Chapter 12
Breakfast Parlor
Longbourn
Morning
The breakfast parlor was full with all five Bennet daughters plus their mother and governess eating and drinking and chatting softly.
Mrs. Bennet and her two elder daughters intended to travel to Meryton after breaking their fast and would be visiting the local dressmaker to be measured for gowns for the upcoming Season.
The other three girls and Miss Trent would come along to enjoy the experience, but they would not be ordering new dresses.
The door opened, and Mr. Bennet stepped within and said, “Good morning, my dears.”
Elizabeth looked up from her plate of ham and eggs and toast and crinkled her brow at the sight of her father. Mr. Bennet generally spent his mornings in his library either reading or doing business, and it was rare for him to join his womenfolk for breakfast.
“Good morning,” she chorused along with the others, and Bennet walked over to pour himself a cup of coffee before taking a seat near the window.
“I know you intend to visit Meryton this morning,” he said, “but I wished to inform you of a visitor who will be coming to stay at Longbourn next week.”
Elizabeth, looking around, observed confusion on various faces.
“A visitor?” Jane asked. “Who?”
Mr. Bennet drew a letter out of his pocket, opened it, and said, “This is from Mr. Collins, the distant cousin who stands to inherit Longbourn. He wrote asking if he could visit in the middle of November, and after discussion with your mother, I sent a letter allowing it. He wrote again informing me that he was forced by circumstance to move his visit up, so he will arrive exactly a week from now on the 5th of November.”
“What can you tell us about him, Father?” Mary asked.
Mr. Bennet blew out a breath and said, “He is at least literate, unlike his father, and serves as a clergyman in a parish in Kent. But he also uses ten words where two will do. He rambles on at great length and also hints at …”
He turned his attention to his wife, who continued his thought, “He hints at making amends to you girls for being the heir to the estate.”
Elizabeth frowned. “How could he possibly make amends?”
“Possibly through marriage,” Mrs. Bennet replied and took a sip of tea. “If one of you married the man, the estate would stay in the family.”
Lydia turned wide, nervous eyes on the matron. “Mamma, do you wish for one of us to marry Mr. Collins?”
“Not at all, dear one,” her mother returned.
“Based on his first letter, he seems an absurd man, though perhaps he will prove better on acquaintance. There is no reason for any of you to rush into marriage or to choose a husband in variance with your own desires. Indeed, your father and I wondered whether welcoming him here was a good idea, but given that he will one day be master of Longbourn, well, it would be best if he had some familiarity with the estate and her people.”
“I think that is very sensible,” Elizabeth said, and her sisters murmured their agreement.
***
Netherfield Hall
Two Days Later
Thursday, 31st October 1811
A stable hand stood ready and waiting to help Elizabeth alight from the carriage.
She accepted the man’s assistance and stepped aside, smoothing her gown as first Jane, then Mary, followed her out onto the gravel carriage drive.
Netherfield Hall loomed large, its facade cheerful and inviting.
Breakfast at the Bennet table had been graced with a note from Miss Bingley, suggesting that the three eldest Misses Bennet come over to Netherfield for the day.
Elizabeth had been unable to summon much enthusiasm for the prospect of spending hours upon end in the company of Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst. Mary had likewise been wary at the prospect, but Jane, with her usual sweetness, had declared a genuine affection for both women.
At any rate, Miss Darcy and Miss Georgiana would likely also be participants in whatever program Miss Bingley had planned for the day, and passing the time with the Darcy sisters pleased all three of the Bennet ladies.
So here they were, enjoying the company of their neighbors.
It would be a respite from the activity that had hallmarked their recent days.
For all that the Season was yet some months away, the household had been thrown into a perpetual flurry of preparation.
Tuesday had been fully encompassed with silks and muslins and fittings, with a visit to the modiste in Meryton to bespeak several gowns.
Elizabeth had not, in her previous life as a mere country miss, given much thought to the sheer number of gowns that were required by a young lady of fashion in search of a husband.
Such thought must now be given, for herself and for Jane, and for Mrs. Bennet, who would of course chaperone them about.
As a matron and chaperone, she would not require quite so many changes as would Elizabeth and Jane, but she too needed formal gowns, and ball gowns, and morning gowns, and walking gowns.
Along with dresses, they also needed to purchase a number of hats.
On Tuesday, they had also spent hours with the local milliner, and Elizabeth had returned home mightily fatigued.
She had been genuinely grateful when Wednesday dawned gray and very wet, thus discouraging them for another wearisome trip to Meryton.
Elizabeth had foregone her usual morning constitutional walk to sit in the drawing room with her mother and elder sister for much of the day, drinking tea and discussing their presentation options.
Mrs. Bennet had disclosed that, given her noble parentage and the connection provided by her status as Jane’s stepmother, the girls could be presented at Court if they so wished.
Elizabeth was not at all sure she did wish, considering the stringent requirements of the attendees of the Queen’s Drawing Rooms. She did not relish the prospect of standing for hours, waiting to be called up to make her curtsey to the Queen.
The dresses, too, were absurd. Queen Charlotte was most strict about the historic stipulations of full, hooped skirts and elaborate trains, with a stern disregard for the difficulties faced by the young ladies attired in such silhouettes rendered even more cumbersome by the high waists that were the fashion of the times.
It seemed, in Elizabeth’s view, extravagant to spend a small fortune on two full ensembles for Court, especially since such dresses that could only be worn once.
Her mother had pointed out, wisely, that the social advantages of such a coming-out should not be dismissed out of hand.
Mrs. Bennet had connections enough to ensure her daughter and stepdaughter would not lack for invitations, but Jane and Elizabeth would definitely receive an extra societal boost for having made their curtsey to the Queen.
Fortunately, there was time enough yet for consideration of all the finer points both for and against a Drawing Room coming-out.
They must decide before the actual beginning of the Season, with sufficient time to order the gowns if they were needed, and hats and stockings and fans and all necessary accouterments, but such a deadline was months away still.
For all the girls’ enthusiasm, it was actually Mrs. Bennet who was the driving force behind the preparations for the upcoming Season.
Despite her own anxiety surrounding the planned launch of her precious daughters into the very society she had so adroitly escaped, she was determined to give them the best chance possible among the critical members of high Society.
It was better, she held, to plan and prepare now, as much as possible, so that Jane and Elizabeth might hold their own amidst the other Belles of the Season.
At his wife’s request, Mr. Bennet had written to his former brother-in-law Gardiner, Jane’s uncle.
Mr. Gardiner was a wealthy merchant of genteel disposition and shrewd mind, who was also well-versed with London where he conducted his trade.
He knew of all the best neighborhoods and would be able to assist in looking for a house to rent that would suit the Bennet family well without being overly pricey.
In this too, Mrs. Bennet deemed it prudent to begin planning early, rather than waiting until all the normally country-bound families began flocking to London for the Season, snapping up the most attractive and appropriate lodgings.
Better to have their pick of servants early as well, instead of waiting for all the best staff to be hired by others, leaving only such as might be lazy or expect unreasonable amounts for their services.
It was not as though the family did not have the money to spend on a temporary household, but Elizabeth, still awed by the thought of her wealth and true to ingrained principles of economy, did not wish to overspend.
Just because they were able to afford a very expensive house did not mean that they should; there would be future expenses in her life, ones she could not even imagine now, and she was determined to be reasonably frugal.
She agreed with her mother’s assessment that it was better to begin the process for acquiring a house as early as possible before agents began receiving inquiries from other interested parties.
“Good morning, Ladies,” Mr. Bingley said, and Elizabeth blinked in surprise to discover that as she was lost in her thoughts about the upcoming Season, she and her sisters had mounted the steps and were now within the large, tiled vestibule of Netherfield Hall.
“Good morning,” Jane said with a glorious smile, and Mary and Elizabeth curtseyed before handing over their pelisses, gloves, and hats to a pair of tidy maids.
“We are very pleased that you were able to come visit us today,” Bingley said with a broad smile. “Such a pleasant day, is it not, especially given the winds and rain yesterday?”