Chapter 15
As the clock at Northampton House struck one, Lord Fitzwilliam and his nephew, Mr. Darcy, were ushered into the Duke’s library for their scheduled conference.
“Welcome, gentlemen, to my humble abode, as the saying goes. For someone not born into such riches, this house could be Zeus’s own palace on Mount Olympus. You gentlemen may see this as commonplace.”
The Earl and Mr. Darcy were impressed. Not only did the Duke not put on airs, but he also appeared a model of humility.
“Bennet, Northampton House is a former royal dwelling. Even Buckingham House, the current royal dwelling purchased by our frugal Monarch, cannot compare in luxury and size. My house, by comparison, is practically a hovel.”
“Well, well, I highly doubt that, Lord Fitzwilliam, you of enormous fortune, statesmanship, and centuries of noble lineage. Please sit here by the fire. I am eager to learn about your scheme to help me and mine. To tell you the truth, if I could keep this library and the one at Kennington Castle, I would care not who owns the rest,” quipped the Duke.
Bennet belongs with the Whigs—so egalitarian, thought the Earl.
The visitors had come with a carefully and detailedly prepared plan.
On the inheritance dispute, the formidable Fitzwilliam-Darcy network of family, friends, and political allies stood at the ready behind the Duke to scare off any nefarious schemers unless they had an ironclad case against His Grace.
On the grooming of the Bennet-Fitzstuart ladies for high society, Mrs. Juliana Trimmer was to be employed as chief governess.
Mrs. Trimmer was well equipped with exceptional accomplishments in literary pursuits as well as Court etiquette befitting this level of the aristocracy.
She had been governess to the Devonshire family and had grown up close to the current King’s household, as her grandfather had tutored the King when he was still Prince of Wales.
She had just come out of mourning for her mother, the famous education reformer and writer of children’s books, Mrs. Sarah Trimmer.
Mr. Darcy had already been to see Mrs. Juliana and had affirmed her interest in joining the Duke’s house.
In his youth, he spent many summers at Chatsworth with the Devonshire children and was a favorite of Mrs. Trimmer’s.
If the Duke was agreeable to this choice for his daughters’ governess, Mrs. Trimmer could meet the ladies after the Sabbath.
She was in residence at Spencer House next door as her sister, Mrs. Selina Trimmer, was companion to the Dowager Countess.
His Grace could not believe how straightforward and simple things were with the help of those with experience.
He hardly needed to lift a finger, and everything was satisfactorily arranged.
Being Duke was a concept he had trouble grasping, having no notion of what was entailed.
However, watching his wife turn from an intolerably brash matron in Hertfordshire into a meek and gentle lady of decorum made him realize the unexpected benefits of his inheritance.
This softened version of his wife aroused in him a tender feeling he had not experienced since Lydia’s birth.
Perhaps then the inheritance was a blessing in more ways than one.
A novel thought had been plaguing his mind since becoming Duke: he wished to produce an heir to perpetuate the Dukedom.
After Lydia’s difficult birth almost killed her mother, Mrs. Bennet became withdrawn and refused for several years to have relations with her husband.
After that, both sides treated the alienation as normal.
His wife was just forty years old, and he was six years older.
There was still time, but he needed to hurry.
He scrutinized the gentlemen before him. The Earl’s desire to rope him in to the Whigs was clear, but what about Mr. Darcy? Was he simply helping his uncle as a familial duty, or was there something else?
Meanwhile, the visiting gentlemen shared with the inattentive Duke a detailed plan to establish the Duke’s family in the ton, including everything from the timing of the Duke’s presentation to the House of Lords and to the Prince Regent, to the ladies’ presentations at Court in April, to the Duke of Richmond’s ball as a formal introduction of the Duke’s family to society.
The Duchess of Richmond was a celebrated hostess and could be counted on to throw a lavish party for any occasion.
After all, the progenitors of both dukedoms were half-brothers.
In the parlor, Lady Fitzwilliam and Miss Georgiana Darcy had come to call.
The Duchess sat demurely in a beautifully upholstered Chippendale chair by the fireplace with her eldest, Lady Jane, but most of the conversation was between the Countess and Mrs. Gardiner, who spent most days at the house assisting the mistress.
Miss Darcy was sitting among the rest of the Duke’s daughters.
She seemed extremely uncomfortable being surrounded by strangers and had her head bent, looking up only when she answered questions with single syllables.
Lady Kitty saw a kindred spirit in Miss Darcy and moved to sit next to her.
Elizabeth found Mr. Wickham’s assertion that Miss Darcy was proud to be untrue: the young girl was simply extremely shy.
By now, Elizabeth was entirely convinced that Mr. Wickham was a lying villain.
Jenny had said Mr. Darcy was shy. His sister shares the same personality traits. And he deals with it by appearing cold and aloof, as a gentleman of his station could not walk about with his head bent. Ah ha! Avoiding eye contact is the goal of both siblings!
Elizabeth was extraordinarily pleased with her new insight.
Her confidence in her ability to sketch a person’s character had made a triumphant return.
Being a victim of her error, the gentleman from Derbyshire no longer disgusted her.
She began to find him quite fascinating, which had been her first impression of the gentleman at the Meryton assembly, before he ruined it by insulting her.
In this new light, his thoughtless words were merely meant to get him out of standing up to dance with a stranger.
His shyness did not completely exonerate him, but as she did not have such a disposition herself, she ought to give him the benefit of the doubt.
However, marrying his dying cousin for wealth without affection was still a blemish on his character.
While Lizzy was ruminating, her sisters tried to engage their young, reticent guest in conversation.
Kitty was animatedly talking to Miss Darcy about her newly discovered passion for the magnificent paintings in the house, but the enthusiasm was all on Kitty’s side.
Lydia looked intently at their guest’s attire.
As a duke’s daughter, she had to dress better than the untitled girl, although Miss Darcy’s hat was lovely.
Mary was not too interested in the visiting young lady until Elizabeth asked, “Miss Darcy, our mutual acquaintance, Miss Bingley, could not pay enough compliments to your virtuosity on the pianoforte. Do you favor any particular composer’s works? ”
Miss Darcy lifted her head slightly, and her face exhibited a momentary sign of life.
She said softly, “Lady Elizabeth, I do not deserve the praises you heard since I am not yet out and have not played for Miss Bingley. However, my brother told me he rarely experienced such pleasure in a musical performance as in yours.”
“Oh…” uttered Elizabeth. That was unexpected.
She had sung some country ballads at a gathering in Hertfordshire at which Mr. Darcy was in attendance.
She could not have impressed a sophisticated man accustomed to the best of society with her provincial offerings.
No, he must have said that for the sake of making conversation with his sister, given the large age difference between the siblings—at least ten years.
Mr. Darcy could not have much in common with his young sister, who was not a child but not yet an adult.
To her surprise, Miss Darcy continued without waiting for a response from Elizabeth. She appeared to be truly devoted to her music.
“I am very fond of playing the pianoforte, but not to any degree of true proficiency. As for composers, I especially enjoy playing the pieces by Herr van Beethoven.”
Mary chimed in. “Miss Darcy, you must be technically excellent as Beethoven’s music is too complex for me. I cannot fathom the number of notes he can fit into each bar of the Waldstein Sonata.”
“Oh, Lady Mary, I have just begun to learn ‘Waldstein.’ It will take a lot of hard work, but I think it will be worthwhile.”
Elizabeth was impressed by the young girl taking on the piece.
She had not yet heard it, but anything by Herr van Beethoven was beyond her reach, literally.
She asked, “Miss Darcy, I must correct the impression of my musical ability given to you. I can play only the easiest sonatas by Mozart, but both Mary and I would love to improve our skills on the pianoforte. Could you recommend a master to us?”
“M’lady, my brother is never wrong. You must play for us sometime so you can hear his praise yourself. As for masters, my teacher, Senor Firelli, is wonderful. If he can accommodate two more students, I would highly recommend him. If not, he may have friends who are equally excellent.”
Throughout this interchange, Elizabeth noticed that Miss Darcy was almost passionate, completely transformed from the timid girl she had been before the topic of music was brought up.
It seems possible to bring Miss Darcy out of her bashfulness, which could transform her into a poised young lady. Perhaps the same can be said of her brother.