HALL, Mrs. ANNA MARIA, an eminent novelist, the daughter of a gentleman named Fielding, who died when she was very young, was born in Dublin in 1802. In her 15th year she left Ireland with her mother, and went to reside in London, where her educa tion was completed. In 1824 she married Mr. S. C. Hall, a gentleman well-known for his works connected with the tine arts, and was thus led to become an authoress. Her first work, Sketches of Irish Character, published in 1828, at once established her reputa tion. In 1832 she brought out her first novel, The Bucaneer, a story of the time of the commonwealth, in which Cromwell's character is vindicated. Her other works rapidly followed—Thles of Woman's Trials, in 1834; The Outlaw, a novel of the reign of James II., in 1881; The French Refugee, a drama, which in 1836 was acted for about fifty nights at the St. James's theater, London; Uncle Horace, 3 vols. 1837; Lights and Shad
ows of Irish Character, 1838; Marian, or a Young Maid's Trials, 1839; The Tl'hiteboy, 1845, etc. Her Stories of the Irish Peasantry appeared originally in Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, and were afterwards published in a collected form. She is also the authoress of a graceful fairy tale of love, Midsummer Eve, originally contributed to the Art Journal, and of a pleasant illustrated series of descriptive sketches, inserted in the same publica tion, and subsequently published separately under the title of Pilgrimages to English Shrines. The last two, with some others of her writings, have been translated into German. Besides assisting her husband in his illustrated work on Ireland, etc., she has furnished numerous contributions to the periodicals of the day, written various books for the young. Of these, Uncle Sam's Money Box is one of the best.