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"Sister, I visit so soon today to help you with your morning calls." Mrs. Philipps said as she walked through the door into the drawing room.
Aha, Elizabeth thought, rather to hear all the gossip first and be right in the middle of everything.
"Sister," Mrs. Bennet answered, "I am so glad you are here. I have been so ill-used! My poor nerves! This evil Miss Bingley, I always knew she was no lady, I always said she had no class, no elegance. My poor Jane! I raised her well, you know. Such palpitations I had yesterday and the day before. I could hardly sleep." This all was exclaimed with her hand waving her lace handkerchief like a white flag and an expression of pain on her face. "But you know me, I don´t complain, I suffer in silence. My Jane, the prettiest of my girls, the prettiest girl of Hertfordshire, did nothing wrong! I taught her to behave well!"
"I know Fanny, we all know!"
Mrs. Hill opened the door and brought tea in. Elizabeth prepared the cups for every one, while Lydia used the lull in conversation to ask after the officers.
"My Lyddie, always so lively, mark my words, she will make a great match with a dashing officer one day soon."
"They look all so handsome in their uniforms. I plan a card party for next week and hope you all will come. I told Mr. Philipps to invite the officers, I´m sure they are looking forward to see you, girls," and then looking at Mary added, "perhaps not all of you."
At that moment Elizabeth saw another one of her blind spots. Whom did Mary have? For Mama she was the plain one, the "un-pretty", for Papa the silly, neither of the sisters had any idea what Mary wanted or loved or wished, they only noticed her when she quoted Fordyce and the Bible or played very complicated piano pieces without feeling. She did not have the tender care and education Jane and Lizzy got at the Gardiners. I can´t do it all alone, Lizzy thought, I will need Jane´s help as soon as she is well again. Kitty and Mary, they both needed their elder sisters.
"How does Jane fare?" asked Mrs. Philipps.
"Oh Hatty," Mrs. Bennet dabbed her dry eyes, "I have done all I could, but she is yet not better."
"Mama, her fever broke at around four o´clock in the morning and she even had a few spoons full of broth a short while ago." Elizabeth informed her mother.
"It must have happened while I closed my eyes for a little, tired and exhausted as I was. With my care, it is no wonder she got better."
Elizabeth choose not to say anything. Mrs. Bennet would only work herself in a frenzy and she had to be today of all days if not calm, then at least as flustered as usual.
Mrs. Philipps began to tell of all the calls she received the day before. And how every caller assured her that Jane was innocent and could not have done anything to provoke Miss Bingley´s actions. Lizzy took a deep breath and composed herself. Not every lady of the neighbourhood visited her aunt Philipps yesterday, so they would have to wait and see what happens today. She smiled as she heard that Meryton condemned Miss Bingley and her sister, but was sad to hear about the servants again, and wondered about Mr. Bingley´s character. With his sisters, his rude friend, his brother-in-law, was he really that person everybody thought him to be, or was it just a pretty disguise and they had not seen the real Mr. Bingley yet.
Around noon the door was opened by Mrs. Hill and the first callers entered the drawing room. There were four ladies from neighbouring estates, but not the leading gossipers, Lady Lucas, Mrs. Long and Mrs. Goulding, also known as Mrs. Bennet´s best friends.
The call went well, tea was offered and drunk, questions about Jane´s health were asked and answered, they censured the Bingley sisters and were sympathetic to Jane and left 20 minutes later, after seeing that the Bennets behaved as always. Mrs. Bennet talked the most time, nothing new here, Lizzy, Mary and Kitty were mostly silent and Lydia tried a few times to direct the attention to her person and officers, but did not have the desired result and pouted in her corner.
This circle repeated itself for three times, then the news from Meryton came.
Lady Lucas, Mrs. Long and Mrs. Goulding came like a Holy Trinity in the Lucas-carriage, as fast as possible to Longbourn, to be the first ones to tell Mrs. Bennet the news. Tea was offered, questions about Jane quickly asked and answered. Mrs. Goulding had then the privilege to be the first to tell her story from the haberdasher. Every gesture, every look, every word was told and analysed. How Mrs. Goulding turned away, how nobody greeted the sisters, what Mr. Enderly did and said, what Miss Bingley answered, the emphasis on Mr. Darcy and the Earl of Matlock, what Miss Bingley did not say, namely not mentioning her brother, like he wasn´t the head of the family and of course the elegant lady not from Meryton, who asked who the sisters were and what they did to deserve such a cut from a whole town.
The next one to speak was Lady Lucas. She related her experiences from the dressmaker. How Mrs. Anderson refused to attend to Miss Bingley and showed her the door, how the other customers cut her, the threats of Mr. Darcy ruining them all and every other little bit that she could think of, ending with the supplier of fabrics from London, who like the unknown lady asked questions and got answers to share with his other clients and customers.
The last one was Mrs. Long. She told how she had seen Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst leaving the dressmaker, Mrs. Hurst arguing with her sister to calm herself and get into their carriage, how Miss Bingley first disagreed and wanted to visit the other shops, how Mrs. Long and her companion looked the other way when they were near the sisters and how they heard them entering their carriage and drive away.
The whole time the five Bennets, Mrs. Philipps and the two ladies not speaking listened silently, to some extent with opened mouths or in Mrs. Bennet´s case her waving handkerchief.
After Mrs. Long finished nobody said anything for five seconds, then pandemonium broke loose. All nine women in the drawing room began to talk at once. Mary did not even quote anybody. She was just as shocked as the others and expressed herself in the same manner. The hubris, the ignorance, the haughtiness of the sisters, especially Miss Bingley, that they deserved the cut and more. Mrs. Bennet exclaimed anew how she always knew it, that she would write her sister Gardiner in London what awful people they were. This declaration was picked up by the rest of the ladies and they also decided to write to all of their acquaintances not only in London, but throughout England.
The trinity stayed for over three hours, an unheard length for a morning call, but with every new caller they were asked to repeat their stories, getting every time the same exclamations and promises to write letters to relations and acquaintances.
Lizzy went a few times upstairs to see Jane, but Jane slept peacefully or had a maid there to help her, so she returned quickly to the drawing room and stayed until the last caller left. If Jane´s condition remained the same, Lizzy could for the first time in three days sleep in her own bed, and not only for four hours, but a whole night.
The ladies of Hertfordshire kept their promises and a lot of paper and ink were used this evening and a lot of letters were sent the next day, some even express.