17. 17 November 1811 #2
“One thing I have wondered, Miss Elizabeth, is the date of your birthday. When will you be one and twenty?”
“The sixteenth of March.”
“Four months from now!”
“That is not so long.”
“It feels long. It has been four months since Ramsgate, and Georgiana has only recovered a little. I almost feel as if her unhappiness has lasted years.”
“I am so sorry. But….”
“But?” Darcy tried to catch her eyes, but she was looking down, and her mouth seemed set in a serious line.
Suddenly she looked up with a mischievous smile and a twinkle in her eye.
“I am beginning to come up with a plan, sir. But in order to fully craft a successful plan, I need to understand your life better. I wish to know all about what you do, day in and day out. When you are at Pemberley, when you are in Town, and if you regularly travel elsewhere, tell me of that as well. If you see me being Mrs Darcy someday, then I wish to know all about your everyday life.”
“What I do, you said. Not how large Pemberley is, not how much pin money you will have…but what I do with my days and nights?”
She nodded, looking eager.
It was, Darcy was surprised to realise, a singular request. Not even Bingley had ever asked such a thing.
But he began to talk, and he spoke of solving tenant problems, planning the year’s planting, rewarding his tenants with a Harvest Ball, consulting with others on investments, inspecting his properties, meeting with other homeowners…
. At some point, Elizabeth led him back to where Atlas waited and then guided them back to the place where they must separate to their own separate residences.
She said, “Thank you for what you have told me, so far. I look forward to hearing more, perhaps when you call on me.”
The next few days, even when sitting in Longbourn’s parlour with Mr Goulding, Elizabeth encouraged Darcy to tell more of his everyday life and concerns.
She urged him on with questions, and even he was shocked at how many different sorts of work he did.
From extensive reading and correspondence to face-to-face meetings and personal inspections, he was deeply concerned with crops and animal breeding, and he was also responsible for several small mines and sawmills.
He held the power of dozens of family livings in as many parishes.
His engagements included patronage of several artists, multiple inventors, and one natural philosopher, and his avocations included fencing and riding.
“I know you are not sleeping much these days,” Elizabeth murmured during one visit, “but I am shocked you have any time to sleep at all!”
Mr Goulding had leant forward to catch her words, and he looked startled. “You are not able to sleep?” he asked Darcy.
“Of course I sleep some,” he replied. “I probably get close to four hours per night, but the sleep is highly fragmented.”
“Sir, that is dreadful! I get eight to nine hours of sleep per night, in just two phases, as is recommended.”
Elizabeth’s eyes widened. “Nine! Very impressive, sir. You have done more than twice as well as Mr Darcy.”
Mr Goulding looked smug at her comment. Darcy smiled, considering how sweetly Elizabeth wielded set-downs and how gently she issued teasing critiques.
In this case, there was not the smallest amount of sarcasm in her tone, but if the Goulding fellow had bothered to study her eyes, he would have seen laughter there.
Upon further thought, Darcy decided that Elizabeth seemed to feel more free to show her dismay or anger to him than to many others, and the thought pleased him mightily. He would far rather hear and see her true thoughts than to hear only what is polite or agreeable.
At long last, Elizabeth seemed to find no more questions about his many and varied responsibilities and pursuits. Darcy wondered if she was ready to share this plan she had supposedly been crafting.
“I am interested in the kinds of trees you have here at Longbourn,” Darcy said. “I wonder if anyone would like to accompany me as I do a rough count of the ash, birch, and beech trees.”
“We have far more English oak trees than any other kind,” Elizabeth said.
“I have seen that. I was hoping to understand the numbers of the less populous trees.”
“I would be happy to walk with you,” Elizabeth said.
The invitation to walk was extended to all the others. Mr Goulding excused himself and went home, Bingley and Miss Bennet said they wished to walk but not count trees, and everyone else expressed a desire to stay indoors.
“It is cosier inside,” Lydia said, and she was entirely correct.
Darcy and Elizabeth took paper and pencils and made tic marks for the various kinds of trees while they followed the winding path away from the manor house.
“Are you truly interested in a census of my father’s trees?” Elizabeth asked.
“I have to admit I am more interested in your plan, if it is ready to launch, or hatch, or whatever the correct metaphor might be. But, yes, I am always interested in estates’ woodlands and how they are used.
Here at Longbourn, the most common trees seem to be English oak, and the wood from these trees is very valuable for shipbuilding and structures.
I imagine you never burn it. The other trees I spotted include common ash, silver birch, and European beech.
The latter affords the best firewood, and I imagine Longbourn sells some ash for making tools.
The birch I would expect to largely be used for fencing and baskets, and perhaps for wattle.
At any rate, it is of interest to me—as long as we also have time to discuss your plan. ”
“When I called it a plan, I did not realise how convoluted it would be. It turns out to be more like a path with several branches. Let me explain….”
Darcy listened, astounded to hear that the first part of Elizabeth’s planned path centred on Georgiana.
“This part of the plan is most timely. We can get engaged now or later or never, wed now or later or never—but if I might be able to help Georgiana in any small way, it should be soon. She has already had a difficult four months, I believe you said, so it seems to me that the priority, time wise, is seeing to her melancholy.”
She then explained the first branch in the path that she could see—where should she meet Georgiana and attempt to help her?
Would such a task be better accomplished in Hertfordshire or London?
If the latter, Darcy could relocate to Darcy House, in Mayfair, and Elizabeth could go to her uncle and aunt’s house, near Cheapside.
Whether they met in the country or in Town, they could arrange outings and calls, and possibly Georgiana and Elizabeth could become friends and learn from one another.
“The choice of locale depends on your schedule more than my own,” Elizabeth said, “as I have few responsibilities that I do not share with my sisters. My uncle and aunt have given me an open invitation to come and stay at any time, so you can see that I am very flexible.”
Most of all, Elizabeth said, was that the choice should depend on Georgiana, her current mood, her needs, her desires.
Darcy interrupted long enough to say, “Georgiana is not fond of Bingley’s sisters.”
“That is important information,” Elizabeth responded.
The next step of her plan related to the fact that Elizabeth wished for more time before Darcy proposed.
He was certain of his own constancy, but she did not feel so sure—of his or hers.
She explained, “This feeling you have is new to you, you said. My feelings are certainly new to me, as well.” Therefore, she wanted to wait several months rather than several days or weeks.