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Frances and Grace Gardiner were the daughters of the attorney who kept his office in Meryton. An older brother, Edward, became an apprentice in London at a young age when school did not appeal to him and built a profitable business there.

As their father grew older, Mr Hiram Phillips became his associate, married Grace, and succeeded in the position after Mr Gardiner’s death.

Old Mr Gardiner had been successful and left each daughter with a dowery of some few thousand pounds invested in government bonds that gave each woman’s husband an additional two hundred pounds per annum.

The advantage of being sisters was that Frances and Grace did not have to wait for acceptable visiting hours to appear at their homes.

When her husband expected to meet with clients for several hours, Grace enjoyed arriving at Longbourn before lunch and remaining until after tea.

On such occasions, Frannie generally sent her sister home with biscuits and cakes to feed Mr Phillips for supper that evening.

~~~

Aunt Phillips brought interesting gossip to Longbourn the morning after the Netherfield tea.

Mrs Bennet enjoyed her younger sister’s many stories.

The pair of sisters could recite scandals from ten years earlier without hesitation despite sometimes repeating hurtful tales in front of the participants at suppers or teas.

Today, Mrs Phillips arrived with interesting news that the whole of Meryton discussed in the tavern, the mercantile, and the houses–Mr Wickham had made some gentleman from Wiltshire wealthy with investments in his company.

“How rich, sister?” asked Mrs Bennet, always interested in stories about money.

“Mr Phillips said that the man, Mr Leaky, bought beers for everyone in the Running Pig before leaving for London on the stagecoach. Leaky told everyone that Mr Wickham doubled his thousand pounds after the tea ships arrived from the east.”

“A thousand pounds? How is that possible?”

“Well, Mr Phillips said Mr Leaky purchased something called stock in Mr Wickham’s company. When the tea ships returned from the New World with gold for the tea they had sold, Mr Wickham paid Mr Leaky a thousand pounds in profits.”

“The man–Leaky–received back his thousand pounds, then,” asked Mrs Bennet.

“No,” Mrs Phillips insisted. “Mr Leaky still owns stock in Mr Wickham’s company and will get more profits when the ships sail back from the Americas next year.”

~~~

At the supper table, Mrs Bennet shared her sister’s tale but discovered that her husband discounted the tale as an impossibility. The lady insisted on the truth of the tale and asked, “But why is it impossible, Mr Bennet? The wealth from tea has built many fortunes in England.”

“That is true, Mrs Bennet, but such a return in a single year is not possible.”

“My brother Gardiner reports good profits whenever his ships return from the lands in the east.”

Smiling at his wife when he realised that she had paid attention to his conversations with Edward, Mr Bennet explained, “And Mr Gardiner’s ships only return after two years, if they return at all.”

“Return at all? What do you mean?” asked Mrs Bennet, who listened carefully for the answer along with four of her daughters. Lydia paid no attention to the conversation.

“Many ships disappear in storms or are captured by pirates or the French. And the trip to the east, where tea and spices originate, is very long. They sail for twelve months to reach a factory in India, the Indies, or China. Then it takes another twelve months for the ship to sail back to England.”

“What is a factory, Father?” asked Mary.

“Here, I mean a building or compound where English merchants gather goods from the local people to keep them secure until a merchant ship arrives to carry the items back to Britain. There are factories in many port cities where British men collect tea, spices, cloth, and other items brought back to England for our use or trade with other nations.”

“And the trip requires two years?” Mrs Bennet asked again as if unable to imagine the time spent retrieving things like tea or calico cloth. “But could you invest some funds and make such profits?”

Mr Bennet looked up from his plate again and decided to deflect her question. “My dear, I promise to write to our brother Gardiner and ask his opinion.”

Frannie smiled and allowed the subject to end for that evening. Thomas would write to Edward and share the story. He smiled and thought, ‘A thousand pounds profit on an investment of one thousand pounds–impossible. This Wickham fellow might be interesting to observe after all.’

~~~

Similar conversations occurred at different homes in Meryton.

The Gouldings were amazed by the story of great riches and wished for such a benefactor.

Winston Goulding was a good gentleman farmer, but he wished for a larger dowry for his daughter.

His son would inherit the estate, and he would not mortgage his farm to help Harriet without hurting Samuel’s future.

At Lucas Lodge, Sir William and Lady Lucas shared the gossip over the supper table with their four children.

Charlotte was in awe of such a tale, while John was doubtful, and this made the older sister consider what she had heard; John was a level-headed man striving to make Lucas Lodge a profitable estate.

The two youngest, Frederick and Maria, did not share their opinions.

But the husband and wife wished such a windfall came their way.

Allan Rushing and William Saunders spoke about the tale at the livery stable, where they met when their horses required new shoes. They doubted the tale until Mr Jones, the blacksmith, confirmed it.

“I was in the tavern when the gentleman from London bought everyone beers. He said it was another year of profits from the new-something-or-other,” reported Jones. “I didn’t pay close attention after the barkeep set up the beers, except that the man praised Mr Wickham.”

Across Meryton, many gentlemen and their ladies praised George Wickham for his business acumen and generosity based on the incident in the Running Pig. The strangers from London passed money between them and caught the attention of every person in the village.

~~~

Thomas Bennet frowned after deciphering a page of scribbling that purported to be a letter of introduction.

He did not recognise the name when he glanced at the letter upon opening the seal.

However, after a moment’s contemplation, Bennet realised the poorly written letter originated from his heir–Mr William Collins.

‘My grandfather bent to the wishes of his daughter and entailed the estate on male heirs of his body. A boy was something that Frannie and I did not manage,’ he thought.

‘But our daughters are comely, and we shall see them happily married in time. And I shall put aside funds yearly to provide for my widow and daughters. They can do with less lace this winter, and I shall not buy as many books.’

Lifting the letter again, Bennet sighed, ‘Unfortunately, the man appears poorly educated.’

He glanced about his library and thought of his home and estate. ‘I shall attempt to improve his education in the years left to me. Longbourn’s master must be knowledgeable about farming and sensible…and this letter was not written by a gentleman with any sense.’

~~~

At the table for luncheon, Thomas withdrew the letter from a pocket and opened it before his family. He cleared his throat and said, “I have an announcement of some interest to us all.”

“What is it, Mr Bennet?” asked Mrs Bennet. “Has something happened?”

“Did Bonaparte land an army at Dover?” asked Elizabeth, intentionally creating more conversation. The ladies only calmed after Mr Bennet stood and called for order at the table after glaring half-heartedly at Elizabeth.

“Lizzy, I believe Bonaparte is burning towns and villages in Germany. No, this is a family matter. It appears my heir has written to me after all these years.”

Mrs Bennet sat back and gasped in true distress. “He lives? It is unsupportable that some stranger can take your estate from your children.”

“It is the entailment that my grandfather placed on Longbourn. Unless you and I can produce a male heir, William Collins inherits the entire estate when I am dead and gone. His father was my cousin. That man’s mother was my father’s sister.”

“But you will live for many more years,” Elizabeth stated firmly to ensure her father’s compliance.

“Who is this man?” asked Jane. “You have never spoken of him before today.”

“The entailment distresses me, Jane,” Mrs Bennet explained. “Before today, your father has kindly remained silent to protect my feelings.”

“Mr Collins claims to be a clergyman who has recently received a living in Kent. And he has invited himself to visit for a fortnight to get to know us better,” explained Mr Bennet.

Mary asked her parents, “Has he come to look over the estate? Does he intend to count the silver and the linens?”

Neither parent corrected their youngest daughter’s remark, and Lydia smirked. Then, Mary asked to read the letter, and Mr Bennet handed it over.

“When does this Mr Collins arrive, Papa?” asked Kitty.

“On Thursday…tomorrow.”

Mrs Bennet huffed, “One day’s notice. How very rude.”

Her forehead wrinkled in thought for a moment, Elizabeth commented, “If he arrives on Thursday, we shall display Mr Collins for the neighbourhood at Lucas Lodge on Friday night. The ladies and gentlemen of Meryton can meet our father’s cousin.”

“Oh dear,” Mary said as she met her father’s gaze and then turned to Elizabeth. “Sister, if Mr Collins speaks in the same manner that he writes, no one will ever have the opportunity to speak again.”

“What do you mean?” Elizabeth asked, reaching for the letter that Mary handed over without hesitation.

Attempting to read the scribbles, Elizabeth sighed and said, “This letter is one continuous sentence.”

“And fills the entire page top to bottom and side to side,” Mr Bennet added.

~~~

“Charles, I do not wish to attend this dinner in some farmhouse on Thursday,” Caroline declared at lunch. “Lady Whatever spoke as if it were a grand event, but I saw that neither she nor her daughters were dressed appropriately.”

Miss Bingley shuddered before continuing, “I can only imagine what their furnishings and linens are like.”

Louisa and Geoffrey exchanged glances. They had both heard Caroline make similar remarks regarding the items in their London home where the younger sister and Charles had spent the previous season.

“Miss Bingley, there are many reasons to use household items as long as they are suitable,” stated Mr Darcy.

“I suppose for people who are just getting by, but for people such as us, we deserve the best things in our lives. Do you not agree, sir?”

Lifting his teacup and taking a sip, Darcy replied, “I enjoy a comfortable coat that I have worn for several years and would never replace the carriage my grandfather had built for the Darcy family to use. My housekeepers ensure that the best linens are reserved for special occasions or when the Prime Minister or my relatives from the north call for tea or dinner.”

For a moment, Caroline imagined being the hostess for the Earl and Countess of Matlock at the Darcy home in Mayfair.

“What about your aunt in Kent?” asked Charles. “Does she rate the best linens when she comes to call?”

Making a sour face, Darcy said, “Lady Catherine knows not to call at my home in London, and the last time she arrived uninvited at Pemberley, she was forced to spend her nights in a local tavern.”

“You did not give your aunt houseroom?” asked Louisa Hurst, surprised by their guest’s story.

“I was not in residence, and there are standing orders that no one is allowed to appear at the door and invite themselves to stay at Pemberley,” Darcy explained.

He looked aside and added, “During a visit the summer after my father died, a great deal of porcelain vanished into her many trunks. As a consequence, she has been barred from my door since.”

“If you wish to remain at Netherfield on Thursday, I shall allow it,” Charles told Caroline. He looked at his sister, brother-in-law, and guest before adding, “And we shall leave on time.”

“Charles, quality folk arrive when the time is appropriate for them,” Caroline said, dismissing her brother’s words.

Bingley kept his face blank as he continued, “My carriage will leave at six of the clock for Lucas Lodge tomorrow. I believe the distance is four miles.”

~~~

That same afternoon, Lucas Lodge was busy with Lady Lucas, Charlotte, and Maria involved with baking bread and biscuits to serve at the supper with the neighbours in two nights.

True to his promise to his wife, Sir William allowed her to invite their friends for supper and hired the cook from the Running Pig to cook on Thursday.

The Lucas ladies would not be exhausted or overheated from standing over the fire the whole day before the guests arrived.

The meal included meats, potatoes, legumes of several kinds, ale, beer, and tea.

There would be biscuits and cakes for pudding.

The couple debated hotly offering wine to their guests, but Sir William decried that expense –wines had to be imported from Italy or Spain.

Because of the Berlin Decree by Bonaparte, the merchants in those countries now resorted to smuggling wine to Tripoli and Algiers on the African coast to sell to British merchants.

The prices for wine had risen to heights that denied the beverage to everyone but the very richest persons.

~~~