sy Thoughtless_ (1751)
and _Jemmy and Jenny Jessamy_ (1753) could, without much difficulty, be
transposed into novels of to-day. _Idalia_ (1723) is of an entirely
different mood and scheme. It is a pure Behnesque _nouvelle_, merely
describing the plots and outrage which ruin the heroine (_The
Unfortunate Mistress_ is the second title), but attempting no
character-drawing (the only hint at such a thing is that Idalia, instead
of being a meek and suffering victim, is said to have a violent temper),
and making not the slightest effort even to complete what story there
is. For the thing breaks off with a sort of "_perhaps_ to be concluded
in _some_ next," about which we have not made up our minds. Very rarely
do we find such a curious combination or succession of styles so early:
but the novel, for pretty obvious reasons, seems to offer temptations to
it and facilities for it.

For _Idalia's_ above-named juniors, while not bad books to read for mere
amusement, have a very particular interest for the student of the
history of the novel. Taken in connection with their author's earlier
work, they illustrate, for the first time, a curious phenomenon which
has repeated itself often, notably in the case of Bulwer, and of a
living novelist who need not be named. This is that the novel, more
almost than any other kind of literature, seems to lend itself to what
may be called the _timeserving_ or "opportunism" of craftsmanship--to
call out the adaptiveness and versatility of the artist. _Betsy_ and
_Jenny_ are so different from _Idalia_ and her group that a critic of
the idle Separatist persuasion would, were it not for troublesome
certainties of fact, have no difficulty whatever in proving that they
must be by different authors. We know that they were _not_: and we know
also the reason of their dissimilarity--the fact that _Pamela_ and her
brother and their groups _ont passe par la_.[9] This fact is most
interesting: and it shows, among other things, that Mrs. Eliza Haywood
was a decidedly clever woman.

[9] The elect ladies about Richardson joined _Betsy_ with
_Amelia_, and sneered at both.

At the same time the two books also show that she was not quite clever
enough: and that she had not realised, as in fact hardly one of the
minor novelists of this time did realise, the necessity of
individualising character. Betsy is both a nice and a good
girl--"thoughtless" up to specification, but no fool, perfectly
"straight" t