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Page 52
Anne, amused in spite of herself, was rather distressed for an answer,
and the Admiral, fearing he might not have been civil enough,
took up the subject again, to say--
"The next time you write to your good father, Miss Elliot,
pray give him my compliments and Mrs Croft's, and say that we are
settled here quite to our liking, and have no fault at all to find
with the place. The breakfast-room chimney smokes a little,
I grant you, but it is only when the wind is due north and blows hard,
which may not happen three times a winter. And take it altogether,
now that we have been into most of the houses hereabouts and can judge,
there is not one that we like better than this. Pray say so,
with my compliments. He will be glad to hear it."
Lady Russell and Mrs Croft were very well pleased with each other:
but the acquaintance which this visit began was fated not to proceed
far at present; for when it was returned, the Crofts announced
themselves to be going away for a few weeks, to visit their connexions
in the north of the county, and probably might not be at home again
before Lady Russell would be removing to Bath.
So ended all danger to Anne of meeting Captain Wentworth at Kellynch Hall,
or of seeing him in company with her friend. Everything was safe enough,
and she smiled over the many anxious feelings she had wasted
on the subject.
Chapter 14
Though Charles and Mary had remained at Lyme much longer after
Mr and Mrs Musgrove's going than Anne conceived they could have been
at all wanted, they were yet the first of the family to be at home again;
and as soon as possible after their return to Uppercross
they drove over to the Lodge. They had left Louisa beginning to sit up;
but her head, though clear, was exceedingly weak, and her nerves
susceptible to the highest extreme of tenderness; and though
she might be pronounced to be altogether doing very well,
it was still impossible to say when she might be able to bear
the removal home; and her father and mother, who must return
in time to receive their younger children for the Christmas holidays,
had hardly a hope of being allowed to bring her with them.
They had been all in lodgings together. Mrs Musgrove had
got Mrs Harville's children away as much as she could, every possible
supply from Uppercross had been furnished, to lighten the inconvenience
to the Harvilles, while the Harvilles had been wanting them
to come to dinner every day; and in short, it seemed to have been
only a struggle on each side as to which should be most disinterested
and hospitable.
Mary had had her evils; but upon the whole, as was evident
by her staying so long, she had found more to enjoy than to suffer.
Charles Hayter had been at Lyme oftener than suited her; and when
they dined with the Harvilles there had been only a maid-servant to wait,
and at first Mrs Harville had always given Mrs Musgrove precedence;
but then, she had received so very handsome an apology from her
on finding out whose daughter she was, and there had been so much
going on every day, there had been so many walks between their lodgings
and the Harvilles, and she had got books from the library,
and changed them so often, that the balance had certainly been
much in favour of Lyme. She had been taken to Charmouth too,
and she had bathed, and she had gone to church, and there were a great many
more people to look at in the church at Lyme than at Uppercross;
and all this, joined to the sense of being so very useful,
had made really an agreeable fortnight.
Anne enquired after Captain Benwick, Mary's face was clouded directly.
Charles laughed.
"Oh! Captain Benwick is very well, I believe, but he is
a very odd young man. I do not know what he would be at.
We asked him to come home with us for a day or two: Charles undertook
to give him some shooting, and he seemed quite delighted, and, for my part,
I thought it was all settled; when behold! on Tuesday night,
he made a very awkward sort of excuse; `he never shot' and he had
`been quite misunderstood,' and he had promised this and he had
promised that, and the end of it was, I found, that he did not mean to come.
I suppose he was afraid of finding it dull; but upon my word
I should have thought we were lively enough at the Cottage
for such a heart-broken man as Captain Benwick."
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