Though it was clear her witticism at her mother’s expense surprised her companions, they all laughed at it, regardless. Elizabeth looked over at her mother fondly, noting how Mrs. Bennet was hanging off every word Lady Catherine said, and she turned back to her companions, raising an eyebrow.
“I cannot say if Lady Catherine is the font of all sense,” said Fitzwilliam dryly to her unspoken question, “but your mother appears to find her wisdom fascinating.”
“Do not speak of my mother so, Fitzwilliam,” sniffed Anne. “Do you not know she is attentive to the need to instruct others? She has a wide range of subjects about which she can speak intelligently.”
“Regardless of her expertise in any of them!”
Laughter again erupted between them. Miss Bingley appeared to regard them all with her usual disdain, though Elizabeth thought she caught a hint of wistful longing as if she wished to be in Elizabeth’s place. Lady Catherine glanced over at them, though her attention soon returned to Mrs. Bennet, while the younger girls did not even seem to notice, their thoughts fixed firmly on their discourse.
“Then, shall we?” asked Colonel Fitzwilliam. “We must beprepared to grasp the opportunity when presented with it.”
In the end, it was absurdly easy to direct Lady Catherine to the subject Elizabeth thought her mother needed to hear. Their conversation slowed thereafter as they paid more attention to the lady’s instructions, and they offered a comment or two when an opportunity appeared to present itself. Reminding Lady Catherine of what she had said to Elizabeth more than two months more did the trick and steered her to the subject of young ladies and their educations.
“I am excessively attentive to all such things.” Lady Catherine was pontificating on a point she had made about propriety, the genesis of which Elizabeth had not heard. “If you follow my good advice, your standing in local society will increase.
“Of course,” said Lady Catherine as an aside, “you have not the means to maintain much of a presence in London. Then again,” the lady glanced at Mr. Bingley, and directed a more subtle look at Mr. Darcy, “with the company you have kept of late, you may gain access.”
Mrs. Bennet appeared quite apprehensive at the notion. “Mr. Bennet does not much care for London society, and I do not know that I would understand how to behave.”
“Hmm, then I suppose it may be best for you to refrain,” said Lady Catherine, not unkindly. “Society in London is not for the faint of heart.”
“But your daughters may benefit from it,” said Anne, nodding to the younger girls. “There must be a larger circle with whom to associate there, and a much greater chance of finding good husbands than in a small society such as Meryton.”
Anne had made the critical point, for Mrs. Bennet fairly glowed at the notion of her daughters marrying men of consequence. Then Mr. Darcy delivered the coup de grâce.
“Of course,” said he, projecting an offhand manner, “they would need to learn how to behave in a manner those in Londonwould find acceptable. As they are not educated in such things, you would need to see to it before they come out in London society.”
As Mrs. Bennet frowned at Mr. Darcy as she did at anyone who suggested her daughters were at all deficient, Lady Catherine’s eyes widened in remembrance.
“Oh, yes, of course!” exclaimed she. “Mrs. Bennet, when Miss Elizabeth informed me that none of your daughters ever had a governess, I was appalled. For gentle families of any standing in society, a woman hired to train young ladies is not only desirable but essential.”
“A governess?” asked Mrs. Bennet, appearing confused. “What need have they for a governess?”
Lady Catherine peered at Mrs. Bennet in that quelling manner she often used when she thought another was not paying her words the attention they warranted. Mrs. Bennet appeared to realize this, for she squeaked and fell silent as if expecting to feel the hammer of Lady Catherine’s judgment come down upon her head. As if in satisfaction, Lady Catherine nodded.
“When they were girls, you should have had a governess, Mrs. Bennet, for a governess removes the responsibility of educating gentle ladies from their mothers. Estate mistresses should not take on that task themselves, for they become a slave to the demands of their children.
“However, in this you are correct—now that your youngest is a young woman, you do not need a governess. Instead, I highly recommend you consider hiring a companion for them at the first available opportunity.”
Mrs. Bennet regarded Lady Catherine as if trying to understand. “I have heard some mention that sending them to school would be desirable.”
For a moment, Lady Catherine pursed her lips as if considering. “While some recommend schools, I would adviseit only in certain circumstances. Take Darcy and Georgiana, for example. Georgiana has a companion now, but when she was younger, she attended a school for young girls.”
“It was due to my situation as my sister’s guardian,” said Mr. Darcy by way of explanation. “As she has no mother and no siblings close to her age and I am a bachelor, Fitzwilliam and I thought it best to expose her to other young ladies of her station.”
“Yes, I can see that,” said Mrs. Bennet, considering Mr. Darcy as if she had never seen him before. “Then you recommend a companion for my Lydia?”
“Forallyour youngest daughters, Mrs. Bennet,” said Lady Catherine, allowing for no disagreement by her tone. “As your daughters’ situations are not the same as my niece’s, there is no reason for you to send them to school. These days, school is a device of the lower classes, used to teach their young ladies how to emulate the behavior of the quality. The more common practice is to hire a woman to provide the education they require, which can be done easily in the home without exposing them to undesirable elements that frequent today’s schools.”
Lady Catherine was only stating facts as she knew them, and not attempting to disparage. Given Miss Bingley’s frequent boasts of the school she attended, others could construe it as an attack against her manners. From Miss Bingley’s expression, carefully neutral, completely belied by her flashing eyes, she did not think it was so benign. Lady Catherine noticed nothing of this, for her focus remained upon Mrs. Bennet.
“Did Miss de Bourgh have a governess?” ventured Mrs. Bennet.
“Mrs. Jenkinson sees to Anne’s needs to this day,” said Lady Catherine. “She was Anne’s governess when she was younger and became a companion when Anne reached the age that a companion was more appropriate. A companion not onlyprovides education, but as the title suggests, she provides companionship when the woman becomes an adult.”
It was clear Mrs. Bennet had another question, but equally evident she was uncertain how to ask it. Anne saw it and spoke, easing her curiosity.
“Mrs. Jenkinson does not teach me any longer, Mrs. Bennet, but she has become a genuine friend in every sense of the word. She is becoming a little too old to return to a position as a governess, but I will probably keep her with me when I marry and have children.”
