In March 1724 was published the narrative in which Defoe came perhaps even nearer than in Moll Flanders to writing what we to-day call a novel na­mely: The Fortunate Mistress; or a History of the Life and Vast Variety of Fortunes of Mademoiselle de' Be­lau; afterwards called the Countess of Wintelsheim in Germany. Being the Person known by the name of the Lady Roxana in the Time of King Charles II. No se­cond edition appeared till after Defoe's death which occurred in 1731. Then for some years various editi­ons of The Fortunate Mistress came out. Because De­foe had not indicated the end of his chief characters so clearly as he usually did in his stories several of the­se later editions carried on the history of the heroine