The Sun.
London, England, 1863-05-09 00:00:00

LITERATURE.

Lady Audley's Secret. By M. E. Braddon. Ninth
Edition. One vol., pp. 476. Tinsley Brothers.
" Another and another still succeeds"—might be
said with a full double significance in reference
to this long-continued and rapid issue of edition
after edition of Miss Braddon's masterpiece. As
such we cannot but still regard the earlier of her
two popular romances. This, be it said, in spite 01
the pre-eminence of popularity enjoyed by the
later of the two, that is by "Aurora Floyd," at least
in its dramatic form. Opening again this really en-
thralling narrative of the life and fortunes of Lucy,
Lady Audley, of Audley Court, in the county of
Essex—reading yet again the preliminary pages of
the work, those charming descriptive pages consti-
tuting the first chapter of the story—we don't
wonder in the least that already a ninth edition
should have made its appearance ! We don't
wonder, even, when we find slipped into
this ninth edition the following significant little
flyleaf tag of a " Notice.-0 wing to the great de-
mand for 'Lady Audley's Secret,' the publishers
have been compelled to omit the photograph of the
Lime Tree Walk,' as it has been found impossible
to print it in numbers sufficient to keep pace with
the sale of the book." And we will add at once that
the simple reason for our not wocdering, as we say,
in the least at these unmistakeable evidences of a
signally sustained and a really quite exceptional
popularity enjoyed by Lady Audley's Secret is this
—that the mere style in which Miss Braddon has
written it, has about it a charm, for ourselves at least,
of scarcely resistible fascination. It is so easy and
yet so finished. It is so vividly picturesque—we
are talking here, remember, of the mere style of the
writing, of the mere manner, colour, and grace of
the composition. As to the other capacities of the
authoress they are many of them very remarkable.
She has a peculiar felicity and power in the delineation
of character. Her ingenuity in the construction of
the plot and in the weaving together of the inci-
dents, none of those who have read her—no matter
how carelessly or supeificially —but must have un-
conciously noted at the time: as they will acknow-
tedge now that they come to look back at the story
they have skimmed through—we care not whether
the story may chance to have been "Aurora Floya"
or " Lady Audiey's Secret." What we would espe-
cially here take note of in explanation of the
rapidity and, so far, at least, we will say also, the
continuance of the rise and extension of Miss
Braddon's popularity as a novelist, is the exceeding
charm resulting from the easy vigour and sparkle of
her style—a style bearing about it, we will repeat, a
truly delightful fascination. Perfectly well do we
remember our first succumbing to this fascination.
It was when reading for the first time the two earliest
chapters—chapters I. and II.—" Lucy," and " O❑
Board the Argus," in the first number
of the beautifully got up but entirely unsuccessful
periodical, started only two or three years ago b)
Dr. Charles Mackay, under the name (the periodi-
cal and not the Doctor) of Robin Goodfellow.
There it was, in that first and only number of Robin
Goodfellow, that Lady Audley's Secret first made
its appearance, or rather first began to make its ap-
pearance, for with the issue of the initial number of
the intended weekly serial the speculation com-
menced and ended. Its first number was its last.
We read then with delight chapter I. and chapter
11. of Lady Audley's Secret, and were left longing
for more. For a long time those who, like ourselves,
had read it, were left longing in vain. At last the
story made its appearance, otherwise than through
the egency of that still-born sprite Robin Good-
fellow. And when it did so appear—we know well
enough what was the consequence. Miss Braddon's
fame as a novelist sprang up as rapidly and
brightly, to use a very hackneyed metaphor,
as a skyrocket. It has not yet come
down, as some have threatened that it would, like a
stick. It merely fluctuates, as oue might say, in the
hue of its sparkles—break ing, rocket-wise, into fresh
corruscations. These fresh corruscations shining in
the empyrean of the lighter periodical literature of
the day as " Aurora Floyd or "Eleanor's Venge-
ance,"—or what not ! Other offshoots (to carry on
the fantastic imagery) of this still soaring reputation
being every now and then (as in the instance before
us)some new aspect assumed by the earliest evidence
of its apparition at all—Lady Audley's Secret !
Here in effect is the ninth. And a very beautiful
edition it is, in its getting up, altogether—this one
volumed issue of a work originally published in its
complete form in 3 vols. Bvo. A beautiful edition in
spite of its cheapness, If the moral tone of
the story (which it unhappily, but notoriously
is not) were only equal in excellence to the charm of
the style in which the story is written, we could
rejoice over these reiterated evidences of its wider
and wider popularisation. Such unfortunate; y being
very far, indeed, from the fact, we can only regret
that a young lady so gifted with the graces of
authorcraft, as Miss Braddon unquestionably is,
should so very often, as she does no less unquestion-
ably, write like a very gay, very knowing, exceed-
ingly wide-awake, horse-racing, billiard-playing,
cigar smoking, heater-skelter, last young gentle-
man !

Skirmishing. By the Author of " Cousin Stella."

One vol. pp. 313. Smith and Elder.

" Never repent of a kind action, however it turns
out for yourself," says dear good Mrs. Lescrimiere,
one of the characters of the story, and this saying
of hers is selected as a motto for the title-page.
Mrs. Lescrimiere is the good grandmother in the
rectory house at Eden, the home of the Greatorexes
—a very delightful family, Mr. Greatorex himself
is the most genial and benevolent of men, over-
flowing with the milk of human kindness, but,
nevertheless, capable, when necessary, of adminis-
tering " admonition due," and maintaining that
"discipline" so strongly recommended by Mr. Bog-
nel. When the rector addresses his wife as "my
dear," and when he calls his son Charlie " Charles,"
both wife and sonjknow that the husband and father
must
sot
otht
aras
beh t
nobeyed. Mrs. Greatorex is the daughter
of Mrs. Lescrimiere, and is so unlike her gOOO
mdheaur!hift,eratie,. ntd expects
,cau,,seHtohwat
ogdododyloaudyshtoouledxclbseim,miyn
Mrs. Greatorex is good and proper
every one else to be the same;
she on make no au
olvituce for human inferiority,