To her the conference closed as satisfactorily as to himShe was in
a state of mind to be glad that she had secured her fate beyond
recall: that she had pledged herself anew to Sotherton; that she was
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safe from the possibility of giving Crawford the triumph of governing
her actions, and destroying her prospects; and retired in proud
resolve, determined only to behave more cautiously to Mr
Rushworth in future, that her father might not be again suspecting
her
Had Sir Thomas applied to his daughter within the first three or
four days after Henry Crawford?s leaving Mansfield, before her feelings
were at all tranquillised, before she had given up every hope of
him, or absolutely resolved on enduring his rival, her answer might
have been different; but after another three or four days, when there
was no return, no letter, no message, no symptom of a softened heart,
no hope of advantage from separation, her mind became cool enough
to seek all the comfort that pride and self revenge could give
Henry Crawford had destroyed her happiness, but he should not
know that he had done it; he should not destroy her credit, her
appearance, her prosperity, tooHe should not have to think of her
as pining in the retirement of Mansfield for him, rejecting Sotherton
and London, independence and splendour, for his sakeIndependence
was more needful than ever; the want of it at Mansfield more
sensibly feltShe was less and less able to endure the restraint which
her father imposedThe liberty which his absence had given was
now become absolutely necessaryShe must escape from him and
Mansfield as soon as possible, and find consolation in fortune and
consequence, bustle and the world, for a wounded spiritHer
miu miu leather black coffer bag mind
was quite determined, and varied not
To such feelings delay, even the delay of much preparation, would
have been an evil, and MrRushworth could hardly be more impatient
for the marriage than herselfIn all the important preparations
of the mind she was complete: being prepared for matrimony by an
hatred of home, restraint, and tranquillity; by the misery of disappointed
affection, and contempt of the man she was to marryThe preparations of new carriages and furniture
might wait for London and spring, when her own taste could have
fairer play
The principals being all agreed in this respect, it soon appeared
that a very few weeks would be sufficient for such arrangements as
must precede the wedding
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MrsRushworth was quite ready to retire, and make way for the
fortunate young woman whom her dear son had selected; and very
early in November removed herself, her maid, her footman, and her
chariot, with true dowager propriety, to Bath, there to parade over
the wonders of Sotherton in her evening parties; enjoying them as
thoroughly, perhaps, in the animation of a card-table, as she had
ever done on the spot; and before the middle of the same month the
ceremony had taken place which gave Sotherton another mistress
It was a very proper weddingThe bride was elegantly dressed; the
two bridesmaids were duly inferior; her father gave her away; her
mother stood with salts in her hand, expecting to be agitated; her
aunt tried to cry; and the service was impressively read by Dr
Nothing could be objected to when it came under the discussion of
the neighbourhood, except that the carriage which conveyed the bride
and bridegroom and Julia from the church-door to Sotherton was the
same chaise which
wholesale rolex watches MrRushworth had used for a twelvemonth before
In everything else the etiquette of the day might stand the strictest
investigation
It was done, and they were goneSir Thomas felt as an anxious
father must feel, and was indeed experiencing much of the agitation
which his wife had been apprehensive of for herself, but had fortunately
escapedNorris, most happy to assist in the duties of
the day, by spending it at the Park to support her sister?s spirits, and
drinking the health of MrRushworth in a supernumerary
glass or two, was all joyous delight; for she had made the match;
she had done everything; and no one would have supposed, from
her confident triumph, that she had ever heard of conjugal infelicity
in her life, or could have the smallest insight into the disposition
of the niece who had been brought up under her eye
The plan of the young couple was to proceed, after a few days, to
Brighton, and take a house there for some weeksEvery public place
was new to Maria, and Brighton is almost as gay in winter as in
summerWhen the novelty of amusement there was over, it would
be time for the wider range of London
Julia was to go with them to BrightonSince rivalry between the
sisters had ceased, they had been gradually recovering much of their
former good understanding; and were at least sufficiently friends to
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make each of them exceedingly glad to be with the other at such a
timeSome other companion than MrRushworth was of the first
consequence to his lady; and Julia was quite as eager for novelty and
pleasure as Maria, though she might not have struggled through so
much to obtain them, and could better bear a subordinate situation
Their departure made another material change at Mansfield, a
chasm
chanel purse knock offs which required some time to fill upThe family circle became
greatly contracted; and though the Miss Bertrams had latterly
added little to its gaiety, they could not but be missedEven their
mother missed them; and how much more their tenderhearted
cousin, who wandered about the house, and thought of them, and
felt for them, with a degree of affectionate regret which they had
never done much to deserve!
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CHAPTER XXII
FANNY?S CONSEQUENCE increased on the departure of her cousins
Becoming, as she then did, the only young woman in the drawingroom,
the only occupier of that interesting division of a family in
which she had hitherto held so humble a third, it was impossible for
her not to be more looked at, more thought of and attended to,
than she had ever been before; and ?Where is Fanny?? became no
uncommon question, even without her being wanted for any one?s
convenience
Not only at home did her value increase, but at the Parsonage too
In that house, which she had hardly entered twice a year since Mr
Norris?s death, she became a welcome, an invited guest, and in the
gloom and dirt of a November day, most acceptable to Mary
CrawfordHer visits there, beginning by chance, were continued
by solicitationGrant, really eager to get any change for her
sister, could, by the easiest self-deceit, persuade herself that she was
doing the kindest thing by Fanny, and giving her the most important
opportunities of improvement in pressing her frequent calls
Fanny, having been sent into the village on some errand by her
aunt Norris, was overtaken by a heavy shower close to the Parsonage;
and being descried from one of the windows endeavouring to
find shelter under the branches and lingering leaves of an oak
prada brown handbags just
beyond their premises, was forced, though not without some modest
reluctance on her part, to come inA civil servant she had withstood;
but when DrGrant himself went out with an umbrella, there
was nothing to be done but to be very much ashamed, and to get
into the house as fast as possible; and to poor Miss Crawford, who
had just been contemplating the dismal rain in a very desponding
state of mind, sighing over the ruin of all her plan of exercise for
that morning, and of every chance of seeing a single creature be179
Jane Austen
yond themselves for the next twenty-four hours, the sound of a
little bustle at the front door, and the sight of Miss Price dripping
with wet in the vestibule, was delightfulThe value of an event on a
wet day in the country was most forcibly brought before herShe
was all alive again directly, and among the most active in being useful
to Fanny, in detecting her to be wetter than she would at first
allow, and providing her with dry clothes; and Fanny, after being
obliged to submit to all this attention, and to being assisted and
waited on by mistresses and maids, being also obliged, on returning
downstairs, to be fixed in their drawing-room for an hour while the
rain continued, the blessing of something fresh to see and think of
was thus extended to Miss Crawford, and might carry on her spirits
to the period of dressing and dinner
The two sisters were so kind to her, and so pleasant, that Fanny
might have enjoyed her visit could she have believed herself not in the
way, and could she have foreseen that the weather would certainly
clear at the end of the hour, and save her from the shame of having
DrGrant?s carriage and horses out to take her home, with which she
was
sterling silver chanel inspired jewelry threaten
