MISS MARY KINGSLEY : A PERSONAL TRAIT. [TO THE EDITOR
OP THE "SPECTATOR."] Sia,—Your readers may like to know of a peculiar persona! trait of this great Englishwoman, who chose the sea as her grave. She was quite ignorant of physical fear, a rather rare characteristic among women. " Have you never known what it is to be frightened, or at least flustered, when you saw death not only staring into your face, but also shouting into your ear ? " I once ventured to ask, as she paused from tell- ing an escape from drowning in a cataract. She replied quite candidly : " I have never felt that. I don't know what it is ; I have an idea thit if I once did feel so I should collapse entirely. But whenever I have been in real instant danger, which simply needed every effort of every bit of me, I had a strong salt taste in my mouth. Whenever I feel that, I know I've got to take myself as seriously as I know how." I have given her words as nearly as I can remember, and no more. I have an idea that she had something of the Celtic feeling for portents, and have heard her speak of them seriously. But this entire fearlessness is, so far as I know, quite out of the common, in these impressible times, and reminds one of the Elizabethan heroes, with whom one may
rank her hencefortk—I am, Sir, &c., LENers Lusx.
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