Turnabout Chapter 2, a pride and prejudice fanfic

Thank you for all those lovely reviews.

About those dowries… I never said they were £2,000 – I said Mrs B was told they were £2,000. 😊

Mrs Carlton did not play favourites with the girls. They would all receive similar amounts – or property of similar value. Remember – she did suggest that Netherfield Park might do as the dowry for one of the girls. Netherfield is bigger than Longbourn, which was worth about 60K.

According to my research, an estate was worth 20-30 times its annual income. The closer to London, the greater the value. Longbourn could have made more per annum with an engaged master. Netherfield was bigger…

So, while they might only have dowries of 2K, based on this, each of the girls will have an inheritance similar to Bingley, making Caroline a pauper by comparison. 😉

Btw the townhouse would not be worth 50,000. My best guess is maybe 10K since I have not been able to find out how much it cost to buy a house in town. But it would certainly not be anywhere near the cost of an estate.

I should also warn you that due to the changed circumstances, some characters will act a little different from canon. As many of you probably know, I generally like to keep the characters of people the same but change how they act and react depending on the different circumstances.

~~DGH~~

Lessons

Mrs Bennet was the first to admit that her intelligence was only average, and she was not academically gifted, but since women were not given the opportunity to attend schools of higher learning, she had never considered that a handicap, especially since society disapproved of overly educated women. But her husband was wrong when he called her of mean understanding and uncertain temper.

Much of the lady's uncertain temper had been caused by frustration when Mr Bennet did nothing to secure the future of herself and her daughters. Instead, he made sport of her fears which had exacerbated the situation.

The lady's mean understanding had been caused not so much by her lack of intelligence but by her lack of education. In the early days of their marriage, Mrs Bennet was untrained for the role as mistress of Longbourn and it had not occurred to her husband that his wife would need guidance. He took it for granted that all women knew the duties as the mistress of an estate, which as the daughter of a solicitor, his wife had never had the opportunity to learn. As a result, the lady had covered her ignorance by focusing on being an excellent hostess and setting the best table of anyone in the neighbourhood.

She also believed that the more expensive something was, the better it must be, which was why she insisted that her garments and those of her daughters must be lavishly embellished by lace.

Once her fear of being homeless was removed by the generosity of Mrs Carlton, Mrs Bennet blossomed.

After her aunt passed away and Mrs Bennet was presented with the document guaranteeing her future, she started to pay greater attention to the lessons the governess imparted to her daughters as far as they pertained to the duties of the mistress of an estate. She learnt that she had been under the mistaken impression that the lady of the manor was to give orders to the staff about the running of the house but should not have any further involvement.

She was shocked to discover how wrong she had been.

~~DGH~~

Mrs Bennet was having tea with her three oldest daughters, but her mind was in the past. Without being aware of it, she gave a big sigh and shook her head.

'What is wrong, mama? What is troubling you?' asked fifteen-year-old Jane.

Mrs Bennet was startled out of her reverie and frowned.

'You sighed,' Jane explained with a tentative smile.

'Oh. It is nothing. I was just thinking of Aunt Mary and regretting that I did not pay greater attention to her. Something Mrs Taylor said earlier reminded me of some advice my aunt tried to give me some years ago.'

'Go on,' encouraged Elizabeth, who at the age of thirteen was well on her way to becoming something of a blue stocking, much to her mother's dismay.

The lady twisted her handkerchief and replied in a rather pensive manner, 'She was trying to explain the duties of a gentlewoman and the mistress of an estate but since she was from the same tradesman's family as I was, and had been married to a tradesman, I refused to listen to her counsel. I thought that being married to a gentleman I knew more than she did.' She sighed again. 'I just recalled that her advice was the same as your lesson with Mrs Taylor today. Now I wish that I had paid more attention to her.'

'Although Aunt Mary is gone, it is not too late for you to learn. I am convinced that Mrs Taylor would be happy to advise you about anything you wish to know,' Elizabeth encouraged.

Mrs Bennet's eyes widened as realisation hit her. 'And so, she shall,' she exclaimed with newfound determination.

~~DGH~~

The most noticeable change at Longbourn occurred when Mrs Bennet started to visit the tenants in the company of her oldest daughters.

The wives of the tenants were quick to forgive her earlier neglect when on her first visit Mrs Bennet explained, 'I have only recently learnt that I have it in my power to improve conditions on the estate. Now that I know this, I am determined to do so.'

Since Mrs Bennet liked few things better than to talk to other women, she called it exchanging information rather than gossip, it did not take long for her to become familiar with all the families.

When Mrs Porter mentioned that the roof of the cottage had been leaking for weeks and Mr Bennet had not done anything about it, she bearded the dragon in his den.

'Mr Bennet, it has come to my attention that the landlord, yourself, is responsible for maintaining the cottages of the tenants, yet you have not seen fit to do so.'

'And why should I do so?' came the indolent reply.

'Because if a roof leaks, like in Mr Porter's cottage, there is a good chance that the tenants will become ill. If they are ill, they cannot work. If they cannot work, there will not be a harvest. If there is no harvest, they cannot pay the rent. If they cannot pay the rent, you will not be able to afford to buy books and port.'

'You say nothing about dresses for yourself or our daughters.'

'I know that you care nothing for me or our daughters, but you do care about your own comfort. Although you might also notice if we cannot afford food, which is a serious possibility if you ignore the wellbeing of the estate.'

'Why have you suddenly become interested in such things?'

'Because I have recently learnt that such details are in the purview of the mistress of an estate, something you neglected to tell me when we first married.'

'I expected you to know such things. When you did not bother to fulfill your duties, I saw no reason why I should make up for your laziness.'

Mrs Bennet gave him a disgusted look. 'How dare you excuse your own laziness by hiding behind my lack of knowledge. I did not fulfill my duties out of ignorance. You do not have that excuse.' She shook her head in frustration but managed to keep her temper. 'You think of yourself as intelligent. Yet it never occurred to you that as the daughter of a solicitor I had no experience in the running of an estate. I needed information and you withheld it. Did it amuse you to keep me ignorant? Did it make you feel superior?'

Bennet had the grace to colour as his wife hit the nail upon the head. He had thought her stupidity amusing. Every time she embarrassed herself had been cause for his entertainment. It had never occurred to him that his wife simply lacked knowledge.

Mrs Bennet seemed to almost be reading his mind when she added a final question. 'Or were you too stupid to discern the difference between stupidity and ignorance?'

Having his shortcomings pointed out to him in such a ruthless manner made Bennet see red. 'How dare you speak to me in such a way. I am the master of this house.'

'Then act like one,' his wife shot back and stormed out of the library.

~~DGH~~

Dinner that night in the Bennet household was icily civil. Neither Mr Bennet nor his wife commented on their argument in any way.

This atmosphere remained for the next week until Mrs Bennet made her weekly visit to the tenants where Mrs Porter greeted her enthusiastically. 'Oh, Mrs Bennet, how can I ever thank you. It is wonderfully snug in our home now that the roof has been fixed.'

'The roof his been fixed?' Mrs Bennet repeated in disbelief.

'Indeed, it has, and Mr Bennet said that I have you to thank for it.' Mrs Porter noted the bewildered expression on the mistress' face and asked, 'Did you not know about this?'

Mrs Bennet covered her ignorance by saying, 'I just did not realise that it would be done this quickly.'

'It was completed two days ago and my youngest's sniffles are all gone.'

As there was nothing wrong at the Porter's place anymore, Mrs Bennet cut short her visit and hurried home.

She rushed into her husband's library and exclaimed, 'Thank you, Mr Bennet. And I am sorry about my outburst the other day. I did not think that you would listen to me.'

'I simply do my part, once I know what is needed.' Bennet shrugged carelessly but felt strangely… good.

~~DGH~~

After that incident, Mrs Bennet and her daughters discussed their visits to the tenants over dinner.

While the ladies made no specific requests to Mr Bennet about the tenants, the majority of issues were generally taken care of within a few days.

Over the years, as the girls got older, Mrs Bennet started to take all the girls in turn on her weekly visits when they were not otherwise engaged in their lessons with Mrs Taylor.

When Lydia was old enough to join her mother, she surprised everyone by becoming quite enthusiastic about the visits. Her main impetus was that she considered the younger tenant children her personal dolls whom she could dress up in the pretty outfits she made for them.

Each of the girls developed their own special skills on top of the basic accomplishments they all learnt.

Jane was the only one of the sisters who learnt to play the harp and she developed a deft hand in the stillroom. Her remedies were much appreciated by the tenants who could not afford an apothecary.

Elizabeth continued to be widely read on diverse subjects, making her Mr Bennet's favourite, and while she learnt to play the pianoforte with feeling if not great skill, her singing was the best amongst the sisters. While she enjoyed sketching people's character, she was prone to jump to conclusions.

Mary excelled at the pianoforte as well as languages and was interested in history and politics which surprised Mr Bennet, who delighted in debating those subjects with her.

While Kitty became proficient in foreign languages, she preferred to make up and write stories in her native tongue.

Lydia's accomplishments were adequate, but she had an eye for colour and design which was second to none in the family.

~~DGH~~

The years went by, and Jane reached her majority. Although that was a cause for celebration Mrs Bennet was perturbed since all five of her daughters were still single.

When the Gardiners came for their annual Christmas visit in 1810, Mrs Bennet had a long conversation with Mrs Gardiner.

'Madeline, I hope that you can help me,' Mrs Bennet said pensively.

Mrs Gardiner was startled at the worried expression of her sister-in-law. She took Fanny's hands and enquired, 'You sound perturbed. What can I do to help?'

'You know that Mary will turn eighteen next summer; the exact age at which I married Mr Bennet,' Mrs Bennet said as she searched for the right words to express her concern. 'Jane has already reached her majority and Lizzy is nineteen. Yet none of the girls are married. They do not even have any suitors.'

'You do know that not all girls get married as early as you did. Remember, I was three and twenty when I married your brother.'

'Yes, I know. I also know that the girls will be financially secure if they choose not to marry. Aunt Mary, bless her heart, saw to that. But I want them to have the choice. I worry that if they stay in Meryton all the time, they will never meet any eligible men.' Mrs Bennet hesitated to make the request which she knew was a huge imposition.

'I gather that the latest tenant at Netherfield is not suitable husband material.'

Mrs Bennet huffed. 'I would not want any of my girls to marry that man, even if he was the last man on earth.' She shook her head. 'No, what I was hoping for was for the three oldest girls to go to London for the little season, next autumn. I know you have quite a big house by town standards, nonetheless it is an imposition to ask you to look after my girls, but I would be ever so grateful if you could take them in and introduce them to some of your acquaintances,' she finished in a rush.

Madeline smiled. 'You know that I love to have the girls visit and I am certain that Edward will agree with me when I say that we would be delighted to introduce them to our acquaintances.'

Mr Gardiner was indeed agreeable to the plan and determined to make use of the provisions which Aunt Mary had made for this occurrence.

~~DGH~~