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The answer came very soon.
“Gracechurch street, Sept. 6.
“My dear niece,
“I have just received your letter, and shall devote this whole morning to answering it. I have to tell you something. I must say that your letter made me wonder; I did not expect it from you. I had not imagined such inquiries on your side.
On the very day of my coming home from Longbourn, your uncle had a most unexpected visitor. Mr. Darcy called, and was shut up with him several hours. It was all over before I arrived. He came to tell Mr. Gardiner that he had found out where your sister and Mr. Wickham were, and that he had seen and talked with them both; Wickham repeatedly, Lydia once. Mr. Darcy was sure that it was his fault that he did not tell the world who that Wickham was. He had been some days in town, before he was able to discover them.
So Mr. Darcy saw Wickham, and afterwards insisted on seeing Lydia. He was going to persuade her to quit her present disgraceful situation, and return to her friends, offering his assistance. But Lydia decided to remain where she was. She cared for none of her friends; she wanted no help of his; she would not hear of leaving Wickham. She was sure they should be married some time or other. In his very first conversation with Wickham, he easily learnt that Wickham did not want to marry Lydia at all. Mr. Darcy asked him why he had not married your sister. And he found, in reply to this question, that Wickham wanted to get some money by marriage in some other place. Do you understand?
They met several times, Wickham of course wanted more than he could get. Finally everything was settled between them. Mr. Darcy’s next step was to pay Wickham’s debts, I believe, more than a thousand pounds, another thousand was offered to Lydia.
Mr. Darcy, as Lydia informed you, attended the wedding. He dined with us the next day, and left us on Wednesday or Thursday. Will you be very angry with me, my dear Lizzy, if I say before how much I like him. His understanding and opinions all please me. I thought him very sly; – he hardly ever mentioned your name.
But I must write no more.
“Yours, very sincerely,
“M. Gardiner.”
The contents of this letter made Elizabeth silent. Mr. Darcy was doing so much for her family! He had found Lydia and Wickham, he bribed the man whom he always most wished to avoid. He had done all this for a girl whom he could neither regard nor esteem. Her heart did whisper that he had done it for her. She read over her aunt’s view of him again and again. It pleased her.
The day of Wickham and Lydia’s departure soon came.
“Oh! my dear Lydia,” cried Mrs. Bennet, “when shall we meet again?”
“Oh, lord! I don’t know. Not these two or three years, perhaps.”
“Write to me very often, my dear.”
“As often as I can. But you know married women have never much time for writing. My sisters may write to me. They will have nothing else to do.”
The life went on. The housekeeper at Netherfield had received orders to prepare for the arrival of her master, who was coming down in a day or two, to stay there for several weeks. Mrs. Bennet did not know what to do. She looked at Jane, and smiled and shook her head.
“Well, well, and so Mr. Bingley is coming, sister. Well, so much the better. Not that I care about it, though. He is nothing to us, you know, and I am sure I never want to see him again. But, however, he is very welcome to come to Netherfield, if he likes it. And who knows what may happen? But that is nothing to us. You know, sister, we agreed long ago never to mention a word about it. And so, is it quite certain he is coming?”
Elizabeth was sure Mr. Bingley was in love with Jane. In spite of what her sister declared, she felt that Jane still loves him, too.
Mr. Bingley arrived. But on the third morning after his arrival in Hertfordshire, she saw him, from her dressing-room window.
“There is a gentleman with him, mamma,” said Kitty; “who can it be?”
“I am sure I do not know,” answered her mother.
“Oh!” replied Kitty, “That tall, proud man.”
“Good gracious! Mr. Darcy!”
Mr. Darcy’s behaviour astonished and vexed Elizabeth.
“Why did he come?” said she. “He can be amiable to my uncle and aunt, when he was in town; and why not to me? Teasing, teasing, man! I will think no more about him.”
Jane joined her with a cheerful look.
“Now,” said she, “I feel perfectly easy. These men are invited to dine with us on Tuesday. I cannot wait.”
They did not see the gentlemen again till Tuesday. On Tuesday there was a large party assembled at Longbourn; and the two were most anxiously expected. On entering the room, Bingley seemed to hesitate; but Jane happened to smile: it was decided. He placed himself by her.
Mr. Darcy sat near her mother. She was not near enough to hear any of their discourse, but she could see how seldom they spoke to each other.
After the dinner, Darcy had walked away to another part of the room. Elizabeth followed him.
“Is your sister at Pemberley still?”
“Yes, she will remain there till Christmas.”
“And quite alone? Have all her friends left her?”
“Mrs. Annesley is with her.”
She could think of nothing more to say. He stood by her, however, for some minutes, in silence; and, at last, he walked away.
“Well girls,” said Mrs. Bennet, as soon as her daughters were left to themselves, “What will you say? I think everything has been excellent. The soup was fifty times better than what we had at the Lucases’ last week. And, my dear Jane, I never saw you look in greater beauty. I hope we may often meet again.”
Elizabeth smiled.
A few days after this visit, Mr. Bingley came again, and alone. His friend had left him that morning for London, but was to return home in ten days time. He sat with them above an hour, and was in remarkably good spirits. Mrs. Bennet invited him to dine with them; but he thanked and explained that he had a lot of things to do.
“Next time you call,” said she, “I hope we shall be more lucky. Can you come tomorrow?”
Yes, he had no engagement at all for tomorrow; and her invitation was accepted.
After tea, Mr. Bennet retired to the library, and Mary went up stairs to her instrument. In a few minutes, Mrs. Bennet half-opened the door and called out:
“Lizzy, my dear, I want to speak with you.”
Elizabeth was forced to go.
“We may as well leave them by themselves you know;” said her mother, as soon as she was in the hall. “Kitty and I are going up stairs to sit in my dressing-room.”
So Mr. Bingley and Jane were left alone. They had much time to talk to each other. After this day, Jane said no more of her indifference. Not a word passed between the sisters concerning Bingley; but Elizabeth went to bed in the happy belief that all must speedily be concluded.
Even Mr. Bennet said:
“Jane, I congratulate you. You will be a very happy woman.”
Jane went to him instantly, kissed him, and thanked him for his goodness.
“You are a good girl,” he replied, “and I have great pleasure in thinking you will be so happily settled.”
Mrs. Bennet was the happiest mother in the world. Wickham, Lydia, were all forgotten. Jane was beyond competition the favourite.
Bingley, from this time, was a daily visitor at Longbourn; coming frequently before breakfast, and always remaining till after supper.
“He has made me so happy,” said Jane, one evening, “by telling me that he was totally ignorant of my being in town last spring! I had not believed it possible. Would you believe it, Lizzy, that when he went to town last November, he really loved me!”
“He made a little mistake.”
“I am certainly the most fortunate person that ever existed!” cried Jane. “Oh! Lizzy, if I could but see you as happy!”
“I never can have your happiness. Perhaps, if I have very good luck, I may meet with another Mr. Collins in time.”
The situation of affairs in the Longbourn family could not be long a secret. Mrs. Bennet whispered it to Mrs. Phillips, and she did the same by all her neighbours in Meryton. The Bennets were speedily declared to be the luckiest family in the world.
One morning, about a week after Bingley’s engagement with Jane, as he and the females of the family were sitting together in the dining-room, their attention was suddenly drawn to the window, by the sound of a carriage. It was too early in the morning for visitors. In some minutes their visitor entered. It was Lady Catherine de Bourgh.
The astonishment was beyond the expectation. She entered the room with an air more than usually ungracious, and sat down without saying a word. Elizabeth had mentioned her name to her mother.
Mrs. Bennet received her with the utmost politeness. After sitting for a moment in silence, Lady Catherine de Bourgh said very stiffly to Elizabeth,
“I hope you are well, Miss Bennet. That lady, I suppose, is your mother.”
Elizabeth replied very concisely that she was.
“And that I suppose is one of your sisters.”
“Yes, madam,” said Mrs. Bennet, delighted to speak to Lady Catherine. “She is my young girl. My youngest of all is lately married, and my eldest is walking with a young man who, I believe, will soon become a part of the family.”
“You have a very small park here,” said Lady Catherine after a short silence.
“It is nothing in comparison of Rosings, my lady, but it is much larger than Sir William Lucas’s.”
Lady Catherine very resolutely, and not very politely, rising up, said to Elizabeth,
“Miss Bennet, I should be glad to take a walk with you in the park.”
They proceeded in silence along the gravel walk that led to the copse; Elizabeth decided not to begin a conversation with a woman who was now more than usually insolent and disagreeable.
As soon as they entered the copse, Lady Catherine began in the following manner:
“Miss Bennet, you can understand the reason of my journey here. Your own heart, your own conscience, must tell you why I come.”
Elizabeth looked with astonishment.
“Indeed, you are mistaken, Madam. I cannot even imagine that.”
“Miss Bennet,” replied her ladyship, in an angry tone, “Two days ago I was told that you, Miss Elizabeth Bennet, would be soon united to my nephew, my own nephew, Mr. Darcy. I know it must be a scandalous falsehood.”
“If you believed it impossible to be true,” said Elizabeth, colouring with astonishment and disdain, “I wonder you took the trouble of coming so far.”
“You must contradict it.”
“Your coming to Longbourn, to see me and my family,” said Elizabeth coolly, “will be rather a confirmation of it; if such a report is in existence.”
“Do you then pretend to be ignorant of it? Do you not know that such a report is spread abroad?”
“I never heard that it was.”
“And can you declare, that there is no foundation for it?”
“Your ladyship, you may ask questions which I shall not choose to answer. Your ladyship has declared it to be impossible.”
“But you may have drawn him in.”
“If I have, I shall be the last person to confess it.”
“Miss Bennet, do you know who I am? I have not been accustomed to such language as this. You know, this marriage can never take place. No, never. Mr. Darcy is engaged to my daughter. Now what have you to say?”
“Only this; that if he is so, you can have no reason to suppose he will make an offer to me.”
Lady Catherine hesitated for a moment, and then replied:
“Have you not heard me say that from his earliest hours he was destined for his cousin?”
“Yes, and I had heard it before. But what is that to me? Why can not Mr. Darcy make another choice?”
“Because honour, decorum, prudence, interest, forbid it. Obstinate, headstrong girl! I am ashamed of you! Tell me, are you engaged to him?”
Elizabeth answered:
“I am not.”
Lady Catherine seemed pleased.
“And will you promise me, never to enter into such an engagement?”
“I will make no promise of the kind.”
“Miss Bennet, I am shocked and astonished. I expected to find a more reasonable young woman. I shall not go away till you give me the assurance I require.”
“And I certainly never shall give it. You can now have nothing further to say. You have insulted me in every possible method. I must return to the house.”
And she rose as she spoke. Lady Catherine rose also, and they turned back.
“Unfeeling, selfish girl!”
“Lady Catherine, I have nothing further to say. You know my sentiments.”
“And this is your final resolve! Very well. I shall now know how to act. I am most seriously displeased.”
In this manner Lady Catherine talked on, till they were at the door of the carriage.
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