Chapter 22

by Jane Austen

　　The Bennets were engaged to dine with the Lucases and againduring the chief of the day was Miss Lucas so kind as to listen toMr. Collins. Elizabeth took an opportunity of thanking her. "Itkeeps him in good humour," said she, "and I am more obliged toyou than I can express." Charlotte assured her friend of hersatisfaction in being useful, and that it amply repaid her for thelittle sacrifice of her time. This was very amiable, butCharlotte's kindness extended farther than Elizabeth had anyconception of; its object was nothing else than to secure herfrom any return of Mr. Collins's addresses, by engaging themtowards herself. Such was Miss Lucas's scheme; andappearances were so favourable, that when they parted at night,she would have felt almost secure of success if he had not beento leave Hertfordshire so very soon. But here she did injusticeto the fire and independence of his character, for it led him toescape out of Longbourn House the next morning withadmirable slyness, and hasten to Lucas Lodge to throw himselfat her feet. He was anxious to avoid the notice of his cousins,from a conviction that if they saw him depart, they could not failto conjecture his design, and he was not willing to have theattempt known till its success might be known likewise; forthough feeling almost secure, and with reason, for Charlotte hadbeen tolerably encouraging, he was comparatively diffident sincethe adventure of Wednesday. His reception, however, was ofthe most flattering kind. Miss Lucas perceived him from anupper window as he walked towards the house, and instantly setout to meet him accidentally in the lane. But little had she daredto hope that so much love and eloquence awaited her there.In as short a time as Mr. Collins's long speeches would allow,everything was settled between them to the satisfaction of both;and as they entered the house he earnestly entreated her to namethe day that was to make him the happiest of men; and thoughsuch a solicitation must be waived for the present, the lady feltno inclination to trifle with his happiness. The stupidity withwhich he was favoured by nature must guard his courtship fromany charm that could make a woman wish for its continuance;and Miss Lucas, who accepted him solely from the pure anddisinterested desire of an establishment, cared not how soon thatestablishment were gained.Sir William and Lady Lucas were speedily applied to for theirconsent; and it was bestowed with a most joyful alacrity. Mr.Collins's present circumstances made it a most eligible match fortheir daughter, to whom they could give little fortune; and hisprospects of future wealth were exceedingly fair. Lady Lucasbegan directly to calculate, with more interest than thematter had ever excited before, how many years longer Mr.Bennet was likely to live; and Sir William gave it as his decidedopinion, that whenever Mr. Collins should be in possession of theLongbourn estate, it would be highly expedient that both he andhis wife should make their appearance at St. James's. The wholefamily, in short, were properly overjoyed on the occasion. Theyounger girls formed hopes of coming out a year or twosooner than they might otherwise have done; and the boys wererelieved from their apprehension of Charlotte's dying an oldmaid. Charlotte herself was tolerably composed. She hadgained her point, and had time to consider of it. Her reflectionswere in general satisfactory. Mr. Collins, to be sure, was neithersensible nor agreeable; his society was irksome, and hisattachment to her must be imaginary. But still he would be herhusband. Without thinking highly either of men or matrimony,marriage had always been her object; it was the only provisionfor well-educated young women of small fortune, and howeveruncertain of giving happiness, must be their pleasantestpreservative from want. This preservative she had nowobtained; and at the age of twenty-seven, without having everbeen handsome, she felt all the good luck of it. The leastagreeable circumstance in the business was the surprise it mustoccasion to Elizabeth Bennet, whose friendship she valuedbeyond that of any other person. Elizabeth would wonder, andprobably would blame her; and though her resolution was not tobe shaken, her feelings must be hurt by such a disapprobation.She resolved to give her the information herself, and thereforecharged Mr. Collins, when he returned to Longbourn to dinner,to drop no hint of what had passed before any of the family. Apromise of secrecy was of course very dutifully given, but itcould not be kept without difficulty; for the curiosity excited byhis long absence burst forth in such very direct questions on hisreturn as required some ingenuity to evade, and he was at thesame time exercising great self-denial, for he was longing topublish his prosperous love.As he was to begin his journey too early on the morrow to seeany of the family, the ceremony of leave-taking was performedwhen the ladies moved for the night; and Mrs. Bennet, withgreat politeness and cordiality, said how happy they should be tosee him at Longbourn again, whenever his engagements mightallow him to visit them."My dear madam," he replied, "this invitation is particularlygratifying, because it is what I have been hoping to receive; andyou may be very certain that I shall avail myself of it as soon aspossible."They were all astonished; and Mr. Bennet, who could by nomeans wish for so speedy a return, immediately said:"But is there not danger of Lady Catherine's disapprobationhere, my good sir? You had better neglect your relations thanrun the risk of offending your patroness.""My dear sir," replied Mr. Collins," I am particularly obliged toyou for this friendly caution, and you may depend upon my nottaking so material a step without her ladyship's concurrence.""You cannot be too much upon your guard. Risk anythingrather than her displeasure; and if you find it likely to be raised byyour coming to us again, which I should think exceedinglyprobable, stay quietly at home, and be satisfied that we shalltake no offence.""Believe me, my dear sir, my gratitude is warmly excited, bysuch affectionate attention; and depend upon it, you will speedilyreceive from me a letter of thanks for this, and for every othermark of your regard during my stay in Hertfordshire. As for myfair cousins, though my absence may not be long enough torender it necessary, I shall now take the liberty of wishing themhealth and happiness, not excepting my cousin Elizabeth."With proper civilities the ladies then withdrew; all of themequally surprised that he meditated a quick return. Mrs. Bennetwished to understand by it that he thought of paying hisaddresses to one of her younger girls, and Mary might have beenprevailed on to accept him. She rated his abilities much higherthan any of the others; there was a solidity in his reflectionswhich often struck her, and though by no means so clever asherself, she thought that if encouraged to read and improvehimself by such an example as hers, he might become a veryagreeable companion. But on the following morning, everyhope of this kind was done away. Miss Lucas called soon afterbreakfast, and in a private conference with Elizabeth related theevent of the day before.The possibility of Mr. Collins's fancying herself in love with herfriend had once occurred to Elizabeth within the last day or two;but that Charlotte could encourage him seemed almost as farfrom possibility as she could encourage him herself, and herastonishment was consequently so great as to overcome at firstthe bounds of decorum, and she could not help crying out:"Engaged to Mr. Collins! My dear Charlotte-- impossible!"The steady countenance which Miss Lucas had commanded intelling her story, gave way to a momentary confusion here onreceiving so direct a reproach; though, as it was no more thanshe expected, she soon regained her composure, and calmlyreplied:"Why should you be surprised, my dear Eliza? Do you think itincredible that Mr. Collins should be able to procure anywoman's good opinion, because he was not so happy as tosucceed with you?"But Elizabeth had now recollected herself, and making a strongeffort for it, was able to assure with tolerable firmness that theprospect of their relationship was highly grateful to her, and thatshe wished her all imaginable happiness."I see what you are feeling," replied Charlotte. "You must besurprised, very much surprised-- so lately as Mr. Collins waswishing to marry you. But when you have had time to think itover, I hope you will be satisfied with what I have done. I amnot romantic, you know; I never was. I ask only a comfortablehome; and considering Mr. Collins's character, connection, andsituation in life, I am convinced that my chance of happinesswith him is as fair as most people can boast on entering themarriage state."Elizabeth quietly answered "Undoubtedly"; and after anawkward pause, they returned to the rest of the family.Charlotte did not stay much longer, and Elizabeth was then leftto reflect on what she had heard. It was a long time before shebecame at all reconciled to the idea of so unsuitable a match.The strangeness of Mr. Collins's making two offers of marriagewithin three days was nothing in comparison of his being nowaccepted. She had always felt that Charlotte's opinion ofmatrimony was not exactly like her own, but she had notsupposed it to be possible that, when called into action, shewould have sacrificed every better feeling to worldly advantage.Charlotte the wife of Mr. Collins was a most humiliating picture!And to the pang of a friend disgracing herself and sunk in heresteem, was added the distressing conviction that it wasimpossible for that friend to be tolerably happy in the lot she hadchosen.