{{prxprp253.jpg}} || PRIDE AND PREJUDICE 253 ||

Chapter XLVIII

The whole party were in hopes of a letter from Mr. Bennet the

next morning, but the post came in without bringing a single

line from him. His family knew him to be, on all common

occasions, a most negligent and dilatory correspondent, but at

such a time, they had hoped for exertion. They were forced to

conclude, that he had no pleasing intelligence to send, but even

of that they would have been glad to be certain. Mr. Gardiner

had waited only for the letters before he set off.

When he was gone, they were certain at least of receiving

constant information of what was going on, and their uncle

promised, at parting, to prevail on Mr. Bennet to return to

Longbourn, as soon as he could, to the great consolation of his

sister, who considered it as the only security for her husband's not

being killed in a duel.

Mrs. Gardiner and the children were to remain in Hertfordshire

a few days longer, as the former thought her presence might be

serviceable to her nieces. She shared in their attendance on

Mrs. Bennet, and was a great comfort to them in their hours of

freedom. -- Their other aunt also visited them frequently, and

always, as she said, with the design of cheering and heartening

them up, though as she never came without reporting some

fresh instance of Wickham's extravagance or irregularity, she

seldom went away without leaving them more dispirited than

she found them.

All Meryton seemed striving to blacken the man, who, but

three months before, had been almost an angel of light. He was

declared to be in debt to every tradesman in the place, and his

intrigues, all honoured with the title of seduction, had been

extended into every tradesman's family. Every body declared that

he was the wickedest young man in the world; and every body

began to find out, that they had always distrusted the appearance

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