His father made to speak, but Darcy continued with some passion.
“Absit invidia verbo—may hostility be absent from my words. Frederick is an excellent manager of the estate: he works closely with the leaseholders, he cares diligently for the cottagers, and he can talk about four crop rotations with labourers, farmers, and dukes alike. He was born to his role and, under your exemplary tutelage, has become a great man. No, Father, I’ve never envied Frederick. He is the finest of brothers.”
Once again silence pervaded the room until Darcy could no longer put off the further disappointment his father would soon know. “But I came not to talk about Anne or Wickham. Those things are behind us. Rather, I’ve found that I and this society do not suit.”
“Whatever can you mean?”
“Let me explain. Pardon my previous strong words, for I will soon need to seek your forgiveness.
“I am a barrister, sought after, able to expect good reward for my services. But the nature of these services disgusts me… yes,disgustis the proper word. You were correct that I visited with Lady Catherine. She called me to Rosings, rather imperiously, and instructed me to assist the rector, Mr. Collins, to claim his inheritance through an entail on an estate in Hertfordshire. This was urgent, she claimed, and in some mysterious way used her rank and contacts in Chancery to hear his claim in three months rather than the usual three years. How she achieved this priority, I do not know, especially as she sees Lord Eldon, the Lord Chancellor, as nothing but a tradesman. Collins is a fool and sycophant—as are most of those in Lady Catherine’s employ—but she became incensed when he began to make love to Anne through flattery and sweet-talking.
“So I went at her behest to the Court of Chancery at St. Albans and proceeded to eject a family from their ancestral home for no better reason than the husband suffered an apoplexy—but was still living—and there was no heir, but five daughters and the lady running the estate. The law was on Collins’s side, but the right lay with the family.”
Darcy, unable to remain still, walked to the tall windows that lit the room; then, reluctantly, turned back to his father.
“No, sir! I find I can no longer support what supposes to dispense equity but creates inequity instead. This was but one example from the civil courts. But in the criminal courts, is it justice to hang a woman who wished to join her husband, who had been transported to New South Wales? To facilitate this end, she stole a cheap handkerchief but was hanged instead of being transported, asan example. Of what? I do not know.”
He pressed his lips together in a slight grimace. “I’ve been thinking long and hard about these issues. Such that I findmyself in a corrupt pit—from which I must escape.”
His father remained silent. It was clear his son was struggling with serious issues of honour, self-respect, and integrity.
“I believe in the rule of law; that English law is the most refined in the world—as Blackstone says, ‘the birthright of all English subjects’.
“But the Court of Chancery is in decline. The Lord Chancellor, Lord Eldon, is openly referred to asLord Endlessbecause he seems unwilling to come to final decisions; he procrastinates endlessly. We barristers are at the tail end of this sorry business, and by the time we argue cases in court, any fairness or equitable outcome has largely disappeared through the disbursement of egregious fees to clerks, solicitors, and corrupt masters. I no longer see myself as an honourable man when I’m tarred with the brush of being aChancery lawyer.
“To cut to the chase, I’ve accepted a position as deputy judge-advocate for the colony of New South Wales. We sail in just over a fortnight’s time.”
“You leave England on so little notice!” His father slumped in his chair; he stared bewilderedly at his son. Was there anything he could do to prevent this madness?
“Are you mad? Have you the pox, or has the mercury affected your mind?”
“No, sir—‘tis not madness, but more an awakening—I hardly knew myself until now.” Darcy could scarcely look to his father. “My apologies, sir. The vessel has a sailing schedule to which I must adhere. I had been contemplating the move for some time, but the last case precipitated my intent. The appointment is for five years; whether it will be extended or not is unknown at this time.”
Darcy’s father sprang to his feet, sweeping up his glass and draining it.
“There must be some other course of action? I can increaseyour allowance, then you need not seek employment in the law. Frederick will support me in this. Surely, if you find the law so distasteful, anything is better than the dangerous trip to New Holland. And to live in a penal town—what disgrace!”
Cloud shadows temporarily dimmed the light in the room; Darcy could barely see the anger in his father’s face. “I’m sorry, sir, but I am determined.”
“As I am flummoxed. To throw away our place in society, that an earl’s nephew would take up such a role.”
“The judge-advocate is third to the governor, after the lieutenant governor. Colonel Macquarie has been appointed governor and takes over from Commodore Bligh, who, apparently, has been made prisoner by some rebels. As the judge-advocate’s deputy, there will be much to do to restore order in the colony.”
“But what of your duty here—to Frederick, to Georgiana, to me?”
“These are indeed misfortunes. I spoke of my inclination to Frederick some months past. He understands that as a younger son, I’ve only a passing duty to Pemberley, which is his to manage and preserve. Perhaps my true lament is leaving Georgiana. At twelve years, what a sprite she is! And I’ll not see her develop into the fine young lady she’ll become from the beautiful child she is now. But she has both you and Frederick to guide her—that is enough.
“I understand Frederick is at Pemberley, but is Georgiana yet in London? I would gladly see her before I leave.”
To George Darcy, his son’s decision to leave English society, to leave his family, to leave his heritage, and to sail across the known world to a place of felons, forgers, and rebels against the English Crown was absurd, against all the principles by which he had been raised. But Fitzwilliam possessed that stubborn Darcy pride, and his father knew that once made, this decision could not be undone. He should move on as besthe could: I must containmypride in order to sustainhis.
“Georgiana is with the Fitzwilliams at Matlock House. I will have her come to a family dinner here tonight if that suits.”
***
The dinner was all one could expect from such an occasion. Initially, Georgiana was delighted to attend a family dinner with just her father and her brother, William, as she called him. The food, as usual, was delightful, and both her father and brother seemed determined to include her in every conversation. Following the meal, they retired to the family parlour, where a fire was burning brightly, taking the chill off the evening air. Darcy decanted a glass of port for himself and their father, while Georgiana carefully poured hot water from the urn into a fine silver teapot. After she filled her cup and added fresh cream to her taste, Darcy turned to her,
“Dearest sweetling, there’s no gentle way to tell you. I’m leaving England and journeying to the colony of Sydney in New South Wales, having accepted a commission under Governor Macquarie.”
