The Wanderer; or, Female Difficulties (Volume 1 of 5)

by Fanny Burney

  CHAPTER XIII

  The presage of Harleigh proved as just as it was pleasant: the heart ofEllis bounded with delight as she drove off from the house; and the hopeof transferring to Lady Aurora the obligation for succour which she wasnow compelled to owe to Mrs Maple, seemed almost lifting her from earthto heaven.

  Her fondest wishes were exceeded by her reception. Mrs Howel cameforward to meet her, and to beg permission not to order the carriage forher return, till late at night. She was then conducted to the apartmentof Lady Aurora, by Lord Melbury, who assured her that his sister wouldhave rejoiced in a far severer indisposition, which had procured hersuch a gratification. Lady Aurora welcomed her with an air of so muchgoodness, and with looks so soft, so pleased, so partial, that Ellis, intaking her held-out hand, overpowered by so sudden a transition fromindignity to kindness, and agitated by the apprehensions that wereattached to the hopes which it inspired, burst into tears, and, indefiance of her utmost struggles for serenity, wept even with violence.

  Lady Aurora, shocked and alarmed, asked for her salts; and Lord Melburyflew for a glass of water; but Ellis, declining both, and revivingwithout either, wiped, though she could not dry her eyes and smiled,while they still glistened, with such grateful sensibility, yet beaminghappiness, that both the brother and the sister soon saw, that, greatlyas she was affected, nothing was wanting to her restoration. 'It is notsorrow,' she cried, when able to speak; ''tis your goodness, yourkindness, which thus touch me!'

  'Can you ever have met with any thing else?' said Lord Melbury, warmly;'if you can--by what monsters you must have been beset!'

  'No, my Lord, no,' cried she: 'I am far from meaning to complain; butyou must not suppose the world made up of Lady Aurora Granvilles!'

  Lady Aurora was much moved. It seemed evident to her that her newfavourite was not happy; and she had conceived such high ideas of herperfections, that she was ready to weep herself, at the bare suggestionthat they were not recompensed by felicity.

  The rest of the morning passed in gentle, but interesting conversation,between the two young females; or in animated theatrical discussions,strictures, and declamation, with the young peer.

  At dinner they joined Mrs Howel, who was charmed to see her young gueststhus delighted, and could not refuse her consent to a petition of LadyAurora, that she would invite Miss Ellis to assist her again, the nextday, to nurse her cold with the same prudence.

  The expressive eyes of Ellis spoke enchantment. They parted, therefore,only for the night; but just before the carriage was driven from thedoor, the coachman discovered that an accident had happened to one ofthe wheels, which could not be rectified till the next morning.

  After some deliberation, Mrs Howel, at Lady Aurora's earnest desire,sent over a groom with a note to Mrs Maple, informing her of thecircumstance, and begging that she would not expect Miss Ellis till thefollowing evening.

  The tears of Ellis, at happiness so unlooked for, were again ready toflow, and with difficulty restrained. She wrote a few words to Elinor,entreating her kind assistance, in searching a packet of some thingsnecessary for this new plan; and Elinor took care to provide her withmaterials for remaining a month, rather than a day.

  A chamber was now prepared for Ellis, in which nothing was omitted thatcould afford either comfort or elegance; yet, from the fulness of hermind, she could not, even for a moment, close her eyes, when sheretired.

  Some drawback, however, to her happiness was experienced the nextmorning, when she found Mrs Howel fearful that the cold of Lady Auroramenaced terminating in a violent cough. Dr P---- was immediately calledin, and his principal prescription was, that Her Ladyship should avoidhot rooms, dancing, company, and talking. Mrs Howel, easily made anxiousfor Lady Aurora, not only from personal attachment, but from theresponsibility of having her in charge, besought Her Ladyship to give upthe play for that night, an assembly for the following, and to permitthat the intended ball of Thursday should be postponed, till HerLadyship should be perfectly recovered.

  Lady Aurora, with a grace that accompanied all her actions,unhesitatingly complied; but enquired whether it would not be possibleto persuade Miss Ellis to remain with them during this confinement? MrsHowel repeated the request. The delight of Ellis was too deep forutterance. Joy of this tender sort always flung her into tears; and LadyAurora, who saw that her heart was as oppressed as it was gentle,besought Mrs Howel to write their desire to Lewes.

  Mrs Maple, however enraged and perplexed, had no choice how to act,without betraying the imposition which she had herself practised, andtherefore offered no opposition.

  Ellis now enjoyed a happiness, before which all her difficulties anddisappointments seemed to sink forgotten, or but to be remembered asevils overpayed; so forcible was the effect upon her mind, of thecontrast of her immediate situation with that so recently quitted. MrsHowel was all politeness to her; Lord Melbury appeared to have no study,but whether to shew her most admiration or respect; and Lady Aurorabehaved to her with a sweetness that went straight to her heart.

  It was now that they first became acquainted with her uncommon musicaltalents. Lady Aurora had a piano forte in her room; and Mrs Howel said,that if Miss Ellis could play Her Ladyship an air or two, it might helpto amuse, yet keep her silent. Ellis instantly went to the instrument,and there performed, in so fine a style, a composition of Haydn, thatMrs Howel, who, though by no means a scientific judge of music, wassufficiently in the habit of going to concerts, to have acquired theskill of discriminating excellence from mediocrity, was struck withwonder, and congratulated both her young guest and herself, in soseasonable an acquisition of so accomplished a visitor.

  Lord Melbury, who was himself a tolerable proficient upon thevioloncello, was enraptured at this discovery; and Lady Aurora, whosewhole soul was music, felt almost dissolved with tender pleasure.

  Nor ended here either their surprise or their satisfaction; they soonlearnt that she played also upon the harp; Lord Melbury instantly wentforth in search of one; and it was then, as this was the instrumentwhich she had most particularly studied, that Ellis completed herconquest of their admiration; for with the harp she was prevailed uponto sing; and the sweetness of her voice, the delicacy of its tones, hertaste and expression, in which her soul seemed to harmonize with heraccents, had an effect so delightful upon her auditors, that Mrs Howelcould scarcely find phrases for the compliments which she thoughtmerited; Lord Melbury burst into the most rapturous applause; and LadyAurora was enchanted, was fascinated: she caught the sweet sounds withalmost extatic attention, hung on them with the most melting tenderness,entreated to hear the same air again and again, and felt a gratitude forthe delight which she received, that was hardly inferior to that whichher approbation bestowed.

  Eager to improve these favourable sensations, Ellis, to vary theamusements of Lady Aurora, in this interval of retirement, proposedreading. And here again her powers gave the utmost pleasure; whether shetook a French author, or an English one; the accomplished Boileau, orthe penetrating Pope; the tenderly-refined Racine, or the all-pervadingShakespeare; her tones, her intelligence, her skilful modulations, gaveforce and meaning to every word, and proved alike her understanding andher feeling.

  Brilliant, however, as were her talents, all the success which theyobtained was short of that produced by her manners and conversation: inthe former there was a gentleness, in the latter a spirit, that excitedan interest for her in the whole house; but, while generally engaging toall by her general merit, to Lady Aurora she had peculiar attractions,from the excess of sensibility with which she received even the smallestattentions. She seemed impressed with a gratitude that struggled forwords, without the power of obtaining such as could satisfy it. Pleasureshone lustrous in her fine eyes, every time that they met those of LadyAurora; but if that young lady took her hand, or spoke to her with morethan usual softness, tears, which she vainly strove to hide, rolled fastdown her cheeks, but which, though momentarily overpowering, were nosooner dispersed, than every feature be
came re-animated with glowingvivacity.

  Yet, that some latent sorrow hung upon her mind, Lady Aurora soon feltconvinced; and that some solicitude or suspense oppressed her spirits,was equally evident: she was constantly watchful for the post, andalways startled at sight of a letter. Lady Aurora was too delicate toendeavour to develope the secret cause of this uneasiness; but the goodbreeding which repressed the manifestation of curiosity, made theinterest thus excited sink so much the deeper into her mind; and, in ashort time, her every feeling, and almost every thought, were absorbedin tender commiseration for unknown distresses, which she firmlybelieved to be undeserved; and which, however nobly supported, seemedtoo poignant for constant suppression.

  Lady Aurora, who had just reached her sixteenth year, was now buddinginto life, with equal loveliness of mind and person. She was fair, butpale, with elegant features, a face perfectly oval, and soft expressiveblue eyes, of which the 'liquid lustre' spoke a heart that was the seatof sensibility; yet not of that weak romantic cast, formed by early andfutile love-sick reading, either in novels or poems; but ofcompassionate feeling for woes which she did not suffer; and of anxioussolicitude to lessen distress by kind offices, and affliction by tendersympathy.

  With a character thus innately virtuous, joined to a disposition themost amiably affectionate, so attractive a young creature as theIncognita could not fail to be in unison. Without half her powers ofpleasing, the most perfect good will of Lady Aurora would have been won,by the mere surmize that she was not happy: but when, to an idea soaffecting to her gentle mind, were added the quick intelligence, thegraceful manners, the touching sense of kindness, and the rareaccomplishments of Ellis, so warm an interest was kindled in thegenerous bosom of Lady Aurora, that the desire to serve and to givecomfort to her new favourite, became, in a short time, indispensable toher own peace.

  Mrs Howel, the lady with whom she was at present a guest, possessed noneof the endearing qualities which could catch the affections of a mind ofso delicate a texture as that of Lady Aurora. She was well bred, wellborn, and not ill educated; but her heart was cold, her manners werestiff, her opinions were austere, and her resolutions were immoveable.Yet this character, with the general esteem in which, for unimpeachableconduct, she was held by the world, was the inducement which led hercousin, Lord Denmeath, the uncle and guardian of Lady Aurora, to fixupon her as a proper person for taking his ward into public; the tenderand facile nature of that young lady, demanding, he thought, all theguard which the firmness of Mrs Howel could afford.

  Lord Melbury was two years the senior of Lady Aurora: unassuming fromhis rank, and unspoiled by early independence, he was open, generous,kind-hearted and sincere; and though, from the ardour of juvenilefreedom, and the credulity of youth, he was easily led astray, aninstinctive love of right, and the acute self-reproaches which followedhis least deviations, were conscious, and rarely erring guarantees, thathis riper years would be happy in the wisdom of goodness.

  In a house such as this, loved and compassionated by Lady Aurora,admired by Lord Melbury, and esteemed by Mrs Howel, what felicity wasenjoyed by its new guest! Her suspenses and difficulties, though neverforgotten, were rather gratefully than patiently endured; and she feltas if she could scarcely desire their termination, if it should part herfrom such heart-soothing society.

  Smoothly thus glided the hours, till nearly a fortnight elapsed, LadyAurora, though recovered, saying that she preferred this gentle sociallife, to the gayer or more splendid scenes offered to her abroad: yetneither with gaiety nor splendour had she quarrelled; it was Ellis whomshe could not bear to quit; Ellis, whose attractions and sweetnesscharmed her heart, and whose secret disturbance occupied all herthoughts.

  The admiration of Lord Melbury was wrought still higher; yet theconstant respect attending it, satisfied Mrs Howel, who would else havebeen alarmed, that his chief delight was derived from seeing that hissister, whom he adored, had a companion so peculiarly to her taste.Severely, however, Mrs Howel watched and investigated every look, everyspeech, every turn of the head of Ellis, with regard to this youngnobleman; well aware that, as he was younger than herself, though herbeauty was in its prime, his safety might depend, more rationally, uponher own views, or her own honour, than upon his prudence orindifference: but all that she observed tended to raise Ellis yet morehighly in her esteem. The behaviour of that young person was open,pleasing, good-humoured and unaffected. It was evident that she wishedto be thought well of by Lord Melbury; but it appeared to be equallyevident that she honourably deserved his good opinion. Her desire togive him pleasure was unmixt with any species of coquetry: it was aswide from the dangerous toil of tender languor, as from the fascinatingsnares of alluring playfulness. The whole of her demeanour had adecorum, and of her conduct a correctness, as striking to the taste ofMrs Howel, as her conversation, her accomplishments, and her sentimentswere to that of the youthful brother and sister. Mrs Howel often beggedLady Aurora to remark, that this was the only young lady whom she hadever invited to her house upon so short an acquaintance; nor should she,even to oblige Her Ladyship, have made this exception to her establishedrules, but that she knew Mrs Maple to be scrupulosity itself, withrespect to the female friends whose intimacy she sanctioned with hernieces. It was well known, indeed, she observed, that Mrs Maple wasforced to be the more exact in these points on account of theextraordinary liberties taken by the eldest Miss Joddrel, who, being nowentirely independent, frequently flung off the authority of her aunt,and did things so strange, and saw people so singular, that shecontinually distressed Mrs Maple. Miss Ellis, therefore, having beenbrought back to her native land, by one so nice in these matters, mustcertainly be a young lady of good family; though there seemed reason toapprehend, that she was an orphan, and that she possessed little or noportion, by her never naming her friends nor her situation,notwithstanding they were subjects to which Mrs Howel often tried tolead.