CHAPTER III.
Convinced as Elizabeth now was that Miss Bingley's dislike of her hadoriginated in jealousy, she could not help feeling how very unwelcomeher appearance at Pemberley must be to her, and was curious to know withhow much civility on that lady's side, the acquaintance would now berenewed.
On reaching the house, they were shewn through the hall into the saloon,whose northern aspect rendered it delightful for summer. Its windowsopening to the ground, admitted a most refreshing view of the high woodyhills behind the house, and of the beautiful oaks and Spanish chesnutswhich were scattered over the intermediate lawn.
In this room they were received by Miss Darcy, who was sitting therewith Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley, and the lady with whom she lived inLondon. Georgiana's reception of them was very civil; but attended withall that embarrassment which, though proceeding from shyness and thefear of doing wrong, would easily give to those who felt themselvesinferior, the belief of her being proud and reserved. Mrs. Gardiner andher niece, however, did her justice, and pitied her.
By Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley, they were noticed only by a curtsey; andon their being seated, a pause, awkward as such pauses must always be,succeeded for a few moments. It was first broken by Mrs. Annesley, agenteel, agreeable-looking woman, whose endeavour to introduce some kindof discourse, proved her to be more truly well bred than either of theothers; and between her and Mrs. Gardiner, with occasional help fromElizabeth, the conversation was carried on. Miss Darcy looked as if shewished for courage enough to join in it; and sometimes did venture ashort sentence, when there was least danger of its being heard.
Elizabeth soon saw that she was herself closely watched by Miss Bingley,and that she could not speak a word, especially to Miss Darcy, withoutcalling her attention. This observation would not have prevented herfrom trying to talk to the latter, had they not been seated at aninconvenient distance; but she was not sorry to be spared the necessityof saying much. Her own thoughts were employing her. She expected everymoment that some of the gentlemen would enter the room. She wished, shefeared that the master of the house might be amongst them; and whethershe wished or feared it most, she could scarcely determine. Aftersitting in this manner a quarter of an hour, without hearing MissBingley's voice, Elizabeth was roused by receiving from her a coldenquiry after the health of her family. She answered with equalindifference and brevity, and the other said no more.
The next variation which their visit afforded was produced by theentrance of servants with cold meat, cake, and a variety of all thefinest fruits in season; but this did not take place till after many asignificant look and smile from Mrs. Annesley to Miss Darcy had beengiven, to remind her of her post. There was now employment for the wholeparty; for though they could not all talk, they could all eat; and thebeautiful pyramids of grapes, nectarines, and peaches, soon collectedthem round the table.
While thus engaged, Elizabeth had a fair opportunity of deciding whethershe most feared or wished for the appearance of Mr. Darcy, by thefeelings which prevailed on his entering the room; and then, though buta moment before she had believed her wishes to predominate, she began toregret that he came.
He had been some time with Mr. Gardiner, who, with two or three othergentlemen from the house, was engaged by the river, and had left himonly on learning that the ladies of the family intended a visit toGeorgiana that morning. No sooner did he appear, than Elizabeth wiselyresolved to be perfectly easy and unembarrassed;--a resolution the morenecessary to be made, but perhaps not the more easily kept, because shesaw that the suspicions of the whole party were awakened against them,and that there was scarcely an eye which did not watch his behaviourwhen he first came into the room. In no countenance was attentivecuriosity so strongly marked as in Miss Bingley's, in spite of thesmiles which overspread her face whenever she spoke to one of itsobjects; for jealousy had not yet made her desperate, and her attentionsto Mr. Darcy were by no means over. Miss Darcy, on her brother'sentrance, exerted herself much more to talk; and Elizabeth saw that hewas anxious for his sister and herself to get acquainted, and forwarded,as much as possible, every attempt at conversation on either side. MissBingley saw all this likewise; and, in the imprudence of anger, took thefirst opportunity of saying, with sneering civility,
”Pray, Miss Eliza, are not the ----shire militia removed from Meryton?They must be a great loss to _your_ family.”
In Darcy's presence she dared not mention Wickham's name; but Elizabethinstantly comprehended that he was uppermost in her thoughts; and thevarious recollections connected with him gave her a moment's distress;but, exerting herself vigorously to repel the ill-natured attack, shepresently answered the question in a tolerably disengaged tone. Whileshe spoke, an involuntary glance shewed her Darcy with an heightenedcomplexion, earnestly looking at her, and his sister overcome withconfusion, and unable to lift up her eyes. Had Miss Bingley known whatpain she was then giving her beloved friend, she undoubtedly would haverefrained from the hint; but she had merely intended to discomposeElizabeth, by bringing forward the idea of a man to whom she believedher partial, to make her betray a sensibility which might injure her inDarcy's opinion, and perhaps to remind the latter of all the follies andabsurdities, by which some part of her family were connected with thatcorps. Not a syllable had ever reached her of Miss Darcy's meditatedelopement. To no creature had it been revealed, where secresy waspossible, except to Elizabeth; and from all Bingley's connections herbrother was particularly anxious to conceal it, from that very wishwhich Elizabeth had long ago attributed to him, of their becominghereafter her own. He had certainly formed such a plan, and withoutmeaning that it should affect his endeavour to separate him from MissBennet, it is probable that it might add something to his lively concernfor the welfare of his friend.
Elizabeth's collected behaviour, however, soon quieted his emotion; andas Miss Bingley, vexed and disappointed, dared not approach nearer toWickham, Georgiana also recovered in time, though not enough to be ableto speak any more. Her brother, whose eye she feared to meet, scarcelyrecollected her interest in the affair, and the very circumstance whichhad been designed to turn his thoughts from Elizabeth, seemed to havefixed them on her more, and more cheerfully.
Their visit did not continue long after the question and answerabove-mentioned; and while Mr. Darcy was attending them to theircarriage, Miss Bingley was venting her feelings in criticisms onElizabeth's person, behaviour, and dress. But Georgiana would not joinher. Her brother's recommendation was enough to ensure her favour: hisjudgment could not err, and he had spoken in such terms of Elizabeth, asto leave Georgiana without the power of finding her otherwise thanlovely and amiable. When Darcy returned to the saloon, Miss Bingleycould not help repeating to him some part of what she had been saying tohis sister.
”How very ill Eliza Bennet looks this morning, Mr. Darcy,” she cried; ”Inever in my life saw any one so much altered as she is since the winter.She is grown so brown and coarse! Louisa and I were agreeing that weshould not have known her again.”
However little Mr. Darcy might have liked such an address, he contentedhimself with coolly replying, that he perceived no other alteration thanher being rather tanned,--no miraculous consequence of travelling in thesummer.
”For my own part,” she rejoined, ”I must confess that I never could seeany beauty in her. Her face is too thin; her complexion has nobrilliancy; and her features are not at all handsome. Her nose wantscharacter; there is nothing marked in its lines. Her teeth aretolerable, but not out of the common way; and as for her eyes, whichhave sometimes been called so fine, I never could perceive any thingextraordinary in them. They have a sharp, shrewish look, which I do notlike at all; and in her air altogether, there is a self-sufficiencywithout fashion, which is intolerable.”
Persuaded as Miss Bingley was that Darcy admired Elizabeth, this was notthe best method of recommending herself; but angry people are not alwayswise; and in seeing him at last look somewhat nettled, she had all thesuccess she expected. He was resolutely silent however; and, from adetermination of making him speak, she continued,
”I remember, when we first knew her in Hertfordshire, how amazed we allwere to find that she was a reputed beauty; and I particularly recollectyour saying one night, after they had been dining at Netherfield, '_She_a beauty!--I should as soon call her mother a wit.' But afterwards sheseemed to improve on you, and I believe you thought her rather pretty atone time.”
”Yes,” replied Darcy, who could contain himself no longer, ”but _that_was only when I first knew her, for it is many months since I haveconsidered her as one of the handsomest women of my acquaintance.”
He then went away, and Miss Bingley was left to all the satisfaction ofhaving forced him to say what gave no one any pain but herself.
Mrs. Gardiner and Elizabeth talked of all that had occurred, duringtheir visit, as they returned, except what had particularly interestedthem both. The looks and behaviour of every body they had seen werediscussed, except of the person who had mostly engaged their attention.They talked of his sister, his friends, his house, his fruit, of everything but himself; yet Elizabeth was longing to know what Mrs. Gardinerthought of him, and Mrs. Gardiner would have been highly gratified byher niece's beginning the subject.