CHAPTER XVI.
It was the second week in May, in which the three young ladies set outtogether from Gracechurch-street, for the town of ---- in Hertfordshire;and, as they drew near the appointed inn where Mr. Bennet's carriage wasto meet them, they quickly perceived, in token of the coachman'spunctuality, both Kitty and Lydia looking out of a dining-room upstairs. These two girls had been above an hour in the place, happilyemployed in visiting an opposite milliner, watching the sentinel onguard, and dressing a sallad and cucumber.
After welcoming their sisters, they triumphantly displayed a table setout with such cold meat as an inn larder usually affords, exclaiming,”Is not this nice? is not this an agreeable surprise?”
”And we mean to treat you all,” added Lydia; ”but you must lend us themoney, for we have just spent ours at the shop out there.” Then shewingher purchases: ”Look here, I have bought this bonnet. I do not think itis very pretty; but I thought I might as well buy it as not. I shallpull it to pieces as soon as I get home, and see if I can make it up anybetter.”
And when her sisters abused it as ugly, she added, with perfectunconcern, ”Oh! but there were two or three much uglier in the shop; andwhen I have bought some prettier-coloured satin to trim it with fresh, Ithink it will be very tolerable. Besides, it will not much signify whatone wears this summer, after the ----shire have left Meryton, and theyare going in a fortnight.”
”Are they indeed?” cried Elizabeth, with the greatest satisfaction.
”They are going to be encamped near Brighton; and I do so want papa totake us all there for the summer! It would be such a delicious scheme,and I dare say would hardly cost any thing at all. Mamma would like togo too of all things! Only think what a miserable summer else we shallhave!”
”Yes,” thought Elizabeth, ”_that_ would be a delightful scheme, indeed,and completely do for us at once. Good Heaven! Brighton, and a wholecampful of soldiers, to us, who have been overset already by one poorregiment of militia, and the monthly balls of Meryton.”
”Now I have got some news for you,” said Lydia, as they sat down totable. ”What do you think? It is excellent news, capital news, and abouta certain person that we all like.”
Jane and Elizabeth looked at each other, and the waiter was told that heneed not stay. Lydia laughed, and said,
”Aye, that is just like your formality and discretion. You thought thewaiter must not hear, as if he cared! I dare say he often hears worsethings said than I am going to say. But he is an ugly fellow! I am gladhe is gone. I never saw such a long chin in my life. Well, but now formy news: it is about dear Wickham; too good for the waiter, is not it?There is no danger of Wickham's marrying Mary King. There's for you! Sheis gone down to her uncle at Liverpool; gone to stay. Wickham is safe.”
”And Mary King is safe!” added Elizabeth; ”safe from a connectionimprudent as to fortune.”
”She is a great fool for going away, if she liked him.”
”But I hope there is no strong attachment on either side,” said Jane.
”I am sure there is not on _his_. I will answer for it he never caredthree straws about her. Who _could_ about such a nasty little freckledthing?”
Elizabeth was shocked to think that, however incapable of suchcoarseness of _expression_ herself, the coarseness of the _sentiment_was little other than her own breast had formerly harboured and fanciedliberal!
As soon as all had ate, and the elder ones paid, the carriage wasordered; and after some contrivance, the whole party, with all theirboxes, workbags, and parcels, and the unwelcome addition of Kitty's andLydia's purchases, were seated in it.
”How nicely we are crammed in!” cried Lydia. ”I am glad I bought mybonnet, if it is only for the fun of having another bandbox! Well, nowlet us be quite comfortable and snug, and talk and laugh all the wayhome. And in the first place, let us hear what has happened to you all,since you went away. Have you seen any pleasant men? Have you had anyflirting? I was in great hopes that one of you would have got a husbandbefore you came back. Jane will be quite an old maid soon, I declare.She is almost three and twenty! Lord, how ashamed I should be of notbeing married before three and twenty! My aunt Philips wants you so toget husbands, you can't think. She says Lizzy had better have taken Mr.Collins; but _I_ do not think there would have been any fun in it. Lord!how I should like to be married before any of you; and then I wouldchaperon you about to all the balls. Dear me! we had such a good pieceof fun the other day at Colonel Forster's. Kitty and me were to spendthe day there, and Mrs. Forster promised to have a little dance in theevening; (by the bye, Mrs. Forster and me are _such_ friends!) and soshe asked the two Harringtons to come, but Harriet was ill, and so Penwas forced to come by herself; and then, what do you think we did? Wedressed up Chamberlayne in woman's clothes, on purpose to pass for alady,--only think what fun! Not a soul knew of it, but Col. and Mrs.Forster, and Kitty and me, except my aunt, for we were forced to borrowone of her gowns; and you cannot imagine how well he looked! When Denny,and Wickham, and Pratt, and two or three more of the men came in, theydid not know him in the least. Lord! how I laughed! and so did Mrs.Forster. I thought I should have died. And _that_ made the men suspectsomething, and then they soon found out what was the matter.”
With such kind of histories of their parties and good jokes, did Lydia,assisted by Kitty's hints and additions, endeavour to amuse hercompanions all the way to Longbourn. Elizabeth listened as little as shecould, but there was no escaping the frequent mention of Wickham's name.
Their reception at home was most kind. Mrs. Bennet rejoiced to see Janein undiminished beauty; and more than once during dinner did Mr. Bennetsay voluntarily to Elizabeth,
”I am glad you are come back, Lizzy.”
Their party in the dining-room was large, for almost all the Lucasescame to meet Maria and hear the news: and various were the subjectswhich occupied them; lady Lucas was enquiring of Maria across the table,after the welfare and poultry of her eldest daughter; Mrs. Bennet wasdoubly engaged, on one hand collecting an account of the presentfashions from Jane, who sat some way below her, and on the other,retailing them all to the younger Miss Lucases; and Lydia, in a voicerather louder than any other person's, was enumerating the variouspleasures of the morning to any body who would hear her.
”Oh! Mary,” said she, ”I wish you had gone with us, for we had such fun!as we went along, Kitty and me drew up all the blinds, and pretendedthere was nobody in the coach; and I should have gone so all the way, ifKitty had not been sick; and when we got to the George, I do think webehaved very handsomely, for we treated the other three with the nicestcold luncheon in the world, and if you would have gone, we would havetreated you too. And then when we came away it was such fun! I thoughtwe never should have got into the coach. I was ready to die of laughter.And then we were so merry all the way home! we talked and laughed soloud, that any body might have heard us ten miles off!”
To this, Mary very gravely replied, ”Far be it from me, my dear sister,to depreciate such pleasures. They would doubtless be congenial withthe generality of female minds. But I confess they would have no charmsfor _me_. I should infinitely prefer a book.”
But of this answer Lydia heard not a word. She seldom listened to anybody for more than half a minute, and never attended to Mary at all.
In the afternoon Lydia was urgent with the rest of the girls to walk toMeryton and see how every body went on; but Elizabeth steadily opposedthe scheme. It should not be said, that the Miss Bennets could not be athome half a day before they were in pursuit of the officers. There wasanother reason too for her opposition. She dreaded seeing Wickham again,and was resolved to avoid it as long as possible. The comfort to _her_,of the regiment's approaching removal, was indeed beyond expression. Ina fortnight they were to go, and once gone, she hoped there could benothing more to plague her on his account.
She had not been many hours at home, before she found that the Brightonscheme, of which Lydia had given them a hint at the inn, was underfrequent discussion between her parents. Elizabeth saw directly that herfather had not the smallest intention of yielding; but his answers wereat the same time so vague and equivocal, that her mother, though oftendisheartened, had never yet despaired of succeeding at last.