers, and one might be content with
much pain to win the peace which made that voice
so sweet. "My child, your work lies close at hand.
See God's purpose for you in the simplest duties of
your daily life. Fulfilling these with reverent care
you are doing his will, surely the highest, noblest
thing which can be done. And if that will should
one day meet you as a cross,' heavy and hard to
bear, carry it bravely, carry it patiently. It is but
for a little while. And there is no cross so b)rne
which he who gave it will not sooner
or later exchange for an eternal crown."
In time the cross comes to Janitu as it comes to all,
and proves to her, as to all who bear it well, a bless-
ing in disguise. The development of Janita's cha-
racter is very naturally pourtrayed in the unfold-
ing of her history, and will be followed with inte-
rest and sympathy by all who make her acquaint-
ance. Very natural and very charming is the
little sketch of Bessie Ashton, the parlour-maid,
coquettish and wilful, like Dolly Varden and
Mary Barton, and, like these lively lassies, she too
nearly throws away the substantial happiness at
hand in grasping after the shadow of admiration,
Bessie naturally takes toJanita—as Elizabeth Hand
took to Hilary Leaf in the "Mistress and Maid "
of Miss Muloch, in preference to the grim head of
the household, Mistress Hepzibah Ruttaven. Of
this latter lady's peculiarities we have already
spoken. A better idea of the mistress may, how-
ever, be obtained by a glimpse of the mansion.
Here is a peep into
THE SPARE ROOM AT MEADOWTHORPE.
Janita rubbed her eyes ; they were rather stiff with cry-
ing so much the night before, and then she took a leisurely
survey of the room.
Things look so different when the sun is shining upon
them. Nothing could ever make that prim, cell-like apart-
ment like her own little room in Inverallan Manse; still it
was not so cheerless as she had thought it the night before.
The paper, which, by candlelight, had seemed of such a
dull dapple-grey colour, Janita found to be covered with
blue flowers on a white ground, as if some one had taken
baskets of convolvoluses, and thrown them upon the wall,
leaving them to twine about as they liked. The bed was
hung with white dimity, striped with little blue flowers like
hose on the paper. There was a very stiff, old-fashioned,
mantel-piece, at each end of which stood a white china-dog
with a blue ribbon round its neck, and its nose pointing
up to the ceiling. In the c.entre was a group, also of white
china, representing a shepherd and shepherdess about to
kiss each other, They looked so very near doing it, and 3bt
it never got done, that Janita felt as if she should like to
push their heads together, and finish the process for them.
But Miss Hepzibah took this group away before next even-
ing, and replaced it by a figure of an old man with wings
and an hour-glass.
There was a deep recess on each side of the fireplace. In
one of these recesses stood the drawers ; over them a framed
piece of embroidery, setting forth the Prophet Elijah as an
old man in ribbed stockings and a red coat, taking what
appeared to be an uncooked beef-steak from a dark-coloured
bird, whilst a second was careering forward with a penny
loaf in its bill. To match this, on the other side, was a sum.
pier containing the alphabet worked in six different patterns,
the corners filled in with trees, houses, gooseberry-bushes,
or anything that happened to be convenient. It bore date
a long time back—a very long time back--when Miss
Hepzibah was a little girl in pinafores. Oh, these
samplers I How ill-naturedly they reveal dates and ages I
N 9 wonder they aro thrust into back bed-rooms by the very
fingers that were pricked so in bringing them to perfection.
All these ,things Janita took note of as she lay in bed,
rubbing her eyes. After a while she got up, drew the
blind, and leaning her elbows on the broad, low window
seat, took a survey of external nature.

Miss Hepzibah was in the garden. She looked some-
thing like a pickling cabbage herself, for her face was very
red, she having been making damson jelly ever since seven
o'clock, and it was now half-past eight. She was standing
amongst the Vrench beans, with her dress pinned up, and
a gingham hood, which was not at all becoming; tied over
her black lace cap. But happening to look up she spied
Janita at the long-room window, and raising her hands
with a gesture of virtuous indignation, she set off down the
walk as fast as a pair of wooden pattens would carry her.
Miss liepzibah's care in the matter of the shep-
herdess is much to be commended ! As another
evidence of the author's felicitous portrait-painting
we may cite the motley group of figures in discus-
sion at the bridge-side,foremost amongst whom are
these