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Chapter VI

The ladies of Longbourn soon waited on those of

Netherfield. The visit was returned in due form.

Miss Bennet's pleasing manners grew on the good-~

will of Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley; and though the

mother was found to be intolerable, and the younger sisters

not worth speaking to, a wish of being better acquainted

with _them_ was expressed towards the two eldest. By Jane

this attention was received with the greatest pleasure; but

Elizabeth still saw superciliousness in their treatment of

everybody, hardly excepting even her sister, and could not

like them; though their kindness to Jane, such as it was,

had a value, as arising, in all probability, from the in-

fluence of their brother's admiration. It was generally evi-

dent, whenever they met, that he _did_ admire her; and to

_her_ it was equally evident that Jane was yielding to the

preference which she had begun to entertain for him from

the first, and was in a way to be very much in love; but she

considered with pleasure that it was not likely to be dis-

covered by the world in general, since Jane united with

great strength of feeling, a composure of temper and a

uniform cheerfulness of manner which would guard her

from the suspicions of the impertinent. She mentioned

this to her friend Miss Lucas.

'It may, perhaps, be pleasant,' replied Charlotte, 'to be

able to impose on the public in such a case; but it is some-

times a disadvantage to be so very guarded. If a woman

conceals her affection with the same skill from the object of

it, she may lose the opportunity of fixing him; and it will

then be but poor consolation to believe the world equally

in the dark. There is so much of gratitude or vanity in

almost every attachment, that it is not safe to leave any to

itself. We can all _begin_ freely -- a slight preference is

natural enough; but there are very few of us who have

heart enough to be really in love without encouragement.

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