Your uncle and I will be with you on the twenty-third for our visit, and if your mama has not given over her ill humour by then, I will do what I can to restore her to civility. And if your sister has not recovered her spirits, perhaps she will like to come back to London with us for a holiday and a change of scene. I believe that some time away from your mama might be beneficial to her.

Your loving aunt,

Margaret


Mr Collins to Mr Bennet

Hunsford, near Westerham, Kent,

December 2

Dear Sir,

The delightful and felicitous stay I have just enjoyed in your munificent home, where I was overwhelmed by the gracious hospitality and genteel congeniality of your entire family, not excepting yourself, dear sir, of whose condescension in receiving me I am fully and nobly aware—also, I beg to assure you, most suitably and humbly obliged—has prompted me to write this letter of grateful and sincere thankfulness.

It has fallen to my happy lot in life to secure the affections of your most noble and amiable neighbour, Miss Lucas, whose modesty and economy have already won her the favour of my most estimable and gracious patroness, Lady Catherine de Bourgh. My esteemed patroness has humbled me by the excessive kindness of her reception of my news, and the assurance that the future Mrs Collins will be welcome to partake of a hand of quadrille at Rosings Park whenever Lady Catherine should need to make up a table.

It was merely to enjoy the society of my amiable Charlotte that I closed so rapidly with your wife’s kind invitation to visit Longbourn again when I last departed, whither I hope to be able to return on Monday fortnight, for Lady Catherine so heartily approves the marriage that she wishes it to take place as soon as possible. This will, of course, be an unanswerable argument with my amiable Charlotte for her to name an early day for making me the happiest of men.

William Collins


Mrs Bennet to Mrs Gardiner

Longbourn, Hertfordshire,

December 4

Ah, sister, how good it is I have you to turn to, for nobody here is on my side, no one listens to me and no one cares about my nerves. And now on top of everything I am to receive Mr Collins, who belongs to Lizzy, for you know he proposed to her, but who has turned, like a snake in the grass, and proposed to Charlotte Lucas instead. Lady Lucas crows about it all the time, saying how good it is to have a daughter well married, and talking of his parsonage and his Lady Catherine, till I have to bite my tongue in order not to tell her that she is welcome to him, for never a more disagreeable man have I ever met; and I am sure that the parsonage is nothing to brag about, for I am convinced it will be small and dark and, I dare say, full of pigs.

I do not see why he does not go to Lucas Lodge instead of plaguing us here at Longbourn. I hate having visitors in the house while my health is so indifferent, and lovers are of all people the most disagreeable, especially lovers who do nothing but talk all day long and never let one get away. Though if Mr Bingley were here it would be quite different, and do not go thinking I am meaning him. But ah! sister, there again I have been cruelly used, for Mr Bingley has been away a week and we have not heard a line from him. There is a report abroad that he does not mean to return to Meryton, but I never fail to contradict it as a scandalous falsehood.

Jane bears it like a saint, but if he does not come back she will think herself very ill used and most likely go into a decline and die. And then Mr Bingley will be sorry, I am sure, but of what use will it be to us then?

But here is Charlotte Lucas at the door, come to cast her eye over Longbourn, I make no doubt, and to anticipate the hour of possession. That I should live to see Charlotte Lucas take my place as the mistress of Longbourn! I have told Mr Bennet he must outlive Mr Collins and he has promised to do his best, but oh! sister, when he dies, what will become of us? We will be turned out of the house before Mr Bennet is cold in his grave, and if my brother does not take us in, I do not know what we will do!

I cannot bear to think of the Collinses having this estate. If not for the entail, I should not mind it, but no one takes pity on me. How can anyone have the conscience to entail an estate away from their own daughters? I cannot understand, and all for the sake of Mr Collins, too. Why should he have it more than anybody else? He has done nothing to earn it, except be Mr Bennet’s cousin, and I am sure anyone would be Mr Bennet’s cousin if they knew there were such rich rewards to be had.

Do say you will come to us at Christmas, sister, and my brother must come too, we need you here. Your own children can manage without you if there is not room in the carriage for all of them. I have still not given up hope of Mr Bingley returning to Netherfield for Christmas, and I am sure he would be very welcome here, even if it meant we had to tolerate Mr Darcy.

Your poor sister,

Janet


Mr Darcy to Mr Philip Darcy

Darcy House, London,

December 6

Philip, I am once more in London and likely to be here for some time, so pray send all letters to Darcy House. Bingley is here as well and has at present no intention of returning to Netherfield. His sisters and brother-in-law are with him, and I have invited them to spend Christmas with Georgiana and myself. I have some thought of Bingley marrying Georgiana when she is old enough. He is just the sort of man I would like to see her with. He is honest, reliable, trustworthy, friendly, good-natured and good-humoured. I think he would be a good match for her. There is some disparity in fortune, it is true, but fortune is not everything and I want to see her happy. I believe such a match would suit him, too. He has always liked Georgiana, and he was much struck by the change in her when he dined here last night. She has grown considerably these last few months and is becoming a very lovely young woman. But such thoughts are for the future. It is enough that he will be spending some time with her over the next few weeks and renewing his friendship with her.

Tell me, Philip, as we are talking of matches, are you any nearer to finding a woman to take to wife? I have never heard you talk of anyone in particular, but perhaps you have never found anyone you were particularly attracted to. Unless…have you ever found yourself attracted to someone unsuitable? A woman whose standing was so far beneath your own that it would be a degradation to marry her because her family were, let us say, country gentry, with uncles engaged in the professions or in trade? Whose mother talked of nothing but marrying her daughters off, and whose father failed to correct the behaviour of either his wife or his children, allowing them to grow up wild and unrestrained? Did you ever find that, despite all these disadvantages, such a woman attracted you, against your will, and that a pair of fine eyes caught your attention and would give you no peace? Or that an impertinent manner, instead of revolting you, attracted you? Or that her lack of respect for your standing served to make you more interested, and not less?

Did you ever think it necessary to remove yourself from the company of such a woman, lest your interest should become ungovernable and your behaviour should give rise to expectations? And did a part of you feel that, if such expectations should arise, it would be no bad thing? That your feelings would actually like it if you were obliged to offer for her, though your character revolted against the idea? Did you find it difficult to be rational where she was concerned? Did you, in short, feel in the grip of something out of your control? Let me know if anything similar has ever happened to you.

Darcy


Mr Philip Darcy to Mr Darcy

Wiltshire, December 8

Darcy, I was surprised by your last letter and took up my pen to reply to you straightaway. I never thought you would be the man to succumb to the charms of someone unsuitable. You are the last person I would ever expect to lose your sense of your own importance and become beguiled by someone as low as your object of desire seems to be. She is wholly unworthy of your hand, however, as you know yourself, and as she is from the gentry you cannot even assuage your desires by offering her carte blanche; therefore, I advise you to put her out of your mind. Occupy yourself with business, take plenty of exercise, ride hard, make time for fencing every day, go to your club when you do not have company at home, never leave yourself with a moment to think of her. If you do all this, then by and by the attraction will fade. There is a great deal to be said for ‘out of sight, out of mind’ and you were wise to take yourself out of her way. And after Christmas, come to Wiltshire. I am having a large party of friends here in the New Year. You will be amongst your own kind and they will soon drive this woman from your mind.

But before you banish her from your thoughts entirely, answer me this: who is she? I am curious to know just what woman has won your reluctant admiration, for I have never heard you speak so of a woman before. She must be something out of the common way to make such an impression on you.

PD


Mr Darcy to Mr Philip Darcy

Darcy House, London,

December 10

Philip, you misunderstand me. It is not I who was bewitched by someone beneath my station, it was my friend Bingley. He became enamoured of a local girl when we were staying in Hertfordshire. Her father was a gentleman but her mother was a silly, vulgar woman who was always trying to make a match, and her younger sisters spent their lives running after officers. However, we rescued him from the situation and all is well, for when he came to town on business, his sisters and I followed him and persuaded him to remain.