Miss Bennet & Mr Bingley Read Free Page A

Compliments always take you by surprise, and me never. What could be more natural than his asking you again? He could not help
seeing you were about five times as pretty as every other woman in the room. No
thanks to his gallantry there. Well, he certainly is very agreeable, and I give
you leave to like him as much you wish. You have liked many a stupider person.’
    Jane leant forward to squeeze her sister’s hand. ‘You are dear, Lizzy.
And so funny. I do wish you had had a better time yourself.’
    ‘I did enjoy myself, Jane. But you are a great deal too apt, you know,
to like people in general. You never see fault in anybody. All the world is
good and agreeable in your eyes, I never heard you speak ill of a human being
in my life.’
    ‘I would wish not to be hasty in censoring anyone; but I always speak
what I think.’
    ‘I know you do; it is that which makes me wonder. With your good sense, to be so honestly blind to the follies and nonsense of others!
Affectation of candour is common enough, one meets it everywhere. But to be
candid without ostentation or design - to take the good of everybody’s
character and make it still better, and never say anything of the bad - belongs
to you alone.’ Elizabeth turned so that Jane could begin to undo the buttons at
the rear of her gown. That done Jane carefully slid the dress over her sister’s
shoulders and held it so that it could be stepped out of without damaging the
delicate material.
    ‘Thank you, Jane. Now, let me do the same for you.’
    Being tidy girls they didn’t drop their ball gowns upon the floor but
carefully took them into the closet to hang them up. Although they shared a
maid servant, Sarah, who would have done the task for them in the morning, they
had no wish to make extra work.
    ‘I am not at all fatigued, shall we go down and make ourselves a drink
of milk? I believe I heard our parents retiring a short while ago.’
    Jane thought this an excellent notion. ‘Yes, I am far too excited to
sleep at the moment. My head is buzzing with the delights of the evening, I
have never met anyone like Mr Bingley.’
    Her sister sniffed. ‘And you like this man’s sisters too, do you? Their
manners are not equal to his, you know.’
    ‘They certainly were not, at least not at first. However, they are very
pleasing women when you converse with them privately. Miss Bingley is to live
with her brother and keep his house; and I am much mistaken if we shall not
find a very charming neighbour in her.’
    ‘I am not so sure, Jane. They were certainly not deficient in good
humour when they were pleased, nor in the power of being agreeable when they
chose to, but I believe they are both proud and conceited. We must enquire
further about them and also Mr Bingley and his disdainful friend. I am certain
that both Mrs Long and Lady Lucas will know everything there is to know about
the Netherfield party.’
    Indeed that was the case, and when Charlotte and Maria Lucas arrived
with their mother the following morning to discuss the details of the ball,
Jane was able to ask them, without appearing too bold, for the information she
desired.
    ‘Oh yes, Jane, we know everything about the Bingleys,’ Charlotte told
her eagerly. 'His sisters were educated in one of the private seminaries in
town, and they have a fortune of £20,000 each. They are used to associating
with people of the highest rank. They must, indeed, find us poor company after
that.’
    Jane shook her head. ‘I am certain they do not, after all why should
they choose to come and live amongst us if they thought that?’ She didn’t like
to enquire directly about Mr Bingley but Elizabeth was not so inhibited.
    ‘What about Mr Bingley? What have you discovered about him?’
    This time it was Maria who replied. ‘Well, Lizzy, it seems that Mr
Bingley inherited property to the amount of nearly £100 000 from his father,
which will bring him five thousand a year from his investments. His father
intended to