and grasping her with an extasy, which plainly told her what his
thoughts were, tho' at that time he had not power to put 'em into
words; and indeed there is no greater Proof of a vast and elegant
Passion, than the being uncapable of expressing it." (p. 79.)

Oddly enough the early experimenters in fiction never perceived that to
seem real a passion must be felt by a real person. They attempted again
and again to heighten the picture of envy, fear, ambition, rage, or love
by all manner of extraordinary circumstances, but they rarely succeeded
in attaching the emotion to a lifelike character. It was indeed passion,
but passion painted on the void, impalpable. Consequently they almost
never succeeded in maintaining complete verisimilitude, nor was their
character drawing any less shadowy than in the sentimental romances of
Sidney and Lodge. Compare, for example, the first expression of
Rosalynde's love with the internal debate of Mrs. Haywood's
Placentia.[12] Both are cast in soliloquy form, and except that the
eighteenth century romancer makes no attempt to decorate the style with
fantastic conceits, the two descriptions are not essentially different.

"[Placentia] was no sooner at liberty to reflect, than she grew amazed
at herself for having expresd, and still feeling so uncommon a Concern
for the Service she had received from Jacobin [Philidore]; he did no
more, said she, than was his Duty, nay, any Man would have done as much
for a Woman to whom he had not the least obligation, if distressed and
assaulted in the manner she had been--why then, continued she, does the
action appear so charming, so meritorious from him?--'Tis certainly the
surprize to find so much gallantry and courage in a Man of his mean
birth, that has caused this disorder in my Soul--were he my Equal I
should think it was Love had seized me, but Oh! far be it from me to
debase myself so far--Yet, again would she retort, what can I wish in