Sherwood Dale was exceeding even the income from before the prior owner’s decline into games of chance. It was thanks to a number of factors. From before he employed a steward. Henry had Matlock and Darcy advising him while at the same time, they were giving names of candidates to be his steward. On his friends’ advice, Henry authorised all and any repairs to the tenant cottages. Given a few years of neglect under the former master, the morale of the tenants improved exponentially when they saw the new owner tooktheir concerns seriously and acted on them without delay. In addition, he provided the tenant farmers with all of the resources they needed to bring their farms back to profitability.
An important piece of the puzzle was when Henry interviewed and employed a steward Darcy recommended to him. Mr Lucas Wickham had read the law and had been clerking for a solicitor in Lambton. His wages were not quite enough to support his wife and son, who was two at the time. Henry had employed Wickham, offering him more than five times what he had earned as a clerk.
Before the Wickhams took up residence, Henry had the steward’s abode renovated and made almost like new. Wickham had been with him for almost three years now, and his work was stellar. He had one drawback, his wife. The woman was a covetous and grasping spendthrift.
It was easy for Henry to understand why Wickham had not been able to make a hundred pounds per annum last; even now at six hundred pounds a year, it was hard for him to save anything.
The Wickhams had not been in their house for three months before Johanna Wickham was attempting to use her feminine wiles on Henry; first to have him increase her husband’s wages and then for Henry to stand as godfather to her son, George.
Henry’s reaction had been swift. He had summoned Wickham to his study and told him to bring his wife with him. Henry could still see the meeting in his mind’s eye as if it had just occurred.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
February 20, 1788
“You asked my wife and me to meet with you, Mr Bennet,” Wickham said after he and his wife entered the study.
It was not hard to see how Mrs Wickham was eyeingthe contents of the study to see their worth. “Indeed, I did. Wickham, Mrs Wickham, please take a seat.” Henry indicated the chairs in front of his large, highly polished mahogany desk. He waited until they were seated; Henry did not miss the look of the cat who found the cream on Mrs Wickham’s countenance. She obviously thought he was about to gratify one or both of her demands. “Wickham, I am sorry to have to speak on this subject, but I feel I have no choice.” Henry paused. He noticed that the wife did not look so confident any longer. “Are you unhappy with the remuneration I have given you to be my steward?”
Wickham was taken aback. “No indeed, Mr Bennet, my wages are generous in the extreme and rival some of the more highly paid and far more experienced stewards’ earnings.”
“I ask because on more than one occasion; while flirting with me, your wife has told me I am not paying you enough. I assume you were unaware of this?” Henry stated. He leaned back in his comfortable chair and interlaced his fingers over his belly.
Johanna Wickham did not expect Mr Bennet to confront her and her husband with her actions. She was sure that as the master of the estate was a bachelor, he would take that which she was willing to give to gain more money and to have George first become the godson and, after some passionate interludes, the heir. “Mr Bennet must have misunderstood me,” she prevaricated.
“No, Madam, there is no confusion. Did you not notice that my valet accompanies me around the estate when I am not with your husband?” Henry returned. “She also has been attempting to convince me to stand as your son’s godfather. Please explain why one so wholly unconnected with your family would agree to be a godparent to your son?”
She had not noticed the valet with his master. While she was trying to formulate a plausible response, her husband interjected.
“After I forbade you to attempt the same with Mr Darcy and Lord Matlock, you embarrass us by trying this with Mr Bennet? Why Johanna? You wanted me to earn more, and I do, by a wide margin,” Wickham demanded. “Mr Bennet has no connection to our family; why on earth would he take a position that a relative or a close friend would? Did you not promise me you would not flirt with any more of my employers or any other men?”
“With your husband here as witness, you will not approach me unless you are invited to do so, and that will only be in the presence of your husband. If, and only if, it is needed, or I deem it is time, your husband and I will discuss his future increased wages. It is not something I will discuss with any other but him,” Henry articulated firmly.
How was it her wiles had not worked on this man? They had always worked with other men in the past. Johanna Wickham was unnerved that Mr Bennet was not only not charmed by her, but had also reported all to her husband.
Wickham stood. He stared at his wife, who followed suit. “This will not happen again. My apologies, Mr Bennet.” He bowed, his wife gave a passable curtsy, and they left the study.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
March 1791
In the almost three years since Lucas Wickham had been his steward, his wife had never approached Henry again. From what he could see, his steward was taking a much firmer hand with his spouse.
Henry prepared to travel to London in early March. Like he always did, he intended to make a stop at Longbourn. He was aware that Fanny was with child again, and like she had with little Jane, she was insisting it was the son and heir who would end the entail. Yes, she was mean of understanding, but her husband could have easily corrected and educated her in the ways of the gentry years ago, but he had chosen not to.
Even though Fanny was not well pleased Jane was not the son she had demanded, because the girl, who had recently turned three, looked very much like Fanny did at the same age, she doted on her daughter. She did not take her disappointment that Jane was not a male out on her. Rather, Fanny extolled Jane’s beauty to one and all.
Sadly, Henry’s niece had made Jane wary of him with tales of how he would steal their home, and of course, Thomas did nothing to correct the impression, preferring to laugh instead.
Henry could only hope that as Jane got older she would begin to think for herself. At three, it was far too early to judge the girl’s character. She was an extremely serene and biddable girl, which did not portend well for the future. If Jane did not grow out from under her mother’s shadow, Henry hoped the next child, son or daughter, would not have the same character.
After three days of travel, made far more pleasant by the retreat of winter as spring took over, Henry arrived at the Red Lion Inn in Meryton on the second day of March. The next morning, he met with Sir Hugh Morris, the owner of Netherfield Park. Henry was aware the man wanted to sell based on information he had learnt from Gardiner, who had heard about the baronet’s situation from Phillips. The latter was a good solicitor, but Henry would not trust him with confidential information because his wife, Hattie, was the biggest gossip in the area. She was only rivalled by her sister Fanny. It was known that she was not averse to searching through Phillips’s papers to find tittle-tattle to share.
After meeting with Sir Hugh and looking over the estate, Henry took some time to think. He made a decision and a day or so later, Henry decided to purchase the property. Sir Hugh vowed not to mention Henry’s name to anyone except his own solicitor from Hertford. Sir Hugh would receive the funds from Henry’s man of business. When the sale was complete,Gardiner would approach Phillips and request he act as the agent to lease the estate out on behalf of a client of his who would remain anonymous. That way, Henry would have no direct dealings with Phillips, and there would be no danger of Hattie Phillips seeing his name.
With his business transacted, Henry headed to Longbourn the morning of the seventh of March, the day after the Sabbath. He felt it was sad that he was so close to his family in physical distance, but yet so far emotionally.
When he arrived at the house, it was in an uproar. There was caterwauling emanating from upstairs. Henry could hear Fanny screeching. “Take that wilful dark thing away from me. How dare it be born a girl? I told it to be a son! I do not want to see this wilful disobedient child.”
