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Chapter XXI · Pride and Prejudice | Audiobook

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  Speaker 1: Chapter 21 The discussion of Mr. Collins's offer was now
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  Speaker 1: nearly at an end, and Elizabeth had only to suffer
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  Speaker 1: from the uncomfortable feelings necessarily attending it, and occasionally from
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  Speaker 1: some peevish illusion of her mother. As for the gentleman himself,
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  Speaker 1: his feelings were chiefly expressed not by embarrassment or dejection,
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  Speaker 1: or by trying to avoid her, but by stiffness of
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  Speaker 1: manner and resentful silence. He scarcely ever spoke to her,
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  Speaker 1: and the assiduous attentions which he had been so sensible
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  Speaker 1: of himself were transferred for the rest of the day
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  Speaker 1: to Miss Lucas, whose civility in listening to him was
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  Speaker 1: a seasonable relief to them all, and especially to her friend.
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  Speaker 1: the morrow produced no abatement of Mrs Bennet's ill humour
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  Speaker 1: or ill health. Mr Collins was also in the same
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  Speaker 1: state of angry pride. Elizabeth had hoped that his resentment
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  Speaker 1: might shorten his visit, but his plan did not appear
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  Speaker 1: in the least affected by it. He was always to
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  Speaker 1: have gone on Saturday, and to Saturday he still meant
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  Speaker 1: to stay. After breakfast, the girls walked to Meryton to
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  Speaker 1: inquire if Mr Wickham were returned and to lament over
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  Speaker 1: his absence from the Netherfield Ball. He joined them on
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  Speaker 1: their entering the town and attended them to their aunts,
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  Speaker 1: where his regret and vexation and the concern of everybody
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  Speaker 1: were well talked over. To Elizabeth, however, he voluntarily acknowledged
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  Speaker 1: that that the necessity of his absence had been self-imposed.
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  Speaker 1: I found, said he, as the time drew near, that
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  Speaker 1: I had better not meet Mr. Darcy, that to be
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  Speaker 1: in the same room, the same party with him for
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  Speaker 1: so many hours together, might be more than I could bear,
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  Speaker 1: and that scenes might arise unpleasant to more than myself.
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  Speaker 1: She highly approved his forbearance. and they had leisure for
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  Speaker 1: a full discussion of it, and for all the commendations
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  Speaker 1: which they civilly bestowed on each other, as Wickham and
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  Speaker 1: another officer walked back with them to Longbourn, and during
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  Speaker 1: the walk he particularly attended to her. His accompanying them
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  Speaker 1: was a double advantage. She felt all the compliment it
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  Speaker 1: offered to herself, and it was most acceptable, as an
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  Speaker 1: occasion of introducing him, to her father and mother. Soon
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  Speaker 1: after their return, a letter was delivered to Miss Bennet.
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  Speaker 1: It came from Netherfield and was opened immediately. The envelope
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  Speaker 1: contained a sheet of elegant, little, hot-pressed paper, well covered
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  Speaker 1: with a lady's fair, flowing hand, and Elizabeth saw her
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  Speaker 1: sister's countenance change as she read it, and saw her
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  Speaker 1: dwelling intently in on some particular passages. Jane recollected herself soon,
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  Speaker 1: and putting the letter away, tried to join, with her
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  Speaker 1: usual cheerfulness, in the general conversation. But Elizabeth felt an
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  Speaker 1: anxiety on the subject, which drew off her attention even
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  Speaker 1: from Wickham, and no sooner had he and his companion
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  Speaker 1: taken leave than a glance from Jane invited her to
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  Speaker 1: follow her upstairs. When they had gained their own room, Jane,
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  Speaker 1: taking out her letter, said, This is from Caroline Bingley.
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  Speaker 1: What it contains has surprised me a good deal. The
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  Speaker 1: whole party have left Netherfield by this time, and are
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  Speaker 1: on their way to town, and without any intention of
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  Speaker 1: coming back again. You shall hear what she says. She
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  Speaker 1: then read the first sentence aloud. which comprised the information
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  Speaker 1: of their having just resolved to follow their brother to
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  Speaker 1: town directly, and of their meaning to dine that day
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  Speaker 1: in Grosvenor Street, where Mr Hurst had a house. The
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  Speaker 1: next was in these words. I do not pretend to
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  Speaker 1: regret anything I shall leave in Hertfordshire except your society,
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  Speaker 1: my dearest friend, but we will hope, at some future period,
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  Speaker 1: to enjoy many returns of that delightful intercourse we have known,
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  Speaker 1: and in the meanwhile may lessen the pain of separation
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  Speaker 1: by a very frequent and most unreserved correspondence. I depend
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  Speaker 1: on you for that. To these high-flown expressions, Elizabeth listened
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  Speaker 1: with all the insensibility of distrust, and though the suddenness
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  Speaker 1: of their removal surprised her, she saw nothing in it
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  Speaker 1: really to lament. It was not to be supposed that
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  Speaker 1: their absence from Netherfield would prevent Mr Bingley's being there.
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  Speaker 1: And as to the loss of their society, she was
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  Speaker 1: persuaded that Jane must soon cease to regard it in
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  Speaker 1: the enjoyment of his. It is unlucky, said she, after
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  Speaker 1: a short pause, that you should not be able to
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  Speaker 1: see your friends before they leave the country. But may
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  Speaker 1: we not hope that the period of future happiness to
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  Speaker 1: which Miss Bingley looks forward may arrive earlier than she
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  Speaker 1: is aware, and that the delightful intercourse you have known
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  Speaker 1: as friends will be renewed with yet greater satisfaction as sisters. Mr.
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  Speaker 1: Bingley will not be detained in London by them. Caroline
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  Speaker 1: decidedly says that none of the party will return into
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  Speaker 1: Hertfordshire this winter. I will read it to you. When
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  Speaker 1: my brother left us yesterday, he imagined that the business
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  Speaker 1: which took him to London might be concluded in three
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  Speaker 1: or four days, but as we are certain it cannot
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  Speaker 1: be so, and at the same time convinced that when
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  Speaker 1: Charles gets to town, he will be in no hurry
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  Speaker 1: to leave it again. we have determined on following him
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  Speaker 1: thither that he may not be obliged to spend his
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  Speaker 1: vacant hours in a comfortless hotel. Many of my acquaintance
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  Speaker 1: are already there for the winter. I wish I could
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  Speaker 1: hear that you, my dearest friend, had any intention of
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  Speaker 1: making one in the crowd, but of that I despair.
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  Speaker 1: I sincerely hope your Christmas in Hertfordshire may abound in
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  Speaker 1: the gaieties which that season generally brings, and that your
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  Speaker 1: bows will be so numerous as to prevent your feeling
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  Speaker 1: the loss of the three of whom we shall deprive you.
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  Speaker 1: It is evident by this, added Jane, that he comes
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  Speaker 1: back no more this winter. It is only evident that
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  Speaker 1: Miss Bingley does not mean he should. Why will you
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  Speaker 1: think so? It must be his own doing. He is
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  Speaker 1: his own master. But you do not know all. I
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  Speaker 1: will read you the passage which particularly hurts me. I
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  Speaker 1: will have no reserves from you. Mr. Darcy is impatient
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  Speaker 1: to see his sister. And to confess the truth, we
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  Speaker 1: are scarcely less eager to meet her again. I really
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  Speaker 1: do not think Georgiana Darcy has her equal for beauty,
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  Speaker 1: elegance and accomplishments. And the affection she inspires in Louisa
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  Speaker 1: and myself is heightened into something still more interesting from
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  Speaker 1: the hope we dare to entertain of her being hereafter
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  Speaker 1: our sister. I do not know whether I ever before
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  Speaker 1: mentioned to you my feelings on this subject, but I
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  Speaker 1: will not leave the country without confiding them, and I
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  Speaker 1: trust you will not esteem them unreasonable. My brother admires
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  Speaker 1: her greatly already. He will have frequent opportunity now of
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  Speaker 1: seeing her on the most intimate footing. Her relations all
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  Speaker 1: wish the connection as much as his own. And a
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  Speaker 1: sister's partiality is not misleading me, I think, when I
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  Speaker 1: call Charles most capable of engaging any woman's heart. With
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  Speaker 1: all these circumstances to favour an attachment, and nothing to
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  Speaker 1: prevent it, am I wrong, my dearest Jane? in indulging
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  Speaker 1: the hope of an event which will secure the happiness
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  Speaker 1: of so many. What think you of this sentence, my
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  Speaker 1: dear Lizzie? said Jane, as she finished it. Is it
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  Speaker 1: not clear enough? Does it not expressly declare that Caroline
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  Speaker 1: neither expects nor wishes me to be her sister? That
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  Speaker 1: she is perfectly convinced of her brother's indifference? and that
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  Speaker 1: if she suspects the nature of my feelings for him,
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  Speaker 1: she means, most kindly, to put me on my guard.
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  Speaker 1: Can there be any other opinion on the subject? Yes,
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  Speaker 1: there can, for mine is totally different. Will you hear it?
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  Speaker 1: Most willingly. You shall have it in a few words.
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  Speaker 1: Miss Bingley sees that her brother is in love with
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  Speaker 1: you and wants him to marry Miss Darcy. She follows
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  Speaker 1: him to town in the hope of keeping him there
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  Speaker 1: and tries to persuade you that he does not care
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  Speaker 1: about you. Jane shook her head. Indeed, Jane. You ought
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  Speaker 1: to believe me. No one who has ever seen you
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  Speaker 1: together can doubt his affection. Miss Bingley, I am sure, cannot.
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  Speaker 1: She is not such a simpleton. Could she have seen
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  Speaker 1: half as much love in Mr. Darcy for herself? She
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  Speaker 1: would have ordered her wedding clothes. But the case is this.
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  Speaker 1: We are not rich enough or grand enough for them.
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  Speaker 1: And she is the more anxious to get Miss Darcy
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  Speaker 1: for her brother. from the notion that when there has
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  Speaker 1: been one intermarriage, she may have less trouble in achieving
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  Speaker 1: a second, in which there is certainly some ingenuity, and
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  Speaker 1: I dare say it would succeed if Miss de Bourgh
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  Speaker 1: were out of the way. But my dearest Jane, you
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  Speaker 1: cannot seriously imagine that, because Miss Bingley tells you her
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  Speaker 1: brother greatly admires Miss Darcy. He is in the smallest degree...
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  Speaker 1: less sensible of your merit than when he took leave
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  Speaker 1: of you on Tuesday, or that it will be in
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  Speaker 1: her power to persuade him that, instead of being in
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  Speaker 1: love with you, he is very much in love with
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  Speaker 1: her friend. If we thought alike of Miss Bingley, replied Jane,
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  Speaker 1: your representation of all this might make me quite easy.
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  Speaker 1: But I know the foundation is unjust. Caroline is incapable
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  Speaker 1: of willfully deceiving anyone, and all that I can hope
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  Speaker 1: in this case is that she has deceived herself. That
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  Speaker 1: is right. You could not have started a more happy idea,
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  Speaker 1: since you will not take comfort in mine. Believe her
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  Speaker 1: to be deceived by all means. You have now done
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  Speaker 1: your duty by her, and must fret no longer. But
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  Speaker 1: my dear sister, can I be happy? even supposing the best,
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  Speaker 1: in accepting a man whose sisters and friends are all
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  Speaker 1: wishing him to marry elsewhere. You must decide for yourself,
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  Speaker 1: said Elizabeth, and if, upon mature deliberation, you find that
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  Speaker 1: the misery of disobliging his two sisters is more than
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  Speaker 1: equivalent to the happiness of being his wife, I advise you,
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  Speaker 1: by all means, to refuse him. How can you talk so?
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  Speaker 1: said Jane, faintly smiling. You must know that, though I
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  Speaker 1: should be exceedingly grieved at their disapprobation, I could not hesitate.
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  Speaker 1: I did not think you would, and that being the case,
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  Speaker 1: I cannot consider your situation with much compassion. But if
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  Speaker 1: he returns no more this winter, my choice will never
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  Speaker 1: be required. A thousand things may arise in six months.
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  Speaker 1: The idea of his returning no more, Elizabeth treated with
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  Speaker 1: the utmost contempt. It appeared to her merely the suggestion
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  Speaker 1: of Caroline's interested wishes, and she could not for a
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  Speaker 1: moment suppose that those wishes, however openly or artfully spoken,
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  Speaker 1: could influence a young man so totally independent of everyone.
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  Speaker 1: She represented to her sister, as forcibly as possible, what
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  Speaker 1: she felt on the subject, and had soon the pleasure
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  Speaker 1: of seeing its happy effect. Jane's temper was not desponding,
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  Speaker 1: and she was gradually led to hope, though the diffidence
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  Speaker 1: of affection sometimes overcame the hope that Bingley would return
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  Speaker 1: to Netherfield and answer every wish of her heart. They
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  Speaker 1: agreed that Mrs. Bennet should only hear of the departure
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  Speaker 1: of the family, without being alarmed on the score of
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  Speaker 1: the gentleman's conduct. But even this partial communication gave her
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  Speaker 1: a great deal of concern, and she bewailed it as
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  Speaker 1: exceedingly unlucky that the ladies should happen to go away
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  Speaker 1: just as they were all getting so intimate together. After
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  Speaker 1: lamenting it, however, at some length she had the consolation
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  Speaker 1: of thinking that Mr Bingley would be soon down again,
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  Speaker 1: and soon dining at Longbourn. And the conclusion of all
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  Speaker 1: was the comfortable declaration that, though he had been invited
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  Speaker 1: only to a family dinner, she would take care to
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  Speaker 1: have two full courses.