Chapter XVII

When the ladies returned to the drawing-room after dinner, Em m a found it hardly possible to prevent their m aking two distinct parties; – with so m uch perseverance in j udging and behaving ill did Mrs. Elton engross Jane Fairfax and slight herself. She and Mrs. Weston were obliged to be alm ost alway s either talking together or silent together. Mrs. Elton left them no choice. If Jane repressed her for a little tim e, she soon began again; and though m uch that passed between them was in a half-whisper, especially on Mrs. Elton’s side, there was no avoiding a knowledge of their principal subj ects: The post-office – catching cold –

fetching letters – and friendship, were long under discussion; and to them succeeded one, which m ust be at least equally unpleasant to Jane – inquiries whether she had y et heard of any situation likely to suit her, and professions of Mrs. Elton’s m editated activity.

“Here is April com e!” said she, “I get quite anxious about y ou. June will soon be here.”

“But I have never fixed on June or any other m onth – m erely looked forward to the sum m er in general.”

“But have y ou really heard of nothing?”

“I have not even m ade any inquiry ; I do not wish to m ake any y et.”

“Oh! m y dear, we cannot begin too early ; y ou are not aware of the difficulty of procuring exactly the desirable thing.”

“I not aware!” said Jane, shaking her head; “dear Mrs. Elton, who can have thought of it as I have done?”

“But y ou have not seen so m uch of the world as I have. You do not know how m any candidates there alway s are for the first situations. I saw a vast deal of that in the neighbourhood round Maple Grove. A cousin of Mr. Suckling, Mrs. Bragge, had such an infinity of applications; every body was anxious to be in her fam ily, for she m oves in the first circle. Wax-candles in the schoolroom !

You m ay im agine how desirable! Of all houses in the kingdom Mrs. Bragge’s is the one I would m ost wish to see y ou in.”

“Colonel and Mrs. Cam pbell are to be in town again by m idsum m er,”

said Jane. “I m ust spend som e tim e with them ; I am sure they will want it; –

afterwards I m ay probably be glad to dispose of m y self. But I would not wish y ou to take the trouble of m aking any inquiries at present.”

“Trouble! ay e, I know y our scruples. You are afraid of giving m e

trouble; but I assure y ou, m y dear Jane, the Cam pbells can hardly be m ore interested about y ou than I am . I shall write to Mrs. Partridge in a day or two, and shall give her a strict charge to be on the look-out for any thing eligible.”

“Thank y ou, but I would rather y ou did not m ention the subj ect to her; till the tim e draws nearer, I do not wish to be giving any body trouble.”

“But, m y dear child, the tim e is drawing near; here is April, and June, or say even July, is very near, with such business to accom plish before us. Your inexperience really am uses m e! A situation such as y ou deserve, and y our friends would require for y ou, is no every day occurrence, is not obtained at a m om ent’s notice; indeed, indeed, we m ust begin inquiring directly.”

“Excuse m e, m a’am , but this is by no m eans m y intention; I m ake no inquiry m y self, and should be sorry to have any m ade by m y friends. When I am quite determ ined as to the tim e, I am not at all afraid of being long unem ploy ed. There are places in town, offices, where inquiry would soon produce som ething – Offices for the sale – not quite of hum an flesh – but of hum an intellect.”

“Oh! m y dear, hum an flesh! You quite shock m e; if y ou m ean a fling at the slave-trade, I assure y ou Mr. Suckling was alway s rather a friend to the abolition.”

“I did not m ean, I was not thinking of the slave-trade,” replied Jane;

“governess-trade, I assure y ou, was all that I had in view; widely different certainly as to the guilt of those who carry it on; but as to the greater m isery of the victim s, I do not know where it lies. But I only m ean to say that there are advertising offices, and that by apply ing to them I should have no doubt of very soon m eeting with som ething that would do.”

“Som ething that would do!” repeated Mrs. Elton. “Ay e, that m ay suit y our hum ble ideas of y ourself; – I know what a m odest creature y ou are; but it will not satisfy y our friends to have y ou taking up with any thing that m ay offer, any inferior, com m onplace situation, in a fam ily not m oving in a certain circle, or able to com m and the elegancies of life.”

“You are very obliging; but as to all that, I am very indifferent; it would be no obj ect to m e to be with the rich; m y m ortifications, I think, would only be the greater; I should suffer m ore from com parison. A gentlem an’s fam ily is all that I should condition for.”

“I know y ou, I know y ou; y ou would take up with any thing; but I shall be a little m ore nice, and I am sure the good Cam pbells will be quite on m y side; with y our superior talents, y ou have a right to m ove in the first circle. Your m usical knowledge alone would entitle y ou to nam e y our own term s, have as m any room s as y ou like, and m ix in the fam ily as m uch as y ou chose; – that is –

I do not know – if y ou knew the harp, y ou m ight do all that, I am very sure; but y ou sing as well as play ; – y es, I really believe y ou m ight, even without the harp, stipulate for what y ou chose; – and y ou m ust and shall be delightfully, honourably and com fortably settled before the Cam pbells or I have any rest.”

“You m ay well class the delight, the honour, and the com fort of such a situation together,” said Jane, “they are pretty sure to be equal; however, I am very serious in not wishing any thing to be attem pted at present for m e. I am exceedingly obliged to y ou, Mrs. Elton, I am obliged to any body who feels for m e, but I am quite serious in wishing nothing to be done till the sum m er. For two or three m onths longer I shall rem ain where I am , and as I am .”

“And I am quite serious too, I assure y ou,” replied Mrs. Elton gaily, “in resolving to be alway s on the watch, and em ploy ing m y friends to watch also, that nothing really unexceptionable m ay pass us.”

In this sty le she ran on; never thoroughly stopped by any thing till Mr.

Woodhouse cam e into the room ; her vanity had then a change of obj ect, and Em m a heard her say ing in the sam e half-whisper to Jane,

“Here com es this dear old beau of m ine, I protest! – Only think of his gallantry in com ing away before the other m en! – what a dear creature he is; – I assure y ou I like him excessively. I adm ire all that quaint, old-fashioned politeness; it is m uch m ore to m y taste than m odern ease; m odern ease often disgusts m e. But this good old Mr. Woodhouse, I wish y ou had heard his gallant speeches to m e at dinner. Oh! I assure y ou I began to think m y caro sposo would be absolutely j ealous. I fancy I am rather a favourite; he took notice of m y gown. How do y ou like it? – Selina’s choice – handsom e, I think, but I do not know whether it is not over-trim m ed; I have the greatest dislike to the idea of being over-trim m ed – quite a horror of finery. I m ust put on a few ornam ents now, because it is expected of m e. A bride, y ou know, m ust appear like a bride, but m y natural taste is all for sim plicity ; a sim ple sty le of dress is so infinitely preferable to finery. But I am quite in the m inority, I believe; few people seem to value sim plicity of dress, – show and finery are every thing. I have som e notion of putting such a trim m ing as this to m y white and silver poplin. Do y ou think it will look well?”

The whole party were but j ust reassem bled in the drawing-room when Mr. Weston m ade his appearance am ong them . He had returned to a late dinner, and walked to Hartfield as soon as it was over. He had been too m uch expected by the best j udges, for surprize – but there was great j oy. Mr. Woodhouse was

alm ost as glad to see him now, as he would have been sorry to see him before.

John Knightley only was in m ute astonishm ent. – That a m an who m ight have spent his evening quietly at hom e after a day of business in London, should set off again, and walk half a m ile to another m an’s house, for the sake of being in m ixed com pany till bed-tim e, of finishing his day in the efforts of civility and the noise of num bers, was a circum stance to strike him deeply. A m an who had been in m otion since eight o’clock in the m orning, and m ight now have been still, who had been long talking, and m ight have been silent, who had been in m ore than one crowd, and m ight have been alone! – Such a m an, to quit the tranquillity and independence of his own fireside, and on the evening of a cold sleety April day rush out again into the world! – Could he by a touch of his finger have instantly taken back his wife, there would have been a m otive; but his com ing would probably prolong rather than break up the party. John Knightley looked at him with am azem ent, then shrugged his shoulders, and said, “I could not have believed it even of him .”

Mr. Weston m eanwhile, perfectly unsuspicious of the indignation he was exciting, happy and cheerful as usual, and with all the right of being principal talker, which a day spent any where from hom e confers, was m aking him self agreeable am ong the rest; and having satisfied the inquiries of his wife as to his dinner, convincing her that none of all her careful directions to the servants had been forgotten, and spread abroad what public news he had heard, was proceeding to a fam ily com m unication, which, though principally addressed to Mrs. Weston, he had not the sm allest doubt of being highly interesting to every body in the room . He gave her a letter, it was from Frank, and to herself; he had m et with it in his way, and had taken the liberty of opening it.

“Read it, read it,” said he, “it will give y ou pleasure; only a few lines –

will not take y ou long; read it to Em m a.”

The two ladies looked over it together; and he sat sm iling and talking to them the whole tim e, in a voice a little subdued, but very audible to every body.

“Well, he is com ing, y ou see; good news, I think. Well, what do y ou say to it? – I alway s told y ou he would be here again soon, did not I? – Anne, m y dear, did not I alway s tell y ou so, and y ou would not believe m e? – In town next week, y ou see – at the latest, I dare say ; for she is as im patient as the black gentlem an when any thing is to be done; m ost likely they will be there to-m orrow or Saturday. As to her illness, all nothing of course. But it is an excellent thing to have Frank am ong us again, so near as town. They will stay a good while when they do com e, and he will be half his tim e with us. This is precisely what I wanted. Well, pretty good news, is not it? Have y ou finished it? Has Em m a read it all? Put it up, put it up; we will have a good talk about it som e other tim e, but it will

not do now. I shall only j ust m ention the circum stance to the others in a com m on way.”

Mrs. Weston was m ost com fortably pleased on the occasion. Her looks and words had nothing to restrain them . She was happy, she knew she was happy, and knew she ought to be happy. Her congratulations were warm and open; but Em m a could not speak so fluently. She was a little occupied in weighing her own feelings, and try ing to understand the degree of her agitation, which she rather thought was considerable.