It is only with the hypothesis of insanity, as suggested by the clever writer of the 'Vindication' to account for Lady Byron's sad revelations to Mrs.Beecher Stowe, with which I propose to deal.

I do not believe that the mooted theory of mental aberration can, in this case, be for a moment maintained.

If Lady Byron's statement of facts to Mrs.B.Stowe is to be viewed as the creation of a distempered fancy, a delusion or hallucination of an insane mind, what part of the narrative are we to draw the boundary-line between fact and delusion, sanity and insanity?
Where are we to fix the point d'appui of the lunacy?
Again: is the alleged 'hallucination' to be considered as strictly confined to the idea that Lord Byron had committed the frightful sin of incest?
or is the whole of the 'True Story' of her married life, as reproduced with such terrible minuteness by Mrs.Beecher Stowe, to be viewed as the delusion of a disordered fancy?
If Lady Byron was the subject of an 'hallucination' with regard to her husband, I think it not unreasonable to conclude that the mental alienation existed on the day of her marriage.

If this proposition be accepted, the natural inference will be, that the details of the conversation which Lady Byron represents to have occurred between herself and Lord Byron as soon as they entered the carriage never took place.

Lord Byron is said to have remarked to Lady Byron, 'You might have prevented this (or words to this effect): you will now find that you have married a devil.