of Lethe in the native constitution of mind, failed to acquire the power of judging for herself, and putting forth some functions of activity. But undoubtedly that was not her element: to feel and to enjoy a luxurious repose of mind--there was her forte and her peculiar privilege; and how much better this was adapted to her husband’s taste, how much more suited to uphold the comfort of his daily life, than a blue-stocking loquacity, or even a legitimate talent for discussion and analytic skill may be inferred from his celebrated verses, beginning: ‘She was a phantom of delight When first she gleamed upon my sight;’ and ending with this matchless winding up of ‘A perfect woman, nobly planned To warn, to comfort, to command; And yet----’ going back to a previous thought, and resuming a leading impression of the whole character-- ‘And yet a spirit too, and bright With something of an angel light.’” “From these verses,” continues De Quincy, “it may be inferred what were the qualities which won Wordsworth’s admiration in a wife; for these verses were written upon Mary Hutchinson, his own cousin, and his wife; and not written as Coleridge’s memorable verses upon “Sara,” for some forgotten original Sara, and consequently transferred to every other Sara who came across his path. Once for all, these exquisite lines were dedicated to Mrs. Wordsworth; were understood to describe her--to have been prompted by the feminine graces of her character; hers they are and will remain for ever.” To these, therefore, De Quincy refers the reader for an idea infinitely more powerful and vivid, he says, than any he could give, of what was most important in the partner and second self of the poet. And to this abstract of her moral portrait he adds the following remarks upon her physical appearance. “She was tall, as already stated; her figure was good--except that for my taste it was rather too slender, and so it always continued. In complexion she was fair; and there was something peculiarly pleasing even in this accident of the skin, for it was accompanied by an animated expression of health, a blessing which in fact she possessed uninterruptedly, very pleasing in itself, and also a powerful auxiliary of that smiling benignity which constituted the greatest attraction of her person. Her eyes--the reader may already know--her eyes ‘Like stars of twilight fair; Like twilight, too, her dark brown hair; But all things else about her drawn From May time and the cheerful dawn.’