The Portland daily press., 1896-08-08
OF FAMOUS HERoINEs.
Original of Some of soott's Thackeray's
and Dickens's Characters.
(Charles Robinson In Donaboe,s.

(Charles Robinson In Donahoe's.)
1t Is of course we'll known that som
OF the most famous heroiGss in fiction
have been closely modelled on originals
in real life. The prototype of Rebecca
in "Iyanhoe" was Philadelphia girl
named Rsbsooa Gratz, an intimate friend
of Washington Irving, and it is through
his acquaintance with her, and Sir Wal
ter Scott that we have had handed down
to US tho latJer's beautiful portrait of the
meek, modest, bigh-minded Jewi al
maiden. The likeness III this instance,
dark eyes and sable tresses, of noble in
stinots and of an ancient creed. 1t is
different in the case of Jeanne Deans, in
the 'ueart of Midlothian" This charao-
ter, which is one of the most loyable in
the whole range of English fiction,
was literally "taken from life,'' tie
original being a Miss Helen Walker,
a friend of the Wizard, who, while still
young, was left an orphan with the
charge of q younger sister, and who ex-
perienoed the great grief Of bringing the
latter TO years Of maturity only to see
her charged with child murder.
At the trial Helen was subpoenaed to.
give evidence. She knew that her tssti-
mony if truthfullly given would con-
denim her sister, yet withal she declined
to tell 10 falsehood; swore to the facts
and, as result saw her sister pro-
No Il Is ~
lows. Immediately after the trial, &C
cording to Scottish law six weeks must
intervene between capital sentence and
its execution, Helen Walker started to
London afoot, with petition detailing
the circumstances Of the case and i'm
ploring pardon for her sister. She ar.
rived after a long and fatigu ing journey,
and finally succeeded with some diff
GUILTY in obtaining an interview with the
Duke of Argyll, to whom she made
known the facts, and upon their oonfr-
nation pardon was extended to her sis
ter. This heroine of fact and fiction was
buried in the kirkyard of Iron Gray, and
on her tombstone is an inscription writ
ten at the request of some of her friends
by Sir Walter Scott himself
In one of those delightful Round
about Papers," we learn that Thackeray
was wont to evolve his herolnes tout of
scraps and heel-taps, odds and ends of
character. Amelia Sedley inss "VauIty
Fair seems to have been constructed in
this fashion, for in a letter to Mrs.
Aol he
you are only piece of Amelia, my
mother is Another half; my poor little
wife y est pour beauooup." So again
of the characters in "Pendennis.
Thackeray himself owned that Helen
was drawn after his mother, "though
she was thousand times better than the
portrait.'h
OF Diokens's heroines, the character of
Little Nell-one of the oanonized saints
Of English fiction-was drawn from his
wife's youngest sister, Mary Hogarth.
whose death in 1887, at the early age of
II, was the one great sorrow of the nov
elist's.life. Foster, abiding to this be-
reayement. tells us that Mary Hogarth,
by sweetness of nature, even moro than
~ sSSS VI poIbOH, ildu ucI6o1l VIC
ideal of his life. - Indeed, there can be
no doubt that this clearly beloved girl'
was upperIr ost in his mind when he
drew the character of the innocent hero
inc In the cold Curiosity Shop MI.
Ward. in his admirable biographical
sketch Of Dickens, declares that whan
the novelist came to the death of Little
ell he shrunk from thu task, saying:
/" Dear Mary died Yesterday when think
of this sad story"
Curiously enough, the words he chose
for his sister-in-law's epitaph "young,
beautiful and good'' are used not only
in describing the death of Little Nell,
but also in illusions to two of his other
heroines, namely, in "Oliyer Twist"
rela tive TO the illness of Rose Maybe,
and in "Dombey and Son., referring to
curing vision of Mary Hogarth was
surely not on involuntary repetition of
himself, but q studied, Intentional and
touching trib ute to the memory of the
one he hold so dear.
Lucie Manette, the heroine of that ex-
quisitely pathetic and nobly altruistio
story Tale of Two Cities" who was
60 Past beyond his misery and to
Present beyond his misery" was in some
respects portrait of Lucy Stronghill,
whose family were next door neighbors OF
the Dickens's, in Ordinance terrace,
Chatham. his blue-eyod, golden haired
little girl was special faYorite of the
future novelist, and her brother George,
u frank, open and somewhat daring boy,
many of whose characteristics are repro
ducei as Steerforth in David Copper
field" was his great friend and COM
pauion during these happy years. She
also figures as the Golden Lucy in the
'fWreck of the Golden Mary" A sharp
who lived With the Dickens family about
this time has also her portrait handed
down to posterity in unfading colors as
the Marohionoss'' in the cold Ouriesi-
ty Shop"