by Don Miller
Lady Matlock pursed her lips for a moment, clearly thinking about Elizabeth’s response. “Miss Elizabeth, may I point out that by having a formal introduction, all will immediately learn your name, that you are an eligible single young lady, and that you are sponsored by Lord and Lady Denby. It will also allow you to perform at the ball. If you are not formally introduced, it will take longer for your name and status to be known among the eligible young men. Although, I must say, with your beauty and your talent, assuming you get a chance to exhibit at one or more events, it would not take as long as it might with others.”
“Can she not perform at the ball if she does not have formal debut?” asked Margaret.
“Not at this ball, but she could at later balls. I guess that is another advantage of making it a formal debut, if one has outstanding musical talent, such a Miss Elizabeth has. Usually only those debuting perform at their coming out ball.”
Elizabeth was undecided. Clearly Lady Matlock and Lady Denby favored her making a formal debut, therefore they were not concerned she might make some faux pas that might embarrass them. Elizabeth did not want to disappoint Lady Matlock or Lady Denby, but neither did she feel she would be comfortable being introduced with young ladies who were far above her in rank and circumstance.
“Lady Denby, I very much appreciate the honor you are giving me by sponsoring me, but I must admit I am unsure I will fit in this society. I have not been raised with all the social knowledge and advantages of the young ladies of this society. Young ladies like me of lower social status often look at the ton and think how nice it would be to be a part of it. However, when it actually comes to moving from our social sphere to a higher one, it seems like a very overwhelming move. As I told Margaret, I thought it might be easier to slip in unnoticed rather than make a grand entrance through the front door, hoping that by the end of the Season, some members of the ton will have grudgingly accepted me as belonging among them, but not quite understand how I got there.”
Lady Matlock chuckled. “I suppose I have never really thought about what it would be like coming into our circle from a lower social stratum. But from what I have been told and what I have observed, you are a very intelligent and perceptive young lady who seems to handle herself well in all situations. Certainly my son’s description of how you dealt with Lady Catherine makes me think you will have little problem adapting to the ton. I will admit I favor having you formally debut because I would like to see both how you adapt and how well you are accepted. I have seen others of lower rank enter the ton, sometimes with disastrous results and sometimes with little problem. However, in almost all cases, they were persons of considerable wealth who wanted to move up socially. My nephew and son and niece assure me that you are very unique, and, I must admit, I am intrigued by what may happen.”
“Even if it may reflect poorly on you and Lord and Lady Denby?”
“My dear,” said Lady Denby, “we are well established and have no worry that sponsoring you will have any adverse impact on that standing. My granddaughter and Lady Matlock’s son and daughter and niece assure us that if you are rejected by most of the ton, it will be their loss. My granddaughter assures me she hopes you will become one of her best friends and I believe you already have good friends in Miss Darcy and Lady Alicia. If that is the case, then there will always be those of us who will welcome you.”
“I seems you favor me making a formal debut?”
“I do. But I will not be upset with you if you choose not to. I can appreciate it might seem to be a daunting undertaking for you.”
Elizabeth smiled and shook her head. “Hearing you say that almost makes it imperative I make a formal debut. I have always considered myself one who is willing to take on anything even remotely within my capabilities to do. Very well, Lady Denby, I will accept your sponsorship and be one of the young ladies making a debut at the ball.”
“Good. You impressed me as being a young lady with fortitude and I think you will do fine.”
Margaret came forward and hugged her. “Thank you, Miss Elizabeth. I look forward to debuting with someone I like and I think that we should perform together at the ball. Would you be willing to practice together a few times between now and the ball?”
“I would, Miss Farnsworth. I also need to talk to all of you about what I should wear and how I should act. When would be a good time to meet?
“We have a piano and harp at Matlock House and we are situated between where each of you lives,” said Lady Matlock. “Why do not you have your first meeting and practice there and then decide what to do thereafter? I think Georgiana and Alicia would enjoy hearing what you intend to do.”
“That would be fine with me,” said Elizabeth. “Georgiana and I usually get together Monday afternoon. Miss Farnsworth, could you meet us at Matlock House that afternoon for our first practice?”
Looking somewhat disappointed, Margaret said, “I could, but I must admit, I would rather have our first practice at Denby House on my own harp, which I will use during the ball. Is there any chance you could visit Denby House Saturday or Sunday? We can send a carriage for you. We could still practice on Monday afternoon, but I really would like you to see Denby House, Miss Elizabeth, and get to practice on the instruments we will be using.”
Elizabeth looked at her aunt. “What do you think Aunt Madeleine? Did you have anything planned for this weekend?”
“No, we do not Lizzie. You may go any day you wish.”
“I would prefer Saturday, because I could then go in the morning and we could make as much of a day of it as we wished.” Then she looked at Margaret, “I am sorry, I am being presumptuous. If I came Saturday morning, could we work as long as we wished?”
Margaret looked at Lady Denby, who nodded yes. “That would be wonderful. We will have the carriage at your house on Gracechurch Street by 9 AM.”
After Lady Matlock, Lady Denby, and Margaret had gone, Mrs. Gardiner took Elizabeth’s hands. “You are sure you want to do this? I hope you did not say yes just because you thought it was what Lady Matlock and Lady Denby wanted.”
“Yes, Aunt, I want to do it. She is right. It is a challenge and I like challenges. I was thinking of all the things that could go wrong rather than all of the things that could go right. I am going to take a positive outlook on this venture and have a wonderful debut ball. Who knows, I might actually meet some very eligible young men who would be interested in me, even if I am not rich.”
“Just make sure they are interested in you for the right reasons, Lizzie. There will be some—particularly older men—who would look upon you as an ideal mistress. Make sure of their intentions before you make any commitments and beware of getting into compromising situations. There are many more situations which the ton might consider compromising than other levels of society would.”
Elizabeth was suddenly reminded of how she had been taken in by Wickham. “Aunt Madeleine, I assure you, I will be very careful. I realize the dangers. I would hope when we meet with the Denbys and Matlocks in the coming days, they will have good advice on how to deal with such men and avoid compromising situations.”
As they were riding back to Gracechurch Street in the carriage, Mrs. Gardiner asked Elizabeth, “Lizzie, forgive me for being curious, but it seems to me Miss Darcy takes an exceptional interest in you. Lady Matlock said she and her brother were very complimentary of you. I believe Mr. Darcy would be one of those men who would does not need wealth or social standing in a wife. Is there anything about your association with the Darcys that I should know?”
Elizabeth sighed. “I suppose, given you are funding my involvement in the ton, you should know all of my deepest, darkest secrets. The short version is that there was much said between Mr. Darcy and me when we were in Kent, but the most important part of it was, he asked me to be his wife and I rejected him because of some major differences we have. We parted very upset at each other, although the last time I saw him, when I went to visit Georgiana, we managed to reconcile to some ext
ent. I have hopes we can be friends, for Georgiana’s sake.”
Mrs. Gardiner was, as might be expected, totally unprepared for that revelation. “He proposed? And you said no?” She shook her head as she thought about the implications of what Elizabeth had just said. “I do not know which of those statements I find harder to believe. We are almost home now, but after dinner you must tell me and your uncle the entire story, starting with when you met him at the assembly in Meryton.”
Chapter 12: Darcy Returns
It was a cold and rainy afternoon the Thursday Darcy finally arrived back at Darcy House in London after his trip to Scotland and he was not in a good mood. He had fully agreed with the complaints of the local citizens against his tenant, and particularly against his tenant’s son. He had agreed to return the tenant’s rent in exchange for the tenant and his family vacating the premises immediately. He and his agents had made a grievous error in their judgment of the man and his family, and the mistake brought back memories of the misjudgment by him and his employment agent about the character of Mrs. Younge and his apparent misjudgment of the depth of Miss Bennet’s feelings for his friend Bingley. And worst of all, he had misjudged Elizabeth’s response to his proposal. He had always been proud of his ability to judge the character and frame of mind of those he met, and now, four times in the past year, he had been wrong and all these mistakes had cost him.
The staff of Darcy House was happy to see him back and their apparent joy in seeing him again soothed his feelings to some extent, but he was still somewhat upset when he arrived at Matlock House two hours later to collect his sister and take her home. He had missed her and did not want to spend another night alone without family. The butler who let him in the house told him Lady Matlock, Georgiana, and Lady Alicia were in the family sitting room and Lord Matlock was in his study, so he went to the sitting room, anxious to see how his sister was doing. When he walked in the door, he momentarily forgot his troubles because of the joy Georgiana exhibited at seeing him. As soon as she saw him, she cried, “Will, you are back!” and got up and ran to him, and was gathered into his arms in a big hug.
“Yes, I am and I am glad to see you too, Georgie.” The he nodded to his aunt and cousin, “Hello, Aunt Helen. Hello Alicia. You cannot know how nice it is to be with family again.”
Both got up and came over and each took one of his hands in theirs as Georgiana continued to hug him. “We are glad you are safely returned from your trip. Was it successful?”
“Yes and no. I will tell you about it later. Is Richard here?”
Immediately, their faces got long and he guessed that Richard had been called back to the fighting in France. “Surely he has not been recalled. He’s only had six months to recuperate from his injury and he was promised he would not have to return—that they would keep him working at the War Office.”
“It seems Gen. Wellesley needs him, but at least we have been assured he will not be leading troops on the front line, as he has done in the past. He is going to be working in General Wellesley’s command post. He could not say what he would be doing, but your uncle thinks he’s going to be the general’s aide for intelligence. Henry talked to Major General Forbes and Forbes assured him the danger to Richard would be no greater than the danger to General Wellesley, which I assume is slight.”
“That is good news, but terrible news for me. I have enjoyed having him around again and I will miss him.” He hugged Georgiana again and kissed the top of her head. “But at least I will have my little sister to keep me in line.”
At that moment, Lord Matlock walked in the door. “I thought I heard your voice, Darcy. It is good you are back. I think your sister was beginning to think you had abandoned her. I assume they have told you about Richard?”
“Yes, they have and I am saddened he is gone but happy his new assignment will not put him in imminent danger. I forgot to ask. How long has he been gone?”
“He left two days ago. He is probably in Portsmouth now, awaiting transport to France.”
They all went to sit down and then Darcy asked, “I have had the bad news. Is there any good news?”
“Oh, yes,” answered Georgiana “You have not heard about Lizzie.”
Darcy winced. He was not sure he wanted to hear about her. He had gone away hoping he could come to terms with her refusal and his decision to forget about her and move on. He had not been successful. Hearing her name brought back pictures of her in his mind and he knew he still considered her the woman whose personal characteristics most exemplified what he wanted in the woman he was to marry. However, he said, “And what might that be?”
“Lord and Lady Denby have agreed to sponsor her in the ton. There is a ball this weekend at Denby House for the debut of Miss Farnsworth and two other young ladies and now Lizzie is to be included.”
Lady Matlock was watching her nephew and was concerned by the look on his face—almost as if the announcement was painful to him. He, however, forced a smile. “That is wonderful. She is a very nice young lady and I suspect she will do very well.”
“I met Miss Elizabeth when she came to visit Georgie,” said Lady Alicia, “and was very impressed. I suspect she will have little trouble fitting into the ton, despite her somewhat unusual status. She is so clever and seems to be able to converse easily with anyone. Last Thursday Lady Monttard had a tea promoting a charity in which she and mother are interested, and also to introduce Miss Elizabeth and Miss Farnsworth to those who were there. She and Miss Farnsworth performed and you would not believe how good they are. They had never met before the tea party, yet when they were called to perform, after Miss Elizabeth had played the piano and sung and Miss Farnsworth had played two pieces on the harp, which is all they had originally planned to do, they decided to perform something each of them knew, but had never practiced together. You would have thought that they had worked on it for weeks, it was so good.”
“She does have a beautiful voice,” said Lady Matlock. “It is not an operatic voice, but so pure and clear and sweet. Did she sound so wonderful when you heard her in Hertfordshire?”
“I was not here last Thursday, so I cannot compare, but she was certainly capable of holding a group’s interest when I heard her. I do believe she was not particularly proficient on the piano, however.”
“That has certainly changed,” said Georgiana. “She has been studying with a master for a few weeks and is now quite a good pianist. I thought she played the accompaniment to her singing quite well last Thursday, even though it was not easy. Did not you think so Aunt Helen?”
“I did indeed. And she seemed at ease in the company of Lord Vollenbrook, Lady Penelope, and Mr. Farrington and eventually met and conversed easily with their parents. From what I have seen of Miss Elizabeth, I do not think she will lack gentleman callers, even if she does not have any wealth or high social standing.”
“Will, are you going to attend the ball?” asked Georgiana. “I am sure you probably have in invitation waiting for you at Darcy House.”
“I do not know, Georgie. This trip has taken quite a toll on me. It was seven days up and seven days back and my time there was not particularly pleasant. I may just pass this one up. It will give me more opportunity to be with you.”
“Nonsense,” said Lord Matlock. “You said before you left you need to marry, Darcy, and this will give you a chance to see what young women are new on the scene. I know both Lady Penelope and Margaret Farnsworth will be there. I agree with you, even though you have been disappointed in the past, it is time you produced an heir and I am sure there must be a young woman somewhere out there who will satisfy your exacting standards.”
Lady Matlock had continued to watch her nephew closely and when she saw his reaction to what was said about Elizabeth, she was relatively certain he had not been able to dismiss her from his thoughts, despite his stated intentions of marrying someone of wealth and status.”
“Come, nephew, do not say no. Georgiana will be with you the rest of the summer. I have
stopped trying to find you a wife, but if you are to carry forward with your intent about finding someone, you really must attend this ball. You know Lord and Lady Denby always give wonderful balls, probably the best in the ton, and everyone will be there. If you do not have an invitation at Darcy House, you can come with us, because Richard was included in our invitation and you can replace him. You know Lord and Lady Denby would want you to be there.”
“I agree with them, Will. You can leave me alone for a night. Now that you are back, I am satisfied and I wish you would enjoy yourself more. You have become so serious and seem unhappy much of the time. I think you need somebody like Miss Elizabeth to brighten your life.”
Lady Matlock could see how this last statement distressed her nephew. It was unlike him to give up on something he really wanted and if he still favored her, she wondered what kept him from continuing in his efforts to get her to accept him. Had Elizabeth, in her refusal of his offer, made it clear to him she did not like him and he had no chance? She was certainly a lively and vivacious creature who was much different than him. She knew most young women of Elizabeth’s class would never refuse such an offer, but, from the little she knew of Elizabeth, she suspected Elizabeth’s expectations for her relationship with a husband were as high as those of Darcy for a wife and if she did not believe Darcy met her expectations, despite his wealth, she would reject him. Lady Matlock suspected the reason Darcy so missed Richard was because Richard knew about Darcy’s history with Elizabeth, and Darcy could pour out his troubles to him. She decided she needed to have a private talk with Darcy and see if she could to some extent replace Richard.