life, and, though he survived for nearly twenty years, produced
little more in philosophy. His brilliant but patchy eclecticism had had
its day, and he saw it; but he earned new and perhaps more lasting
laurels by betaking himself to the study of French literary history, and
producing some charming essays on the ladies of the Fronde. Cousin's
history is interesting as an instance of the accidental prosperity which
in the first half of this century the mixture of politics and
literature brought to men of letters. But his own literary merits are
very considerable. Without the freedom and originality of the great
writers who were for the most part his juniors by ten or twenty years,
he possessed a style studied from the best models of the seventeenth
century, which, despite a certain artificiality, has great beauty.
Besides editions of philosophical classics, the chief works of his
earlier period are _Fragments Philosophiques_, 1827, _Cours de
l'Histoire de la Philosophie_, 1827; of his later, _Du Vrai_, _Du Beau
et Du Bien_, and his studies on the women of the seventeenth century.

[Sidenote: Beyle.]

The author now to be noticed has found little place hitherto in
histories of literature, and estimates of his positive value are even
yet much divided. Henri Beyle, who wrote under the name of De Stendhal,
was born at Grenoble, in January, 1783. His family belonged to the
middle class, though, unfortunately, Beyle allowed himself during the
Empire to be called M. _de_ Beyle, and incurred not a little ridicule in
consequence. His literary _alias_ was also, it may be noticed, arranged
so as to claim nobility. He was a clever boy, but manifested no special
predilection for any profession. At last he entered the army, and served
in it (chiefly in the non-combatant branches) on some important
occasions, including the campaigns of the St. Bernard, of Jena, and of
Moscow. He also held some employments in the civil service of the
Empire. At the Restoration he went to Italy, which was always his
favourite place of residence; but when in 1821 political troubles began
to arise, he was 'politely' expelled by the Austrian police. After this
he lived chiefly in Paris, making part of his living by the unexpected
function of contributing to the London _New Monthly Magazine_. He knew
English well, admired our literature, and visited London more than once.
Being, as far as he was a politician at all, a Bonapartist, he was not
specially inte