May 1808 – October 1808

Many people would say that Mrs. Bennet was an irrational, uneducated, and even spiteful woman, and among them was her husband. So cautiously a few hours after Thomas returned to Longbourn with John and his wet nurse, he called Mrs. Bennett into his office to have a serious conversation with her. He hoped Fanny wouldn't make a fuss because little John was going to live with them…

"Mrs. Bennet, I know I should have told you a few days ago that your brother and I as John and Elizabeth's guardians decided that it would be best if little John lived with us. As you know, he's the heir of Longbourn and we think he should grow up here with us. But if this decision causes you a lot of inconveniences, we can find another solution."

"Mr. Bennet, don't talk nonsense. He is the most beautiful boy I have ever seen and he is also so similar to you physically. I am so happy that he is going to live with us… after so many years God finally heard my prayers, it is a miracle! We finally have a son!" Fanny said very excited and a big smile on her face.

Amazed and pleased, Mr. Bennet added, "I am glad you are happy with my decision. I also wanted to tell you that Elizabeth will probably be living with us half the year and the other half at the Gardiners."

"Why should Elizabeth live with us? No, no, no, Mr. Bennet. There is no reason for your niece to live with us. She should live with the Gardiners... Mrs. Gardiner has known her since she was born, and she is also her godmother."

"Fanny, you should know that if you let her live with us, as well as being a good Christian by taking in your orphaned niece, we will get at least an extra £300 a year for Elizabeth's support which we can use some of that money to increase our daughters' dowries."

"£300 a year! You are right, Mr. Bennet. You are right, as a good Christian, I must let her live with us if she wishes. But I warn you Mr. Bennet that I am not going to treat her as if she were my daughter, nor am I going to take care of finding her a husband!"

"Fanny, don't worry, you only have to treat her with courtesy. You're a loving and compassionate woman and Elizabeth is a nice girl. I'm sure you're going to get along very well with her. Could you promise me that you will make an effort to get along with Elizabeth?"

"Yes, Mr. Bennet. Because I am a good Christian, I promise you..."

In less than a week, Fanny Bennet was already talking about Johnny as if he were her own son and genuinely loved him even more than her favorite daughter, Lydia.

PPP

During Elizabeth's first three months of mourning, she preferred to stay at the Gardiners', since her aunt Madeleine was the person who knew her best, and she understood very well how much she had loved her parents and how much she was suffering due to their deaths.

It was not until August that Elizabeth went to Longbourn for the first time in her life, where she met her other cousins and her Aunt Fanny Bennet. At first, Kitty, and in particular, Lydia were jealous and upset at the arrival of yet another intruder in Longbourn. Ever since little John had arrived, Mrs. Bennet spent most of the time with him and paid very little attention to the two of them. But when they saw that their mother completely ignored Elizabeth, the relationship between the cousins improved. They never had a very close relationship, but over the years they learned to live together in peace.

Unfortunately, Mrs. Bennet and Elizabeth had nothing in common and didn't understand each other. But, as Mr. Bennet had explained to Fanny on more than one occasion, as long as Elizabeth lived with them at Longbourn they were to receive several hundred pounds a year, and so she grudgingly accepted the situation and rarely complained. Fanny would simply ignore her nice or occasionally criticize what Lizzy did with her younger daughters.

Without a doubt, of all Elizabeth's cousins, the one who was happiest that Lizzy was living in Longbourn was Mary, as she loved Elizabeth more than any of her sisters. Since she had left Sandstone, Mr. Bennet had been helping her with her French lessons and had even tuned the old piano, which Mary now played frequently.

Jane was also glad that her cousin was living with them, but in recent years, because they hadn't had a chance to see each other in London, they had drifted apart. At Longbourn, Jane spent most of her time helping her mother in the administration of the house. She had recently turned 19, and her mother reminded her every day that at her age she was already a mother. Fortunately for Jane, since little John arrived to Longbourn, she felt less pressure to get married because her mother was sure that 'her son' was not going to kick them out of Longbourn when Mr. Bennet died.

Perhaps one of the problems was Mrs. Bennett did not understand that Jane was by nature shy, and reserved, and therefore felt very uncomfortable when her mother told her potential suitors all of her good qualities – some of which were imaginary - And potential suitors felt pressured and gave up.

Mr. Shaw – Sandstone's steward - sent a letter every month to Mr. Bennet with news, questions, and other relevant information; At the moment, everything was working very well at the estate. With the additional money Thomas received from the Sandstone earnings, plus the living expenses of Elizabeth and John, he began saving the money to augment the meager £1,250 dowries of each of his daughters.

In October, Mr. Gardiner wrote to Mr. Bennet to let him know that Sandstone had been leased for 2 years to a family named Bingley. Although, the main decisions about the estate were still the responsibility of the owners. The income associated with the rent was going to be used for the support of Elizabeth and John…