The twentieth-century reader who happens upon the eighteenth-century novel A Description of Millenium Hall (1762) is apt to be put off quickly by its unremitting tendentiousness.¹ Without compensating artistic beauties, such as strong characterization or eloquent style, the book is easy to lay aside long before one reaches the end. In large part this must be attributed to the inability of the author to transcend the common-place, to invoke the artistic imagination necessary for first-rate work. As Walter Crittenden has said:

It is as a gentlewoman, alert to the intellectual and social tendencies of the day, yet guided by a native dignity and strict religious zeal which gave a moral tone to all her writings and made her assiduously avoid all notoriety, that Mrs. Scott must be looked upon as a representative author. She is, indeed, a typical product of the century's sentimental and didactic ideals.²

Still, to some extent she was representative rather than original by conscious choice. As Professor Crittenden further observes,

Had the materials which were not only at hand but which she utilized in her correspondence, been used in her novels, Fannie Burney would not have been counted by Macaulay as the first of the female novelists in England.³

As it is, Sarah (Robinson) Scott remains an obscure though not insignificant figure in the development of the English novel. She was one of the first women to publish a novel in modern form, leading the way for numerous other female writers in the latter half of the eighteenth century.

Like her sister, the "bluestocking" Lady Elizabeth Montagu, she maintained a firm belief in the importance of education for young women; and this interest led Sarah, along with her closest friend, Lady Barbara Montagu (no direct relation to her sister's husband, Edward Montagu), to establish a partly charitable, partly educational, project for poor girls.⁴ It is this effort, idealized and otherwise somewhat altered, which forms the basis for Millenium Hall.

Although her philanthropic, educational, and literary interests found an important voice in her novels, she expressed them in other ways as well. She wrote three historical works of some merit.⁵ She also produced a considerable correspondence, full of serious reflections as well as the typically trivial news of personal communication. Most of her extant letters were written to her sister, Lady Montagu, and are now part of the Elizabeth Montagu Collection in the Huntington Library, with whose kind permission the following portions are transcribed.

These letters include passages of incisive comment on people and events and at times the style in which she describes them is masterful. Here she employs devices conspicuously absent from her fiction: humor, figurative language, and the beginnings of satire.

The P of W has been at Sr Harry Featherstones, he staid three days, during which they had races of all sorts,—fine horses—Poneys—Cart horses,—Women—& Men in sacks, with various other Divertimenti fit for children of six foot high. I hear he was much delighted, & said that New market races were dull in comparison. They were within three or four miles of us, but no one except Servants went from hence, nor do I find that any Ladies of fashion in the Country were at them. Poor Lady Featherstone, Sr Harrys Mother, fled from the Riot to Mr Iremongers. These pretty sports attracted a very great Mob who were charm'd with a P so familiarly affable to them all. [A]t Brighthemston he did not give quite so much satisfaction, to see him come drunk to the Balls, walk arm in arm with Weltjie, & sit in the Gallery at the Play with a Woman of the Town gave no great delight to the Spectators. It is however allowed that when he is so drunk he can scarcely stand he dances better, bating a fall now & then, than any other Man, even when sober. [August 23, 1784]⁶

Political and military occurrences were among the topics in which Mrs. Scott was interested. She seldom betrayed party bias, choosing rather to focus upon individuals affected by political events:

People seem now to think Lord Shelburne will not get into the Ministry, it was talked of, & that Coll. Barré was to succeed Lord Barrington, but now it is supposed the person will be Lord Beauchamp. Lord Barringtons vacating his seat was assigned to his being [forced] to quit his place, but I can not see how those two matters were connected; except he is seized with so very strong a desire for retirement & quiet that as his interests no longer require his being in the House, he is determin'd to free himself even from the trouble of attendance. Some intimate that the Parliament was prorogued somewhat sooner than it wou'd otherwise have been because Burgoyne & Fitzpatrick were likely to render it a more troublesome scene of action than ever, & that the arrival of Gen'l Howe, daily expected, wou'd still increase the flame. However the Season of the year made a recess desirable, & the Parliament was not likely to be of much use to the state of public affairs. Determinations are more quietly made in the Cabinet, & shou'd the sanction of Parl[iamen]t be wanted it will be easily assembled. Besides Militia duty wou'd carry off great part of the Members, more Particularly of such as are most agreable to the M[inistr]y. [1778]⁷

While political and military affairs were of course often closely allied, Mrs. Scott demonstrated a lively interest in the tactical side, as well as the broader strategic implications, of the engagements of her day.

[A] poor simple Woman at Land must fight a Sea battle judiciously, but I shou'd think as the nights are now very light their motions might have been discern'd, & considerable damage done them by our pursuing them when their order must be disorder'd by their round about course. But perhaps the state of our Ships might be an impediment to any Such measure if there was no other good reason against it. Our Fleet is returning to Plymouth to be repair'd. An Engagement wou'd sooner have happen'd if the French had not had the wind of Kepple, which they were not inclined to use in attacking us. Once the Two Fleets were very near & the wind in our Favor, but it was then Four in the afternoon, & Kepple being desirous I suppose to make a good day's work of it, & not suspecting the wind of so shameless an inconstancy as to change before morning, nor apprehending that the polite French would take advantage of the same wind that he design'd should carry him to them, to get away from him delay'd engaging till he had more time before him; but so perversely did things turn out that in the morning the wind was changed, & the French fleet gone. [August 3, 1778]⁸

Clearly, Sarah Scott had both the wide scope and the penetrating focus of observation to qualify her for more distinguished work.

The letters which Mrs. Scott wrote to her sister Elizabeth also contain artistic devices unfortunately absent from her novels. Perhaps the most surprising, considering the grimly serious nature of her books, is an occasional touch of humor:

The D of C is a happy addition to the Crew, he will vulgarize their enormities beyond what cou'd have enter'd the thoughts of any but a Tar [tar?]. I hear that at Bootle's fété the eldest was carried off dead drunk after having cascaded most copiously in the Room. The youngest was not less freed from the plague of human reason, but capable of walking about the room swearing to so violent a degree that he terrified many of the company. [June 11, 1789]⁹

In at least one instance Mrs. Scott employs the tools of sarcasm. Here is the germ of both irony and satire, neither of which she used to relieve the straightforward presentation of material in her fiction:

The poor Dss of B. is at present under great affliction from the apprehension of an approaching loss, not of a child or friend, but alas! of a tooth; a tooth in front; dire calamity! & so unforeseen & unexpected too at the early age of 65. She is wonderfully distress'd, but as she is a religious woman she calls up all her peity to her aid, & endeavours to submit to her hard trial with Christian patience, & philosophic fortitude, & tho hitherto her endeavours have not been crown'd with much success, yet perseverance in her exertions, with the assistance of Spence, a person in this case more consolatory than all the Divines of the Church of England or all the Priests of the catholic Communion, I trust will enable her to come off conquerer. She ask'd me some questions about a Dentist, but looked as bashful & mortified as a reputed Virgin wou'd do on consulting an accoucheur on a miscarriage or pregnancy. [June 25, ca. 1784]¹⁰

She could also handle metaphor, simile, and conceit. In fact, very often she begins a letter with an example of the latter:

I must beg you will not take advantage of so small a degree of eldership as to lay claim to the precedency you mention; I with pleasure resign the pas in going out or in of any place but this World & the next, but as younger eyes than the grim Spectres mistook me for the eldest in my youth, he may easily fall into the same error, & save me from the only objection I have to longer life while health of mind & body continue. [October 11, 1785]

On one occasion only, it seems to me, even in her letters, does she employ her talents to the full. Here, however, in a momentary bit of inspiration, she achieves the eloquence so unfortunately missing in her novels:

Dying hard may be a credit in uncreditable places, & not to squeak at the hour of death may reflect honour on those whose life will yeild them none, but I confess I am too insensible to the charms of Stoicism to admire so unchristian a fortitude in a Christian as that which enables people to fix their minds on the shortest lived vanities, when every moment is of so great importance as it becomes when it brings those who are just on the brink of eternity still a step nearer it. I suppose it is possible for a Christian to dye with joy, & to say with humble gratitude, tho with firm reliance, with St Paul, to me to dye is gain, to those whose heart bears them witness that when they close their eyes from the fading gaudiness of worldly vanities, it is only to open them on the brightness of eternal glory, death appears in the form of a kind Benefactor not in that of a cruel Enemy, but this is no common felicity, few can leave this world without regret, or look on the other with such firm confidence as even excludes hope, as that implies at least some diffidence; but many can look on their dissolution tho not with joy yet without terror, can when they think on what they leave with tenderness, still bless him who gave, & him who taketh away, & trust their souls with strong tho humble hope in the hands of him whose will they have above all things endeavoured to obey; trusting in his Mercy Who has done so much for them for the pardon of their very imperfect services; but I confess it surprizes me, how a person whose self-love has been the chief motive of her actions, whose most laudable actions have had no other foundation but a stoical regard for Virtue, in short one whose apostle was Feildings Mr Square; for his rule of right & fitness of things were the foundation of her best principles, it surprizes me how such an one can think with total indifference on their approaching appearance before that God whom they have never endeavoured to please or obey, whose commands if they have followed it has been without consideration of the Commander. [ca. 1758]

When she had the technical equipment to make her books more lively, why do we have them as they are? This is perhaps the most interesting question which the letters can help to answer. One of them, from about 1770, is very explicit. Here Mrs. Scott places great emphasis upon the duty of the writer to show the exemplary side of mankind, in order to encourage others to conform to the model of behavior depicted:

The animal creation I believe generally yield most pleasure to Philosophical Inquirers into their nature & Structure, because every thing therein appears form'd by the Creator best to suit the purpose for which it was ordain'd, nothing superfluous, no contradictions, nothing perverted but all in its natural perfection; whereas a narrow inspection into the mind of man shews us such desolation in natures best gifts, such perversion of the finest qualifications, as not only renders the mind we wou'd contemplate a melancholy spectacle, but leads us to some very painful reflections on our own, by the similitude we discover in it to that of our Neighbour. But when a Man has used his reason, to conquer his infirmities, to harmonize his discordant passions, to improve instead of perverting the advantages Nature has bestow'd on him above the rest of the Creation, what study can be so noble or instructing! While we contemplate such a character, there will be a small voice within us which will at least whisper, go & do thou likewise. Example has been always allow'd more instructive than preaching.

This need not in itself narrow the author's canvas unduly; but evidently Mrs. Scott (witness another letter, also ca. 1770) felt that the novel should be entirely devoted to this end:

Shall I study to hang a picture in the best light, & not endeavour to place human nature to the best advantage? I wou'd wish to see Mankind even better than they are, nor does the most extreme prudence require one to think of their faults except in the very moment of such actions as others are connected with us in; & I am sure we shall suffer less even by being duped than by permitting ourselves to contemplate only the worst side of human nature, for the infallible consequence is lessening our benevolence, & robbing us of great part of the pleasures of Society, which must in Time end in moroseness & selfishness; the most benevolent charitable Temper, if it can fall into that error, will in Time be conquered by it. If we cou'd perform all social duties in spight of that bad opinion of Mankind we shou'd fall short of the duty of Christians, since we are ordered not meerly to do good to Mankind but to love them.

It is too bad that Sarah Scott used the novel primarily for moral instruction rather than artistic expression; for she possessed the talent to become a writer of greater stature. We can only regret that instead of exclusively concerning herself with the presentation of moral models she did not occasionally peep with the inward eye of the imagination through the

"Charm'd magic casements, opening on the foam
Of perilous seas, in faery lands forlorn."

Notes

¹ The same is true of Mrs. Scott's other five novels: History of Cornelia, 1750; Agreeable Ugliness or the Triumph of the Graces, 1754; A Journey Through Every Stage of Life, 1754; The History of Sir George Ellison, 1766 (which also appeared in condensed form as The Man of Real Sensibility, or the History of Sir George Ellison, n.d.); and A Test of Filial Duty, 1772.

²The Life and Writings of Mrs. Sarah Scott—Novelist (1723–1795) (Philadelphia, 1932), p. 95.

³ Crittenden, p. 93.

⁴ Crittenden, pp. 28–32.

⁵ Crittenden, p. 87. They are: The History of Gustavus Ericson, King of Sweden, 1761; The History of Mecklenburgh, 1762; and The Life of Theodore Agrippa D'Aubigné, 1772. Of Sarah Scott's nine books, only Millenium Hall is available in a modern edition.

⁶ For the dissolute Prince of Wales, George Augustus Frederick (1762–1830), such occurrences were commonplace. Louis Weltjie (d. 1800) was the Prince's chief steward at Carleton House. Sir Henry Fetherstonhaugh, MP (1754–1846), is referred to familiarly as "Sir Harry Featherstone" in the correspondence of both the Prince and Sarah Scott. The residence of Joshua Iremonger (1744–1817) was in Ferndown, Dorset.

⁷ William Petty, Lord Shelburne (1737–1805), was an unpopular reform-minded statesman. His brief ministry ended in 1783 when the treaty of peace which he had drawn up to end the war with America was rejected. In the late winter of 1778 North was contemplating the inclusion of Shelburne in a coalition cabinet, and in the winter of 1779 the King favored bringing Shelburne in.

Colonel Isaac Barré, MP (1726–1802), was an Opposition ally of Shelburne and a severe critic of North. William Wildman Barrington (1717–93), secretary at war from 1765 to 1778, also opposed the conflict with America. Francis Seymour Conway, Lord Beauchamp (1719–94), served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and as North's Treasury aide.

"The troublesome scene of action" in the House materialized when General John Burgoyne (1722–92), returned to England from America in May, 1778. Burgoyne, with justification, charged ministry mismanagement of the war. Although victorious at Ticonderoga and Crown Point, Burgoyne was inadequately supplied and was further hampered by relatively inflexible orders which bound him to push on in an attempt to take Albany. After Burgoyne surrendered at Saratoga, Washington gave him permission to return to England to defend his good name.

Burgoyne's complaints were supported by both Admiral Richard Howe (1726–99) and General Sir William Howe (1729–1814). The result was the famous Howe Parliamentary Inquiry (1799). Although the Inquiry ended inconclusively, the controversy elicited numerous pamphlets which aired the whole matter publicly.

Richard Fitzpatrick (1748–1813), served with the British forces in the colonies, participating in the battles of Brandywine and Germantown. He later became a general and was Fox's secretary at war in two cabinets.

⁸ This encounter, which took place July 23–27, 1778, set off a prolonged and bitter public controversy. Admiral Augustus Keppel (1725–86) encountered a French fleet and engaged them in battle. The French, concentrating their broadsides on the English ships' masts and rigging, inflicted considerable damage. Keppel, however, was eager to renew the attack and signalled Vice-Admiral Sir Hugh Palliser (1723–96) to form another line of battle. Palliser did not respond, later maintaining that his ship was too badly damaged and that Keppel's signal was unclear. When an Opposition newspaper printed the story and charged that Palliser's failure to respond to the signal precluded an English victory, the stage was set for a court-martial, which took place on January 7, 1779. Although both men were exonerated, public opinion strongly favored Keppel, and a mob attacked the homes of Palliser and several ministers. Bitterness and discontent were visible in the Navy for a decade afterwards.

⁹ "The Crew" is a general reference to the overly exuberant celebrants of King George III's birthday. "The D of C" may be the King's brother, Henry Frederick, Duke of Cumberland (1745–90), not known for the strictness of his conduct. Richard Wilbraham Bootle, MP (1725–96), was a supporter of North.

¹⁰ The "Dss of B." may be Elizabeth, Duchess of Beaufort (1719–99), who was 65 when this letter was written.