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Chapter V · Pride and Prejudice | Audiobook

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  Speaker 1: CHAPTER V Within a short walk of Longbourn lived a
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  Speaker 1: family with whom the Bennets were particularly intimate. Sir William
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  Speaker 1: Lucas had been formerly in trade in Meryton, where he
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  Speaker 1: had made a tolerable fortune, and risen to the honour
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  Speaker 1: of knighthood by an address to the king during his mayoralty.
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  Speaker 1: The distinction had, perhaps, been felt too strongly. it had
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  Speaker 1: given him a disgust to his business and to his
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  Speaker 1: residence in a small market town. And, quitting them both,
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  Speaker 1: he had removed with his family to a house about
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  Speaker 1: a mile from Meryton, denominated from that period Lucas Lodge,
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  Speaker 1: where he could think with pleasure of his own importance and,
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  Speaker 1: unshackled by business, occupy himself solely in being civil to
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  Speaker 1: all the world. For, Though elated by his rank, it
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  Speaker 1: did not render him supercilious. On the contrary, he was
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  Speaker 1: all attention to everybody. By nature inoffensive, friendly and obliging,
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  Speaker 1: his presentation at St James's had made him courteous. Lady
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  Speaker 1: Lucas was a very good kind of woman, not too
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  Speaker 1: clever to be a valuable neighbour to Mrs Bennet. They
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  Speaker 1: had several children. The eldest of them, a sensible, intelligent
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  Speaker 1: young woman, about twenty-seven, was Elizabeth's intimate friend. That the
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  Speaker 1: Miss Lucases and the Miss Bennets should meet to talk
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  Speaker 1: over a ball was absolutely necessary, and the morning after
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  Speaker 1: the assembly brought the former to Longbourn to hear and
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  Speaker 1: to communicate.' You began the evening well, Charlotte,' said Mrs Bennet,
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  Speaker 1: with civil self-command, to Miss Lucas. You were Mr. Bingley's
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  Speaker 1: first choice. Yes, but he seemed to like his second better. Oh,
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  Speaker 1: you mean Jane, I suppose, because he danced with her twice.
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  Speaker 1: To be sure, that did seem as if he admired her. Indeed,
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  Speaker 1: I rather believe he did. I heard something about it,
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  Speaker 1: but I hardly know what. Something about Mr. Robinson's. Perhaps
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  Speaker 1: you mean what I overheard between him and Mr. Robinson.
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  Speaker 1: Did not I mention it to you? Mr. Robinson's asking
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  Speaker 1: him how he liked our Meryton assemblies, and whether he
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  Speaker 1: did not think there were a great many pretty women
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  Speaker 1: in the room, and which he thought the prettiest. And
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  Speaker 1: his answering immediately to the last question, Oh, the eldest
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  Speaker 1: Miss Bennet, beyond a doubt. There cannot be two opinions
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  Speaker 1: on that point. Upon my word! Well, that was very
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  Speaker 1: decided indeed. That does seem as if... But, however, it
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  Speaker 1: may all come to nothing, you know. My overhearings were
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  Speaker 1: more to the purpose than yours, Eliza, said Charlotte. Mr.
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  Speaker 1: Darcy is not so well worth listening to as his friend,
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  Speaker 1: is he? Poor Eliza, to be only just tolerable. I
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  Speaker 1: beg you will not put it into Lizzie's head to
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  Speaker 1: be vexed by his ill-treatment, for he is such a
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  Speaker 1: disagreeable man that it would be quite a misfortune to
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  Speaker 1: be liked by him. Mrs Long told me last night
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  Speaker 1: that he sat close to her for half an hour
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  Speaker 1: without once opening his lips. Are you quite sure, ma'am?
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  Speaker 1: Is not there a little mistake? said Jane. I certainly
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  Speaker 1: saw Mr Darcy speaking to her, Aye, because she asked
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  Speaker 1: him at last how he liked Netherfield, and he could
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  Speaker 1: not help answering her. But she said he seemed very
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  Speaker 1: angry at being spoke to. Miss Bingley told me, said Jane,
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  Speaker 1: that he never speaks much unless among his intimate acquaintance.
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  Speaker 1: With them he is remarkably agreeable. I do not believe
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  Speaker 1: a word of it, my dear. If he had been
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  Speaker 1: so very agreeable, he would have talked to Mrs. Long.
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  Speaker 1: But I can guess how it was. Everybody says that
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  Speaker 1: he is eat up with pride, and I dare say
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  Speaker 1: he had heard somehow that Mrs. Long does not keep
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  Speaker 1: a carriage, and had to come to the ball in
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  Speaker 1: a hack chaise. I do not mind his not talking
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  Speaker 1: to Mrs. Long, said Miss Lucas, but I wish he
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  Speaker 1: had danced with Eliza. Another time, Lizzie, said her mother.
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  Speaker 1: I would not dance with him if I were you.
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  Speaker 1: I believe, ma'am, I may safely promise you never to
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  Speaker 1: dance with him. His pride, said Miss Lucas, does not
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  Speaker 1: offend me so much as pride often does, because there
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  Speaker 1: is an excuse for it. One cannot wonder that so
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  Speaker 1: very fine a young man, with family, fortune, everything in
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  Speaker 1: his favour, should think highly of himself. if I may
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  Speaker 1: so express it, he has a right to be proud.
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  Speaker 1: That is very true, replied Elizabeth, and I could easily
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  Speaker 1: forgive his pride if he had not mortified mine. Pride,
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  Speaker 1: observed Mary, who piqued herself upon the solidity of her reflections,
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  Speaker 1: is a very common failing, I believe. By all that
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  Speaker 1: I have ever read, I am convinced that it is
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  Speaker 1: very common indeed, that human nature is particularly prone to it,
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  Speaker 1: and that there are very few of us who do
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  Speaker 1: not cherish a feeling of self-complacency on the score of
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  Speaker 1: some quality or other, real or imaginary. Vanity and pride
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  Speaker 1: are different things, though the words are often used synonymously.
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  Speaker 1: A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates
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  Speaker 1: more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we
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  Speaker 1: would have others think of us. If I were as
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  Speaker 1: rich as Mr Darcy, cried a young Lucas, who came
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  Speaker 1: with his sisters, I should not care how proud I was.
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  Speaker 1: I would keep a pack of foxhounds and drink a
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  Speaker 1: bottle of wine every day. Then you would drink a
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  Speaker 1: great deal more than you ought, said Mrs Bennet, and
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  Speaker 1: if I were to see you at it, I should
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  Speaker 1: take away your bottle directly. The boy protested that she
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  Speaker 1: should not. She continued to declare that she would, and
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  Speaker 1: the argument ended only with the visit.