Chapter 9
It was sad news to all of the Bennet sisters when Bennet told them that their Uncle Frank had come to Longbourn to report that their Aunt Hattie had passed away from a very bad case of influenza on the twentieth day of January.
Bennet had known that in early January, like her late mother before her, Hattie had had what she had termed a trifling cold, but instead of getting better, it only got worse.
Now, he had to face his daughters, who all loved their aunt, to tell them they would never see her again.
He girded his loins for the questions he was sure they would ask.
Before he stood from sitting in his chair behind his desk in the study, Bennet could not help but think of his girls, the lights of his life.
Jane had turned eighteen nine days before Hattie’s death.
Because his sister-in-law had not been well enough to attend Jane’s celebration, Jane and her sisters had gone to visit their aunt at her home.
Bennet remembered how happy Hattie was to see Jane on the day of her significant birthday.
Now Hattie, who had been so very much looking forward to watching Jane’s debut into local society at the spring assembly in March, would not be able to watch her oldest niece dance the first two dances with her father and Uncle Frank respectively.
Except as Phillips would be in mourning, Bennet would do the honours on his own.
Bennet was aware that Hattie loved his girls with the whole of her heart which had made it easy to excuse her foibles.
Lizzy would be sixteen in March, something for which he was not fully prepared. His girls were all becoming young ladies. Mary would be fifteen in July; Kate twelve in September; and Lyddie would be ten in June.
The youngest two were closest to Hattie of all of his daughters which meant that her loss would be felt most keenly by them.
The older three would be very sad, but not like how Kate and Lyddie would feel about Hattie’s loss.
At least, the Gardiners would arrive in the next day or two.
Thankfully, the frigid winter meant that there was no hurry to commit Hattie’s mortal remains to the earth with speed as had been the case when her younger sister had lost her life.
Like Hattie, Maddie had become a mother figure to his daughters.
The bond was stronger with the three eldest as they had been able to visit Gracechurch Street for more years than Kate and Lyddie.
All five of his daughters loved the four Gardiner cousins fiercely.
Lilly was seven, Eddy recently five, Peter was almost 3, and May was one.
Bennet hoped Gardiner and Maddie would bring the children as it would help distract his daughters from their grief.
He was aware that he was procrastinating.
He rang for Hill. “Have Mrs Dudley bring the two youngest to the drawing room, and also make sure the eldest three and Miss Jones are present as well,” Bennet instructed.
Hill bowed and went to carry out the master’s orders.
Bennet had employed several men and a woman at Longbourn.
A companion, Miss Anita Jones, the almost forty-year-old spinster sister of the town’s medical man was needed as his daughters matured and no longer took lessons from the governess.
At the same time, Bennet had found former military men to act as footmen guards.
He felt they were needed as his daughters’ dowries were becoming substantial, and he would do what he needed to protect them.
Gardiner had used his contacts—namely one Major Fitzwilliam who was an investor—to find eight men who were led by two of the largest men Bennet had ever met.
One was aptly named John Biggs and the other Brian Johns.
Even though it was put out in public that the Bennet sisters only had two thousand pounds each, Bennet would not take chances with their security.
His ruminations were interrupted when there was a knock on his door, and Hill opened the door. “All seven ladies are in the drawing room,” the retainer reported.
Knowing it was time to make the unpleasant notification, Bennet stood and made his way to the room where his daughters and the other two ladies were. He should have known that Lizzy would be able to read his sombre look. She was a very intuitive young lady.
“Papa, what is it? You look sad,” Elizabeth said.
Bennet sat down in the wingback chair he always used in the drawing room.
“I wish Lizzy was wrong, but I am afraid she is correct,” he began.
He did not miss the looks of concern or the way the three eldest sitting on a couch held one another’s hands.
On the settee, Lyddie was holding one of Mrs Dudley’s hands on one side, and Kate was holding hers on the other side.
“You all know that Aunt Hattie has been ill since the beginning of this month. I am afraid that rather than improving, her cold worsened. Early this morning, she went to her final reward. She had been sleeping, so she felt no pain.”
The reactions were as he had expected. The younger two girls were sobbing uncontrollably while Mrs Dudley, with Miss Jones’s assistance, tried to calm them. The older three were very sad and were crying, just not as volubly as their younger sisters.
“Did nothing that was done to try to cure Aunt Hattie help?” Elizabeth asked as she dried her tears.
“Unfortunately, not,” Miss Jones replied. “My brother told me that by the time your aunt sought his care, he detected that the infection had reached her lungs. He is very frustrated that so many lose their lives to things that he believes will be preventable in the future.”
“Will our young cousins accompany Aunt Maddie and Uncle Edward?” Mary asked.
“I am not sure, but I suspect they will,” Bennet responded.
He looked around the room to see if there were more questions; there were not.
It was surprising to Bennet that there had not been many more like he had expected there would be.
“Your Uncle Frank sent an express to the Gardiners. They may arrive today, but I believe they will be with us on the morrow at the latest,” he stated.
“As far as mourning goes, we will observe it for a total of six weeks. That is three weeks of deep and three of half mourning. Please give Mrs Hill two or three of your older dresses, and she will have them dyed for you.”
He knew that he could have chosen three months of mourning, but Bennet did not want his girls to be in the blacks for so long.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
The Gardiners arrived the next day before midday. Much to Bennet’s relief, and his daughters’ pleasure, the four young cousins accompanied them. Even though May had just begun to take tentative steps, her Bennet cousins paid her no less attention than her sister and brothers.
The funeral service and interment were two days later. As the Phillipses, in general, and Hattie, in particular, had been very popular, St Alfred’s was almost full with both landed gentry and shopkeepers alike.
That afternoon, Phillips met with his brothers-in-law in Bennet’s study.
“My wife did not have a complicated will, but her dowry was left under her control. As you both know it was five thousand pounds. Under Gardiner’s management it had grown to just over twenty thousand pounds.
Hattie wanted her money split between her nieces and nephews,” Phillips revealed.
“Before you ask, I am quite well off and do not need her money. When Hattie spoke of her intentions for her dowry, I supported her completely.”
“That is a little more than two thousand two hundred pounds to each of the nine children.” Gardiner had made a quick mental calculation in his head.
“My daughters’ portions are already above twenty thousand each. Hence, I think this should be split between the Gardiner four,” Bennet opined. He looked at Phillips. “That is if any changes may be made.”
“As generous of a thought as that is, it is neither yours nor my choice. This is what Hattie wanted, and I am honour bound to execute her wishes as she wrote them. I am sure like you have been, Gardiner is saving for his children’s future, have you not?
” Phillips queried as he turned to Gardiner who nodded.
“In that case, all I can do is thank my late sister-in-law.” Bennet poured a measure of port for his brothers and himself. “Let us drink a toast to a good, kind, loving, godly, and generous woman, Hattie Phillips.”
The three men threw the sweet wine back.
Phillips had worn a black armband since the previous day and expressed his intention to mourn for a full year.
When Gardiner also elected six weeks as a mourning period like Bennet had done for himself and his children, Phillips gave their choices his blessing. He was well aware that his Hattie had been loved and would be missed by all.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Scarborough, February 1806
As she approached her seven and twentieth birthday in October of the current year, Louisa Bingley had accepted that she would remain a spinster in her father’s home.
Once or twice after she reached her majority, she had spoken of setting up her own establishment and her father, vigorously supported by Charles, had told her in no uncertain terms that her place was with him.
Her brother had assured Louisa that when that day came that he was head of the Bingley family, he would never agree to her leaving his household.
The only one who had been unhappy Louisa had not set up her own establishment was Caroline. But then again, Caroline was always upset about something.