Elizabeth is meanwhile the object of her cousin’s attentions. I think she has only just begun to suspect it and is mortified. To be sure, he is not a sensible man, and has nothing in the way of personal virtues to recommend him, but he has a good living, a comfortable establishment and the patronage of Lady Catherine de Bourgh. His wife will be respectable and respected, and I must confess that if such a man were to appear interested in me, I would encourage him in every way available to me. But Elizabeth is yet young enough and romantic enough to think that true love still awaits her. As for myself, I have never been romantic. I have no belief in love, true or otherwise, but I would be glad of my own home and my own life, away from my family, no matter how much I love them.

I am invited to a ball at Netherfield and there I will no doubt dance with all the officers, make myself agreeable, and hope that one of them will be as unromantic as I am and decide that he needs a sensible wife.

But what of you? Are you still liking Bath? Is your father any better? Is your mother any happier? Have you any prospects?

Write to me soon,

Charlotte


Mr Wickham to Mrs Younge

Meryton, Hertfordshire,

November 22

Ah, Belle, how strange a thing is life, one minute up, one minute down, and then up again! After my recent holiday in debtors’ prison it was balm to my spirit to find myself invited to a ball at Netherfield Park. That is an arena in which I can shine. I am not asked there for my own sake, but that is not important; I have an invitation and that is all that counts. As Mr Bingley did not make an exception of me when he invited all the officers, he evidently does not know what happened in Ramsgate last summer. Darcy must have been too proud to tell him, for which I am grateful. Bingley will be useful to me as long as he stays in ignorance. He can give me an entrée into the best society here and, better yet, he has a wealthy sister. The gossip is that Caroline Bingley has her sights set on Darcy, but I know him too well to think that he will ever marry her, for she has no pedigree and her money comes from trade. Sooner or later she will realise that she is wasting her time and then she will be vulnerable to a handsome charmer and there might be a chance for me.

In the meantime, I am keeping my wits about me. There are bound to be some wealthy young women in the neighbourhood and they are bound to be at the Netherfield ball. I am looking forward to seeing the look on Darcy’s face when I walk in! No matter what his true feelings, he will have to be polite to me, as a guest of his friend. I am looking forward to it.

George


Mrs Younge to Mr Wickham

London, November 23

I think you would do better to avoid the ball; it might provoke Darcy into revealing something you would rather have concealed. The people of Meryton believe you to be a good, honest citizen at the moment. They give you ready credit and you have friends who will be useful to you, but all that will change if Darcy lets slip something about your habit of running up debts, let alone your habit of trying to run off with rich young girls.

Your own,

Belle


Mr Wickham to Mrs Younge

Meryton, Hertfordshire,

November 25

Perhaps you are right. I will say that I have business in town. It is as good an excuse as any. Expect me tomorrow at midday.

George


Miss Lydia Bennet to Miss Eleanor Sotherton

Longbourn, Hertfordshire,

November 26

You will never guess what we have been doing all week: getting ready for the Netherfield ball. Lizzy has been telling Mama that my dress is too low and Mama has been busy telling her that it is not! Mama says that Mr Bingley’s giving a ball is a compliment to Jane but I think it is a compliment to me since I am the one who asked him for it, and you may be sure I intend to tease everyone else in the neighbourhood into giving a ball as well, just as soon as this one is over.

Kitty and me have been wanting to walk into Meryton a dozen times since Miss Bingley brought us the invitation but it has been raining so hard we have not been able to go once. It is wet enough for a river in the lane. Mary says that it is a punishment on us for being so frivolous and she has been writing about it in her book. La! You never saw such nonsense.

If we all take a soaking on our way to the ball, I wonder if we will all have to stay at Netherfield until we are well again? Lord! What fun it would be, especially if Mr Wickham had to stay there, too. Me and Kitty are going to dance with him half the night apiece, and the other half we are going to dance with the rest of the officers. We both intend to marry a man in a red coat.

I cannot wait for this evening, the time is going so slow. Mr Collins is prosing on and Lizzy is telling me I must behave and Mama is talking of nothing but Mr Bingley. Only another hour to go and then I can get dressed. I am wearing my blue sarsenet and Kitty is going in yellow.

Your affectionate friend,

Lydia


Miss Elizabeth Bennet to Miss Susan Sotherton

Longbourn, Hertfordshire,

November 27

Dear Susan,

You will be pleased to hear that the ballroom at Netherfield has been put to good use, for last night Mr Bingley hosted a ball. I had high hopes for the evening and I dressed with unusual care, as I was looking forward to dancing with Mr Wickham and conquering what was left of his heart, but he did not attend. But I forget, you do not know about Mr Wickham. He is new to the neighbourhood and the most amiable young man in existence. He is charming, sincere, intelligent and handsome: in short, he is my model of what a young man should be. And I believe I may say without undue vanity that he is equally pleased with me. He singled me out at my aunt’s house and we spent most of the evening talking together. I looked out for him in the ballroom as soon as we arrived at Netherfield but I was disappointed in my expectations for he did not attend. He had some urgent business in town, or so Mr Denny said, but Denny knew as well as I did that Mr Wickham was driven away by Mr Darcy.

It seems that Mr Darcy’s father left Mr Wickham a valuable living in his will, but Mr Darcy was jealous of the affection his father bestowed upon Mr Wickham and so he gave the living elsewhere.

I am not surprised that Mr Wickham decided to avoid the ball. I would have avoided it myself if I had known how it was going to turn out. No Mr Wickham, and instead I had to dance with Mr Darcy. I would have refused him, but he asked me so unexpectedly that I could not think of any excuse and so I was doomed to dance with the one man in the room who, above all others, I had no desire to partner. I cannot imagine why he asked me, as he seemed to take no pleasure in my company and I certainly took no pleasure in his. I could not resist the urge to question him about Mr Wickham and I was not surprised that he quickly changed the subject, but not before he had said that Mr Wickham found it easy to make friends but less easy to keep them.

I have no desire to think about Mr Darcy and yet I must admit that he puzzles me. He is a thoroughly disagreeable man, monstrous in his dealings with Mr Wickham, and yet Mr Bingley likes him; and Mr Bingley, you know, is the most pleasant of men. How can this be?

Jane is certain that there has been some misunderstanding, that Mr Darcy and Mr Wickham are both amiable men who have been set against each other by some third party, but this is impossible—and besides, Jane’s opinion is not to be trusted, for when did Jane ever think ill of anyone?

It is a mystery. For my part, it can remain so. I have no interest in Mr Darcy, and if he is going to make life difficult for Mr Wickham, then I hope he will soon leave Netherfield so that we might all be comfortable again.

My dance with Mr Darcy was not the limit of my vexations. Indeed, it seemed as if almost my whole family was conspiring to disgrace themselves. Mr Collins insisted on dancing with me, and a more mortifying partner it would be impossible to imagine. He went left when he should go right, forward when he should go back, and he stood on my toes at least three times. I am beginning to fear, too, that his interest in me does not end in dancing and that he has it in mind to marry me. But I will not think of that until I am certain.

He further made himself ridiculous by attempting to ingratiate himself with Mr Darcy, as he knows Mr Darcy’s aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, and Mama spoke in the loudest voice about Jane and Bingley’s forthcoming marriage, though nothing has been agreed upon. She would not lower her voice no matter how much I asked it of her.

As if that were not enough, Mary sang. Oh, Susan, how good it is to write to you, because you know exactly what I mean when I say that Mary sang! Why she will persist in doing it when she has no voice I do not know. Ordinarily it does no harm, but in front of Mr Bingley’s sisters and Mr Darcy, who are ever looking for something to ridicule or despise, it was humiliating. I caught my father’s eye, but instead of managing the situation with tact he almost pulled Mary from the piano, saying that she had delighted everyone long enough.

Caroline Bingley added her share to my vexations by trying to ridicule my friendship with Mr Wickham, saying that he was the son of the late Mr Darcy’s steward, to which I replied that he had told me so himself. When she could not discomfit me that way, she said that Mr Darcy had always been excessively kind to Mr Wickham but that Mr Wickham had never deserved his kindness and had returned it with infamous behaviour. When I questioned her she could give me no particulars, which did not surprise me, as her motives were transparent. She sought to lower Mr Wickham in my estimation because he is the son of a steward, and the son of a steward must always come beneath a man with ten thousand a year in her eyes.