Previously: Jane reconciled with her mother. Mr. Darcy realized that he could not allow his daughter to drive a wedge between him and his wife; and promised Elizabeth a happier Christmas.
Friday, January 15, 1819
Horse Guards, Westminster, London
For the second time in a week Jeremiah Whortles, no longer the most junior clerk in the firm of Dodson & Fogg, attended at the War Office on the instructions of his principal, Mr. Fogg. The first time he had been sent packing by an officious clerk. Retreating to the office he had been surprised, and somewhat relieved, by the equanimity with which Mr. Fogg received his news. Now on this second visit the very same clerk could not be more accommodating.
Jeremiah did not know (and had no way of knowing) that upon receipt of notice of his initial rebuff Mr. Fogg had informed Sir Charles Bingley of same; who in turn had asked his 'friend' the Prime Minister what the problem was in fulfilling a simple request; who in turn sent a rocket to the Secretary at War asking why the War Office was bent on alienating the head of the cloth mill owners syndicate, especially at a time when there was already so much unrest in the north; who in turn asked the aforesaid clerk whether it was true that he, the clerk, was actively seeking a transfer to the Crown Colony of Freetown, smack in the middle of Africa's fever coast, for it could be very easily arranged.
Jeremiah's quest was simple: to find Lydia Wickham. His starting point was that in August of 1812 a commission had been purchased for George Wickham in an unnamed regiment quartered at Newcastle. This information was false and it took the clerk an hour and a half to determine this, but if he grumbled it was done sotto voce. Once on the correct path the facts concerning George Wickham were easily found.
A lieutenancy had been purchased for George Wickham in the Second Battalion of the 89th Regiment of Foot, an Irish regiment stationed in Dublin. This had been arranged by a Colonel Fitzwilliam. This name meant nothing to the clerk but it gave Jeremiah an inkling of a connection with the earldom of Matlock.
Almost as soon as Lt. Wickham had joined it the Second Battalion was deployed to Upper Canada to fight in the war with the Americans. The passenger manifest for the troop transport showed that Lydia Wickham accompanied her husband.
Lt. Wickham was killed at the Battle of Lundy's Lane on July 25, 1814.
The Second Battalion returned to Dublin in June of 1815. On this return trip the passenger manifest for the troop transport showed no Lydia Wickham but it did show a 'Grace Wickham, age 1,' who apparently travelled in the company of a 'Mary Brady, age 27,' and 'Martha Brady, age 3'. Further research indicated this Mary Brady was the widow of a Major Thomas Brady who had also been killed in the war with the Americans.
Friday, January 29, 1819
Drumcree Parish, County Armagh, Ireland
Two weeks of cold, wet travel, including a sea sickening crossing of the Irish Sea which he did not want to repeat, but repeat it he must, if he wanted to live out the rest of his life back in England, found Jeremiah Whortles in the cemetery of The Church of the Ascension staring at the grave of Mary Brady, who had been struck down by the ague a year before. So where are your children Mrs. Brady he wondered.
In Dublin Jeremiah had been lucky. With the assistance of a clerk from a Dublin firm of solicitors associated with his own firm of Dodson & Fogg he had found Mrs. Wright, or as she might be more properly styled, Mrs. Regimental Sergeant-Major (Retired) Wright (she having convinced her husband, R.S.M. Wright, to retire upon their return from the Canadas rather than follow the Second Battalion to India on its next deployment). Given her position Mrs. Wright knew everything there was to know regarding the distaff side of the Second Battalion.
She knew, and she let Jeremiah know, that: Lydia Wickham had gone into labour two weeks early upon hearing of the death of Lt. Wickham; had given birth to a girl; had then died of childbed fever; Mrs. Brady, who had coincidentally given birth to a stillborn son, had agreed to act as wet nurse to the baby girl Wickham; and it was Mrs. Brady who had named the girl 'Grace'. Rather than abandon Grace to an orphanage in Upper Canada Mrs. Brady had brought Grace back to Ireland with her. Upon landing in Dublin, the widowed Mrs. Brady had moved north to live with her father, a Church of Ireland vicar at Drumcree Parish in County Armagh. And that was all Mrs. Wright knew (and was prepared to disclose – she knew plenty of gossip regarding the wild carryings-on of the Wickhams, husband and wife, even speculations as to the true parentage of Grace, but she did not see any reason to taint her with the sins of her parents and so she said nothing further).
Jeremiah wrote out two copies of a declaration for Mrs. Wright to swear and then he gave her five guineas for her information (Mr. Fogg had instructed him to be generous with Sir Charles Bingley's purse); sent a report, including one of the declarations, by express to Mr. Fogg; and then followed Mrs. Brady north.
In Drumcree Jeremiah had not been so lucky. Notwithstanding its place as the established church, the Church of Ireland had almost no active parishioners in Drumcree, the population being divided between Presbyterians, various dissenter sects and the papists. All that Jeremiah could find out was that Mrs. Brady and her father, the Vicar, had died, one after the other, in an epidemic of ague that had swept through the parish and their goods had been sold to settle their accounts with the local tradesmen and to pay for their funerals (Jeremiah suspected that this had been done without regard to all the required legal necessities, but as this did not fall within his remit he said nothing). No one had heard the name Wickham spoken of. No one knew for sure what had become of Mrs. Brady's daughters. Jeremiah was told to try looking for the girls at the Church of Ireland's orphanage in Portadown.
Saturday, January 30, 1819
Portadown, County Armagh, Ireland
Jeremiah found the beadle of the orphanage to be as uncooperative as any functionary he had ever come across in any of the many government bureaus in London on which he had paid attendance. He thought he might have to again appeal to Mr. Fogg to have pressure brought down from above, which he did not want to do as it would likely take three weeks to a month to get a response although it was looking to be a necessity, when he realized the beadle was venal.
As he parried Jeremiah's questions the beadle kept jingling something in the left side pocket of his coat. A purse, of course. Jeremiah reached inside of his frock coat, undid the button securing the inside pocket, and pulled out the purse which contained the coins he anticipated he would need day to day (he had fifteen guineas concealed in his money belt and another twenty in bank notes sewn into the lining of his waistcoat but he was not about to give up any of those to the beadle). He took out two shillings and then put the purse back. The beadle watched with a great deal of interest.
"One shilling when you show me the paperwork proving that you have the girls I am seeking" Jeremiah told the beadle. "The other shilling after I've spoken to the girls. In private."
The only new thing the paperwork shown to Jeremiah disclosed was that Grace was listed as 'Grace Brady', not 'Grace Wickham'.
A beautiful young woman; black curly hair, bright blue eyes, porcelain skin; so beautiful Jeremiah forgot for a moment why he was in Portadown, brought two little girls into the room.
"Jenny, leave us" said the beadle.
"No" said Jeremiah, surprising himself. "I will speak to her as well". When the beadle scowled Jeremiah waved the second shilling at him. "Leave us."
The beadle left the room, closing the door behind him. Jeremiah started to speak but Jenny shook her head, cupped her right ear with her hand and then pointed at the door. Jeremiah nodded at her, tiptoed to the door and then pulled it open. The beadle almost fell into the room. Jeremiah pointed down the hall. The beadle got up, glared at him, and then walked away.
Having won the right to interview the girls Jeremiah soon found out he had little to ask.
"What are your names?"
The older girl: "Martha Brady, sir."
The younger girl: "Grace Brady, sir."
"How old are you Grace?"
"Almost five, sir."
"Where were you born, Grace?"
Grace hesitated until Martha whispered in her ear. "Kingston, Upper Canada, sir."
"Grace, what was your mother's name?"
"Mrs. Mary Brady, sir."
"Grace, have you ever heard of the name 'Wickham'?"
"No, sir."
"How about you, Martha?"
"No, sir."
And that was that.
Being wise in the use of his resources Jeremiah used the balance of his time to chat up Jenny. He found that her name was 'Jenny Walker'; she was sixteen years of age; she was the oldest orphan in the orphanage; she helped with the younger children; and, as soon as the next oldest girl could take over her duties (likely within the next six months) the beadle would sell her to a farmer looking for a wife. When Jeremiah protested that was wrong, and certainly illegal, Jenny shrugged her shoulders: who was going to stop him? Asked by a blushing Jeremiah if the beadle took liberties with her, Jenny answered that the beadle's wife saw that he did not. Jeremiah learned to his regret that as much as Jenny would like to go for a walk along the Newry Canal, she was not allowed out of the orphanage unless in the company of the beadle's wife. She did say she would like to see more of the world than was visible from the windows of the orphanage.
When the beadle returned Jeremiah gave him the second shilling, told him that he would return the next day, and each subsequent day, to see the two girls and Jenny, and at the end of each visit he would pay the beadle a shilling, provided they were all in good health. This would continue until Jeremiah received further instructions from the uncle on whose behalf he was acting.
The beadle was agreeable, at a shilling a day he hoped the uncle took his sweet time responding; and seeing the interest the young clerk from London had in Jenny, he would just as soon sell her to the clerk for ten pounds, as to any of the local farmers.
Jeremiah went back to his room at the Nag's Tongue (the inn's sign was that of an ugly woman with a long tongue) wrote out of his report, including details of the beadle's venality, and expressed it to Mr. Fogg.
Each day for the next three weeks Jeremiah visited Jenny and the two little girls. On the second visit he brought some hard candy as a treat and was chastised by Grace for not bringing enough to share with the other orphans. Thereafter he brought enough treats, be it candy, cheese, or other foodstuffs, for all twenty of the orphans. But before Jeremiah be credited with an excessive degree of altruism it should be noted that he paid for the treats with the expense monies supplied by Sir Charles Bingley via Mr. Fogg.
Monday, February 22, 1819
Portadown, County Armagh, Ireland
Two things stopped Jeremiah from heading to the orphanage in accordance with his established schedule. First, he received an express from Mr. Fogg telling him that Sir Charles Bingley was on his way to Portadown to pick up his niece from the orphanage and instructing him to give Sir Charles any and all assistance he may request or require. Secondly, while he was reading the express, two carriages pulled up in front of the inn and from them descended Sir Charles himself and, as Jeremiah learned, Lady Bingley (the most beautiful older woman Jeremiah had ever seen, Jenny being the most beautiful younger woman in his eyes), Mr. Green, an archdeacon in the Church of Ireland, and two valets and one maid.
After the introductions had been made; arrangements made for rooms (Jeremiah ended up sharing with the archdeacon); and, the travellers fed; Jeremiah climbed up along side the driver of the lead carriage and directed the convoy to the orphanage.
The beadle was not happy to see the archdeacon who drew the man off with a demand to see the orphanage's books.
Jenny and the two little girls were very happy to see Jeremiah, he being so long past his expected time of arrival, but their glee evaporated when they noticed the grand lady and gentleman standing behind him. Introductions were made and curtseys assayed.
Lady Bingley turned to Sir Charles and whispered "I have no doubt about it; she's Lydia's daughter."
He nodded at her and then inclined his head towards the children.
Upon receiving Mr. Fogg's report about Jeremiah's discovery in Portadown (by coincidence the Bingleys had been in Belfast where Sir Charles had been visiting his linen mills at the time of receipt) they agreed that they would adopt both girls; such agreement having been arrived at without argument or discussion, the import of Mrs. Brady having raised Grace as her own and the need for reciprocal generosity being so obvious that the two were of one mind in an instance.
So Lady Bingley knelt down before the two little girls and said "I would very much like to be your mama and Sir Charles would like to be your papa. Would you like to come live with us?" and she held out her arms.
Grace and Martha looked at Lady Bingley, then at Sir Charles, looked at each other, turned their backs, and whispered to each other. They turned back.
Martha started "We would like to come with you very much and have you be our mama and papa…"
Grace finished "As long as Jammer can come with us."
Jammer? Jane dropped her arms and stood up.
Sir Charles and Lady Bingley stared at Jeremiah. He shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. The three of them looked at Jenny.
"Jammer is one of the orphans here," Jenny said. "We think he is about 3 years old. His name is James but he only answers to Jammer. He can hear but he doesn't talk. Martha and Grace take care of him, they even feed him some of their food. And they protect him when the other children try to bully him."
"Why didn't you tell me about him before?" asked Jeremiah.
"You just asked about Martha and Grace."
"But you could have included him in our visits."
Jenny shook her head. "No, he's afraid of men. We think something bad must have happened to him before he came here."
Lady Bingley raised her eyebrow at Sir Charles. He nodded at her and then to Jenny he said "Would you please go get the boy."
Sir Charles waited until Jenny and the two little girls left the room and then laughed "Well my dear, I can see where visiting orphanages with you could get to be an expensive proposition."
Lady Bingley smiled at him and said "We have nowhere near a dozen children yet."
"A dozen?"
"At least."
To Jeremiah Sir Charles said "Mr. Whortles, to get three children back home Lady Bingley will need the assistance of a nursemaid. Do you think we can find one here in Portadown or should we wait until we are back in Belfast to look for one?"
"Sir, Jenny would be an excellent nursemaid; she knows the children and has been caring for them since they arrived here."
"Would she want to leave Ireland? If she comes with us it is unlikely she will return anytime soon."
"She has told me she would like to see more of the world. There is nothing for her here and if she stays the beadle is just going to sell her to some farmer for a bride."
"Really?" asked Lady Bingley.
"Yes, your Ladyship, that's what Jenny says the beadle does as soon as the girls are old enough."
Lady Bingley looked at Sir Charles. He said "I will let Mr. Green know; he says the Church is already unhappy about how the orphanage is being run."
Just then Jenny and the girls entered the room, a chubby little redheaded boy holding hands with Martha and Grace.
Lady Bingley shooed Sir Charles and Jeremiah into the far corner of the room and then once again knelt facing the children. Jammer tried to hide behind Martha and Grace but they would have none of that.
Lady Bingley held up her arms. "Jammer, come to Mama."
There was a pause, a long pause while the little boy stared at her, and then he put out his arms, made some sort of sound, it was not 'Mama' exactly, although it sounded a lot like that to those who heard it, and then started running towards her. The little girls followed and soon all three children were encompassed in her hug.