The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-04-28

"Jane Eyre" was the first of Miss Bronte's novels and at once made her famous. It was published in 1S47, was widely read then and is widely read now.
 "The survival of Jane Eyre" is one of the curious and instructive facts in the history of English literature. Its plot is hackneyed and melodramatic. and the story is redeemed by none of those inspired flashes of thought which sometimes enable a great author to make even the most commonplace story convey deep message.
 The character of Rochester must create loathing in any mind except morbid one, and most people will agree . herself the verdict: "A greater fool than Jane Eyre never breathed the breath of life"
 But just there Jane betrays the reason why, fool as she Is. her name. after the lapse of sixty years. is familiar on our lips as household words and the book in which she has her existence endures and Is likely to endure. She does, indeed, breathe the breath of life"
 Absurd, preposterous, repellant as the characters of Rochester and Jane may be, trashy" as the story of their loves may at first appear, Charlotte Bronte put into those two characters a vital spark of creative genius. Analysis cannot discover 1t, reason cannot grasp it--but the subtle thing is there. Whether people like Jane and whether Rochester ever lived in real life are matters aside from the question. In the story they do live; and that one fact has rescued from oblivion and given a permanent place in English literature to Jane Eyre
 Left a penniless orphan at an early age, Jane Eyre had been reared until she was 10 years old in the house Of her maternal uncle's widow, Mrs. Reed. who had treated her with great harsh ness and allowed her own three children to torture the girl as only children can torture each other. Naturally, strange, moody child, Jane's character had been still further warped by this treatment.
 Mrs. Reed hated the child, and only kept her because of a sacred promise she had been forced to make to her dying husband. When. at the age of 10, Jane gave way to one or two out bursts of anger, Mrs. Reed decided to get rid of her altogether, and considered that she was fulfilling her husbands commands literally enough by send ing the child to a charity school at Lowood. It was a grim place of priva- tions, suppressions and restrictions Yet Jane was happier than she had ever been before. After eight years spent at Lowood Jane became teacher there "a plain faced. thin, pale little teacher. but one who had studied much, learned much and was filled with longing for a less stunted life.
 Her intellect was strong her speech precise her manners cold and reserved. Yet down in her heart she had warm. womanly nature which was only sleep , ing, like the princess in the story, wait ing for the fairy prince to come and waken it.
 Such was Jane when she left Lowood to become governess at Thornfield Hall. She had advertised for such a place, and a Mrs. Fairfax had answered her advertisement She found Thornfield Hall a fine old house. and Mrs. Fair fax not the owner, but relative of the owner, who acted as housekeeper.
 The owner, MT. Edward Fairfax Rochester, she was informed. seldom visited the place. Her charge was an French dancer, whom MT. Rochester had protected" at a prosaically dis reputable period of his career.
 Before Jane went to Thornfield, her old nurse, Bessie, came to see her and told her that shortly before a Mir Eyre of Madeira, who said he was Jane's uncle had visited Mrs, Reed. He was disappointed at not finding Jane there. and said he could not go to Lowood as he had arranged to leave England the next day. This was the first time Jane had ever heard of her fathers relatives Mrs. Reed had always said In reply to her questions that if any of them were alive they must be a begEardfy lot" Sane thought of her uncle for a day and then forgot him in the new experiences of Thornfield Hall
 . On the day after her arrival. as Mir Fairfax was showing her over the house. Jane suddenly heard a strange, weird, mirthless laugh, coming from one of the rooms on the third story.
 'Tt is Grace Poole, one of the ser vants," said Mrs. Fairfax quickly "She sews in that room" The laugh had made Jane's flesh creep. What an undesirable servant this Grace Poole must bew thought she.
 One day when sJane had been an in- mate of the hall for some time she was returning from a walk to the neighboring village and sat down on a stiIe to rest and enjoy the winter landscape on which the sun was just sinking. Suddenly she caught the sound of an approaching steed ridden at a gallop, and then there passed her a solitary horseman spurring hard in the direction of Thornfield. Just be- yond her the horse slipped and fell She ran to the place of the accident to find the man extricating Rimseif from