Chapter Forty-One
Mr. Darcy had taken a good deal of time to compose his letter to Mr. Stanley, as this was an important and delicate matter, and deserved a good deal of focus and concentration. This morning, he finished the final version and read it over.
Mr. Stanley,
I am helping a friend with a very difficult situation.
His estate is entailed to a man who is wholly unfit to run it, and my friend fears for the lives of his tenants, as well as his wife and five daughters.
I explained the workings of the common recovery method, and I offered to be the required third party.
His name is Thomas Bennet; the estate in question is called Longbourn in Hertfordshire.
The heir presumptive is one William Collins, currently a rector serving none other than Lady Catherine de Bourgh, my aunt.
She knows his value – or lack thereof – and I think she will make no objections.
Please initiate the paperwork necessary for Mr. Bennet to grant the estate to me, fee simple.
Also look into the antecedents of this William Collins, and his father, George Collins.
Mr. Bennet is an intelligent, rational man, and it seems very unlikely to me that William Collins is in any way related to him.
Call it a hunch, I suppose. Mr. Bennet has the baptism records of all of his male ancestors and himself; I wonder if Mr. William Collins has the same.
Please keep me informed as to your progress.
Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy
Satisfied, he sanded it and sent it off to London with a messenger. He then wrote to his aunt.
Dear Aunt Catherine,
I hope you and Anne are well; I know that Georgiana misses Anne, and I am very glad they had this past summer together.
Oddly enough, I recently learnt that your parson, Mr. Collins, is the heir presumptive to the estate adjoining the one Mr. Bingley is leasing. The current owner of the estate, Mr. Bennet, was unfortunate enough to have no sons; thus Mr. Collins’ position as the heir presumptive.
Mr. Collins recently visited the Bennets, and it was immediately apparent that he had no interest whatever in learning how to manage the estate.
It will come as no surprise to you, I think, that Mr. Bennet now does not think Mr. Collins a fit master for his estate, and I am forced to agree with him.
Thus, Mr. Bennet is now willing to enter into a common recovery agreement, with myself as the third party, in order to prevent Mr. Collins from taking Longbourn.
I believe you are familiar with this bit of legal trickery, for so it must be considered; if not, I will be happy to provide further details.
In any case, I am warning you of this in advance, as Mr. Collins may become rather angry at being so summarily deprived of what he has long considered his rightful inheritance.
I am certain that Mr. Collins will seek your aid but, please, Aunt Catherine, allow me to help the Bennets. Imagine that Mr. Collins was the heir to Rosings! Would you not do everything in your power to prevent that? This is the position Mr. Bennet finds himself in.
Your loving nephew,
Darcy
There, he thought, rather grimly, finally putting down his quill. Now he would wait on events.