Consequences (15 page)

Jane was completely lost now. All of this was new to her, an explanation, in part, of Mr. Bingley’s unexplainable abandonment of Netherfield.

“I begin to see part of it, Lizzy,” said Jane slowly, after some moments of thought. “Mr. Bingley depended much on the advice of Mr. Darcy, and I can see Mr. Darcy may have wished for a better match for him, probably with his own sister. But what do you mean about him defending his friend? I do not understand your meaning.”

Elizabeth looked miserably at her sister. “What Mr. Darcy said to me in his letter is that he thought Mr. Bingley’s attraction was greater than yours. That outraged me at first, but after some thought, I realized he made an honest mistake; he does not know you as I do, so he did not discern your real feelings. But he had another, and more significant, objection, and that was the improper conduct of some in our family. Mr. Darcy wrote that your lack of fortune or our connections did not signify; since he was willing to overlook them, the same was true for Mr. Bingley. Rather, it was the lack of propriety often displayed by the rest of our family that was more worrisome and caused him to act as he did.

“You remember how Mama acted the night of the Netherfield ball—boasting of your conquest and how your marriage would throw her other daughters in the path of other rich men. If Mama had wanted to
pretend
she was a fortune hunter, one who would force her unwilling daughter to accept a proposal from a rich suitor, she could not have adopted a more successful disguise. When I considered his words, I came to the unhappy conclusion that our own family was largely responsible for your pain, though Mr. Darcy did pay the both of us a compliment by excepting us from his description. When I refused his proposals so spitefully, with the explicit intention of offending him and wounding what I believed to be his arrogant pride, I made sure he would never again desire to be in my presence. I did not realize at the time that I had also ensured Mr. Darcy would make certain his friend was never again in yours.”

After this unsettling conversation, there was little left to discuss, and the two sisters contented themselves with holding each other’s hand for the rest of the journey.

***

Although quite surprised, Mr. Gardiner and his wife were pleased as always to see Jane and Elizabeth but saddened when their nieces informed them of the reason for their leaving Longbourn so suddenly and without previous notice.

“This Collins fellow appears to be a regular blackguard, Lizzy,” Mr. Gardiner said after Elizabeth and Jane settled in their new room and had a chance to refresh themselves after their journey. “I would have thought, from your description, that he was merely a foolish and laughable man.”

“I have been thinking on that, Uncle, and I still believe that Mr. Collins really is a very foolish man,” said Elizabeth, sipping her tea. “However, I now think he would not have acted in this way without its being suggested to him. And since he is very submissive to his patron, Lady Catherine, who loves to give advice on every subject, I suspect her to be behind what has occurred. This little solicitor, Mr. Worthington, appears very sly, very furtive, but also exceedingly clever. I believe Lady Catherine recommended him to Mr. Collins; I do not believe Mr. Collins would have either the inclination or the wit to find such an agent by himself.”

Her brows knitted in thought, she continued, “I have also remembered that Mr. Worthington made no mention of my mother’s fortune, which ought to provide her an income of a few hundred a year. I hesitate to believe Mr. Collins would conspire to cheat his own cousins, but I would question the integrity of that solicitor.”

“Well, you and Jane are welcome to stay with us from now on, Lizzy,” Mrs. Gardiner said. “You will both have to share a room for now, but we hope to be able to move to more spacious lodgings soon. Your uncle has been considering moving his warehouses to Plymouth for some months now, and his preparations are nearly complete.”

“You are not doing so because of the scandal, are you?” asked Jane anxiously. “My mother said Uncle Philips was leaving Meryton because of it.”

“No, no, Jane,” laughed Mr. Gardiner. “London is much too large and too pleased with itself to bother with the goings-on in the country. To a city dweller’s mind, the whole world begins and ends with this town, and the countryside is inhabited by savages! No, I have been considering this for some months. I am actually doing more business now through Plymouth than through London, and I would be able to increase my income if I did not have to rent warehouse space in both places. Also, the price of lodgings in Plymouth is much lower than here in town, even in Cheapside. I have located a very nice house that is adjacent to the warehouses I rent, and I am negotiating with the owner. We may well be moving within a few months.”

After a moment’s thought, Elizabeth remarked while looking at Jane, “I think that would suit Jane and me very well, Uncle. It seems we have lost almost everything from our previous life. It would be a chance for a new beginning.”

Mr. Gardiner gave his favourite nieces a smile, glad they were agreeable to his plans, but he was inwardly troubled by what they had told him. He made a note that he should have his solicitor look in on what was transpiring at Longbourn. Elizabeth’s comment about her mother’s fortune was quite worrisome. And, while five thousand pounds divided by four was not much of a dowry, it was much better than nothing.

***

In due course, Mr. Gardiner completed his negotiations in Plymouth for both the house and additional warehouse space, and he was equally successful in finding a buyer to take up the lease for his warehouse space in London. A competitor was eager to expand his business and was also very glad to have Mr. Gardiner gone from the London market. Her uncle was able to obtain a satisfactory price for his Gracechurch house from an agent acting for a wealthy investor in Ireland looking for houses to lease or rent. Thus, the whole family travelled to their new home three months later, but despite what Elizabeth said about a new beginning, she and Jane had decidedly mixed emotions about changing their residence for the second time in less than a quarter-year.

The move to Plymouth was fraught with all the usual upsets, with trunks and boxes to be unpacked and places found for their contents, while missing items were frantically sought among the topsy-turvy clutter. Mrs. Gardiner admirably brought order from turmoil, however, and soon the family was well settled in their new home. All of them found their new quarters quite delightful, and Elizabeth and Jane were pleased to have their own rooms, which were actually larger than at Longbourn.

In the months since leaving Hertfordshire, the two sisters received little news from their mother and sisters. Only Mary replied to their several letters since Kitty had never been any sort of correspondent and their mother was actually less of a letter writer than their father had been. Even Mary only responded intermittently, informing them their Uncle Philips was in the process of relocating to a neighbouring county, but she had not written since this last intelligence informing them of the imminent move. Both Elizabeth and Jane were disheartened at the idea that their family seemed to have simply disintegrated, and it was only through their Uncle Gardiner they had any news at all, for he at least managed to stay in contact with their Uncle Philips.

Both of them were dispirited to learn from their uncle that there was little chance of their ever receiving their share of the five thousand pounds settled on their mother when she married.

“I have a note from my solicitor in town, who has been in contact with my brother Philips about the matter of your mother’s fortune,” their uncle told them about a month after their move to Plymouth. “He said both he and your Uncle Philips have been completely unsuccessful in securing your mother’s income from the monies or an assurance of your inheritance in the future. Evidently, Mr. Collins’s solicitor, this Worthington fellow, flatly denied any such inheritance was owed, due to the money having been spent by your father before his death. My solicitor is of the opinion that it would take legal action to force the issue, and, as you know, neither your mother nor I have the necessary fortune to finance such a venture. I am sorry to have to say this—”

“But how could the investment just disappear, uncle?” asked Jane in perplexity.

“There are ways, Jane, there are ways,” said her uncle darkly. “I am sorry we had so little success—“

“It is no matter, Uncle,” Elizabeth interrupted. “I actually arrived at the same conclusion, based on my single meeting with that loathsome man. Both Jane and I are determined not to regret the loss.”

“But it is your due,” Mr. Gardiner said unhappily. “You ought to at least get what is coming to you. I know your father invested your mother’s money in the Funds, but somehow this greasy solicitor has been able to extract the money and hide it.”

“Please do not fret yourself, Uncle,” said Jane softly, laying her hand on his arm. “Lizzy and I will just have to get by as best we can. You have been marvellously accommodating to bring us into your family and provide for us, and we are most grateful.”

On this dissatisfying note, all concerned let the subject rest, and not long afterward Elizabeth and Jane decided they should start the process of trying to find a position rather than continuing to be a burden on their uncle. Mr. Gardiner tried to persuade them such a move was not necessary, that the cost of their support was negligible and they were of material aid to him by providing both company for his wife and assistance with the children. In addition, he attested their prospects for marriage surely had to be improved over what had obtained at Longbourn, but Elizabeth and Jane were unmoved. Plymouth was heavily involved in both sea commerce and in the continuing war against the French, and neither of the sisters found the society attractive. Perhaps it was the more urbanized environment or the restless nature of the war, but their experiences in their samples of the local society left them convinced that waiting around for acceptable young men of any consequence to make an offer of marriage was not an encouraging prospect. They accepted that any possibility of marriage was now remote and determined to at least make the attempt to find employment, though they agreed with their aunt and uncle the opportunities were not plentiful.

An unmarried woman of gentle birth could hope for employment as a governess or a teacher for a well-to-do family with young children, providing training in comportment and manners as well as supervising the more formal aspects of education, including reading, penmanship, and music. Both of the girls were at least tolerably educated on those subjects, though it was more by natural inclination than because of any planned effort by either mother or father. Another possible position was as a companion for a young woman who had progressed beyond the need for a governess. These positions, however, tended to go to older and more settled ladies, usually widows, therefore Elizabeth and Jane concentrated on the former position rather than the latter.

Searching for such employment proved difficult and time consuming, especially since the whole family was so new to the Plymouth area. The girls looked through advertisements in newspapers such as the
Plymouth Gazette
, the
Plymouth Chronicle
, and the
Dock Telegraph.
The scarcity of available newspapers was due to their high price, owing to the stamp duty on newspaper advertisements, and their uncle seldom justified the expense. He occasionally brought home abandoned copies, but these were usually in rather poor conditions after being through so many hands. In any event, they almost never found positions such as they sought advertised, and those few opportunities filled before they could respond. Halfheartedly, their uncle did what he could to assist them, and as his business became more established, he made inquiries from his business associates. However, at least initially, Elizabeth and Jane were often idle and forced to be patient.

It was especially hard for Elizabeth, for she was dismayed to find her world so shrunken. In Hertfordshire, she walked about the countryside for hours. Now, she hardly left the house, except with her uncle, since Plymouth was not a town where ladies travelled without male protection, especially when the fleet was in from blockade duty on the French ports. There were simply too many opportunities for an unescorted young lady to find difficulty beyond her ability to manage. She often saw Jane staring mournfully out a window, certain now she would never again see her beloved Bingley. Elizabeth wished she had not disclosed to Jane the manner in which Mr. Darcy had interfered between her and Mr. Bingley, for now Jane had good reason to believe the separation permanent. Elizabeth had once believed she would rather
know
a fact, even if it were unwelcome, rather than just
speculate
, but she wondered now if
false
hope was not better than
no
hope at all.

She often heard Charlotte’s voice suggesting Mr. Darcy was in love with her and her own voice laughing at the mere thought. She also remembered how Charlotte’s expectations of the marital state and of men in general were low and was thus satisfied with her own establishment, even if her husband was a foolish man. Charlotte would have been horrified if she had known Darcy made an offer of his hand in marriage and been peremptorily refused.
She
would have argued strenuously against such foolishness.