FEMALE BIOGRAPHY. No. I. Ir, in a work chiefly dedicated to the amusement and edification of the ladies, the exemplary lives of illustrious women are particularly eligible, it is equally certain that the province of female biography offers a rich fund of demonstrations of genius and learning, and is as promising of improvement as of gratification. Reflecting on this truth, and convinced of the utility as well as attraction to be derived from so fertile a source as that of the history of feminine excellence, we have resolved to adorn the future numbers of our publication with full and accurate accounts of the most distinguished females of all ages and countries, whether as ornaments of letters, science, or the arts. The brilliant assemblage of talent and intelligence that this Indefatigable in her application, Mademoinew department of our labours will present selle Faber proceeded rapidly in her literary to our fair and enlightened readers, will not acquisitions, in which she was not only enfail to impress them with a due sense of its couraged by her father, but materially value, nor to awaken that emulation which assisted by his pupil, Andrew Dacier, a has ever proved the surest spring of supe- young man of her own age, of extraordirior merit and virtue. Piety and charity, nary talents, born to shine in philosophy affection and constancy, friendship and and criticism, and by his numerous publibenevolence, and wit and sentiment, in cations to render distinguished service to company with patriotism, heroism, and the literature and the sciences. Though it is other public virtues, will form a constella- natural to suppose that two young persons tion of mental beauty and moral worth; of minds so congenial in their taste and and render La Belle Assemblée, the faithful structure, and united in the same pursuits, reflector of a mass of intellect, and the should contract an early predilection for finer qualities of the heart, not less profi- each other, which indeed was the fact, so table as exciting examples, than entertain- || ardent were they in the prosecution of their ing as imitable representations. Influenced studies, that they did not find themselves by these reasons, we proceed to the execu- sufficiently at leisure to think of wedlock, tion of our task; and need not, we trust, till they reached the age of thirty-two; apologize for its commencing with the life by which time he had published his Pomof so illustrious a character as ponius Festus, his Horace with a French translation, and his St. Anastasius ; while the lady had produced an edition of Callimachus, in quarto, taken a part with M. Dacier, in editing the classics for the use of the Dauphin, and printed her Florus, in quarto, her Aurelius Victor, and her translations of Anacreon and Sappho. Her merit was so great, that fame, fortune, and envy seemed to contend for the decision of her fate. Her literary reputation spread in all directions; Christina, the mon powers with which nature had endowed her mind, than he began their improvement. Unlike our Milton, who churlishly deemed "one language sufficient for a woman," he thought he could not give his daughter too liberal an education. Indebted to his own literary acquirements for the patronage of Richelieu, who settled upon him a pension of two thousand livres, and also for the honour and profit of his professorship at Saumur, as well as all the other advantages of his life, he determined not to withhold from his daughter accomplishments at once so fitted to her genius, and that promised to be not less promotive of her future fame than of her interest and || happiness. MADAME DACIER. Anne Dacier, daughter of the ingenious and learned Tanaquil Faber, or, as some call him, Le Fevre, was a native of the town of Saumur, in France, and born in the|| year 1651. Her father was so attached to study, and so sensible of its value, as the only source of solid and useful knowledge, that he no sooner discovered the uncom Swedish queen, a woman of great abilities, learned herself, and a competent judge of letters, invited her to Stockholm, promising, that if she would settle there, she should experience every mark of respect, and the most munificent patronage; but fortune too greatly favoured her labours at home to incline her to leave France, and she declined her Majesty's gracious offer. In opposition to this, envy attacked her moral character, by insinuating, that before she married M. Dacier she had been the wife of Lesnier, a bookseller, and that she deserted him for the society of her new husband, to whom she was never regularly married: but this imputation was too gross not to defeat its own purpose; and the purity of her character not only triumphed over the slander of her enemies, but became more admired as it was more known, and added to the laurels her learning and genius had acquired, the palm of universally-acknowledged virtue. To the works already enumerated Madame Dacier afterwards added her "Eutropius," in quarto; a French translation of the Amphitrio, Epidicus, and Rudens, of Plautus, in three volumes; The Plutus, and Clouds, of Aristophanes, in twelves; as also Dicty's Cretensis, and Dare's Phrygius. These works were followed by her translation of the plays of Terence, with notes, in three volumes (twelves); her version of Homer's Iliad, with notes, in three volumes (twelves); her translation of the Odyssey, in three volumes (twelves); her Defence of Homer against De la Motte, and another against Hardouin; in both which she displayed much erudition and very considerable taste. And while she produced these various publications, she assisted the learning and judgment of her husband in his Marcus Antoninus, and his Plutarch. Educated in Protestant principles, this illustrious lady founded one of her objections to her attaching herself to the Swedish court, on the importunate request, if not the express expectation of Christina, that she would profess the faith, and assist at the ceremonies of the Catholic church; but the persuasion of a husband proved so much more powerful than the promised protection of a queen, that about two years after her marriage, she made a recantation of her religious tenets. The No. 177.-Vol. XXVIII. importance given to this circumstance by the French Government is manifest, from the fact, that immediately after her conversion, a pension of 1,500 livres was settled on M. Dacier, and 500 on herself. Besides the accomplishment of a profoundly learned education, Madame Dacier was graced with some of the noblest ornaments of human nature. Her judgment was cultivated and sound, her style perspicuous, spirited, and elegant; her wit keen and fluent; and her diction rich and sonorous. Of her knowledge of Homer, Pope, in his notes, was in many instances glad to || avail himself; and some of the most erudite have not scrupled to consult her learning and confide in her criticism. To say that this lady was an honour to her age, would be to speak in language inadequate to the claims of her merit; better to say that she adorned the highest intellectual rank of her sex; that she was splendid among the bright, and added to consi| derable personal attraction, a solidity and lustre of intellect, that manifested itself to the scholars of her own age, and will command the admiration of those of posterity. TO THE MEMORY OF DAYS THAT ARE PAST. There is an hour, a pensive hour, There is a strain, a plaintive strain, There is a tear of sweet relief, Ꭰ NARRATIVE OF A TOUR ROUND THE LAKE OF GENEVA, AND OF AN EXCURSION THROUGH THE VALLEY OF CHAMOUNI. "Ye Ice-falls! ye that from the mountain's brow Adown enormous ravines slope amain; Torrents, methinks, that heard a mighty voice, Who made you glorious as the gates of heaven God! sing ye meadow streams with gladsome voice! THE journey from Paris to Geneva is long and tedious. The traveller is dragged in a lumbering unwieldly vehicle, pleasantly misnomered a Diligence, for four days and four nights without any intermission excepting a few hours' rest at Dijon. In addition to this, his fellow-travellers are frequently not the most agreeable in the world. He is occasionally perhaps relieved by the presence of a jovial Abbé, with an eye "All glittering with ungodly dew." Or of a dashing Militaire; but the majority of his associates are usually Genevese watch-makers, sour Calvinistic teachers, and Lyons silk traders, who continue with their pipes in their mouths during the greater part of the journey; and when they lay them down, it is, as Goldsmith has said of the members of one of his clubs, "not to speak but to spit." The road, however, lies through some of the finest scenery in France, over the rich and fertile plains of Burgundy; by the beautiful banks of the Loire and the Rhone, and through the truly sublime passes of the Jura. As you approach Switzerland, the difference is as remarkable in the manners of the people as COLERIDGE. in the country in which they dwell. The people who inhabit the vallies and villages in the vicinity of the Jura, although obliging, are blunt and independent. There is none of that courtesy which is characteristic of French manners, even in the lowest gradations of society. The women are fairer, with light hair and blue eyes, and generally handsomer than those whom we had previously seen. It was also a very agreeable sight to witness once more among the men the good old English fashion of shaking hands, instead of the nauseous custom of kissing each other. While descending the Jura the road turned abruptly, and we came for the first time in sight of the Alps. The effect was indescribably grand and imposing. Alp rose above Alp, and Mont Blanc towered over the whole with his crest of snow, dazzling and astonishing the sight, and set off to admiration by the blue unspotted sky. This magnificent sight was ravished from us by another turn in the road, only to be restored in a short time with the addition of the Lake of Geneva whose vast expanse of waters, bluer than the cloudless heavens themselves, stretched as far as the eye could reach, re occurs another of those surprising phenomena with which this country abounds: the two rivers flow together for a considerable distance without mixing their waves, and the bright blue Rhone and the white silvery Arve are as distinct and separate from each other as when they were divided by leagues of terra firma. From Geneva we (a party of three) proceeded on foot to explore the wonders of flecting that superb range of hills on its majestic bosom. This view is considered one of the finest in Europe; the objects are so vast, yet so well proportioned. Any range of hills but the Alps would look dwarfish and mean, near such a lake as Geneva; any lake but Geneva would be but as a pond in the vicinity of such mountains as the Alps. The place, too, from which it is seen, seems framed on purpose to command a view of this magnificent pic-the valley of Chamouni. We breakfasted ture, being an elevated spot, on what may well be called the lesser Alps, the mountains of the Jura, sufficiently high to shew those objects; yet so much inferior to them, as to heighten instead of diminishing their grandeur by the comparison. As we approached the lake, the view of course diminished in interest; the higher Alps were hidden from us by lesser but nearer objects, and the lake, seen no longer in the mass but in detail, had only the appearance of a large river, or of a creek or inlet of the ocean. We continued to traverse its banks until we arrived at Geneva. Geneva is a small, but populous town, and the streets are irregular and ill paved. There is no ostentatious display of wealth to be seen any where, but there is an air of quiet comfort pervading the whole, which, to an English taste, is far preferable. The town, however, is not without its ornaments; there is a good square, and a very handsome terrace, commanding the most delightful views, in which are the houses of the principal citizens. The cathedral of St. Pierre is a gothic edifice; clumsy and heavy, but not deficient in grandeur. The view from the tower of this church over the town and the lake is very fine. There is also a considerable armoury in Geneva, in which are some curious specimens: but its arrangement is very defective. One of the most beautiful objects about Geneva is the river Rhone. This noble stream is of a deep blue colour, but bright and transparent as crystal, and it rushes along the level plain with the rapidity of a torrent leaping down the rocks. It is remarkable that this river, when it enters the Lake of Geneva, is thick and muddy, but emerges from it the bright and beautiful stream which I have described. About half a mile beyond the town it is joined by the Arve; and here || at Nangy, and walked on through a succession of fine alpine scenery to Bonneville. Bonneville is most enchantingly situated. From the windows of the inn (Les Balances) in which we sat were beheld the towering mountains, composed of huge blocks of granite, yet for the most part covered with the most luxuriant vegetation, larches, firs, willows, ash, birch, alders, &c. ; the silver waves of the rapid Arve watering a most delightful valley, and a fine blue sky overhead, of the gorgeous hues of which no person who has not trayelled out of England can have the faintest conception. At Bonneville we obtained a return-car to Sallenche, and travelled through the lovely valley of Cluse, the scenery becoming more and more magnificent, but not less fertile and luxuriant at every step. At length the snowcapt mountains begin to shew themselves, and when the traveller reaches the bridge of St. Martin the towering summit of Mont Blanc is seen in all its magnificence. The scene from this bridge is truly sublime. No words can paint its wonders, and still less can they describe the sensations which the first view of such a scene excites. It is like beginning life again. All the freshness and vivacity of childhood, when the world to us was every where young and wonderful, appeared to return with a sudden rush upon our souls. The mountains which before had bounded the horizon, and which had then appeared gigantic, became suddenly dwarfed in the presence of their monarch. The glorious blue sky, the verdant valley, the rapid Arve, the inferior hills, seemed but as a gorgeous theatre lighted up by the sun for the purpose of shewing this magnificent object in all its grandeur. When the eye could withdraw itself from this splendid view, and gaze on the surrounding objects, it beheld the Arve behind, tracking its course between a wind in a surprising degree. Its features are precisely such as Rousseau has so well described: "Tantôt d'immenses roches pendoient en ruines au dessus de ma tête. Tantôt de hautes et bruyantes cascades m'inondoient de leur épais brouillard. Tantôt un torrent éternel ouvroit à mes côtés un abîme dont les yeux n'osoient sonder la profondeur. Quelquefois je me perdois dans l'obscurité d'un bois touffu. Quelquefois en sortant d'un gouffre une agréable prairie réjouissoit tout-à-coup mes égards. Un mélange étonnant de la nature sauvage et de la nature cultivé montroit par tout la main des hommes, où l'on eut crut qu'elle n'avois jamais pénétré: à côté d'une caverne on trouvoit des maisons; on voyoit des pampres secs où l'on n'eut cherché que des ronces, des vignes dans des terres éboulées, d'excellens fruits sur les rochers, et des champs dans des précipices." ing and immeasurable range of hills, and all around the same sublime scenery which had arrested the attention before the sight of Mont Blanc superseded every other consideration. We soon afterwards arrived at Sallenche, and put up at the "Lac Leman," a pleasant comfortable inn, where we dined with a full view of the Alps before us. The effect of sun-set on the snowy hills was superb. The hue of Mont Blanc and his brethren became suddenly || changed from a dazzling white to a gorgeous red. "Mont Rose!" we almost all involuntarily exclaimed, for to its ordinary appellation it appeared no longer entitled. This effect gradually faded away as the sun declined, exhibiting in its changes the most exquisite variety of hue, until at length the brilliant white, which can be compared to nothing so well as to molten silver, resumed its dominion. Our innkeeper, who told us that he had never but once before seen this change of hue to such fine advan-waterfall, having a little before deviated tage, and who appeared much to enjoy our surprise and enthusiasm, exclaimed, when the transient red had entirely vanished, "Mont Rose est Blanc encore !" "High mountains are a feeling :" so says Lord Byron. It is a plagiarism from Wordsworth, but it is nevertheless true. We had numerous occasions for remarking the superior intelligence and feeling of persons, in the humblest situations in life, who resided in the vicinity of these hills. They look upon Mont Blanc and Mont Breven almost as members of their family; they speak of them with eloquence, and even with affection; and a traveller who appears to be really and truly touched with the beauty of the scene, is sure to find his way to the hearts of the innkeepers, guides, and peasantry in general. The next day we proceeded by means of a return car drawn by a mule to Chamouni. The driver was a native of that place, and as he afterwards officiated as our guide over We passed Chede, remarkable for its about half a mile from our route for the purpose of viewing the baths of St. Ger vais. These are hot mineral waters, into the properties of which we did not inquire very minutely, as our object was to view the very remarkable scenery among which they are situated. They are amongst wild and savage rocks, such as Salvator Rosa loved to contemplate. Here a foaming river has its source, and leaps from crag to crag with a deafening noise. A profusion of beautiful trees, especially larches, grow around, and their graceful forms are singularly contrasted by the wildness and ruggedness of the rocks, while the heavens above us seemed to be even bluer and brighter than ever we had seen them before. The scene is altogether very striking, and being confined, the eye can take in every object. From Chede we travelled on to Servoz (a village delightfully situated in the valley to which it gives its name), amidst scenes which are perfectly and indescriba its rocks and glaciers, I take this opportu- | bly beautiful,-deep vallies-stupendous hills-Mont Blanc, now seen in all his nity of saying, that any traveller who wishes the peculiar characteristic of Alpine sce- an enormous |