Precaution

Chapter 6

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During the week of mourning, the intercourse between Moseley Hall and the

rectory was confined to messages and notes of inquiry after each other's

welfare: but the visit of the Moseleys to the deanery had been returned;

and the day after the appearance of the obituary paragraph, the family of

the latter dined by invitation at the Hall. Colonel Egerton had recovered

the use of his leg, and was included in the party. Between this gentleman

and Mr. Benfield there appeared, from the first moment of their

introduction, a repugnance which was rather increased by time, and which

the old gentleman manifested by a demeanor loaded with the overstrained

ceremony of the day, and which, in the colonel, only showed itself by

avoiding, when possible, all intercourse with the object of his aversion.

Both Sir Edward and Lady Moseley, on the contrary, were not slow in

manifesting their favorable impressions in behalf of the gentleman. The

latter, in particular, having ascertained to her satisfaction that he was

the undoubted heir to the title, and most probably to the estates of his

uncle, Sir Edgar Egerton, felt herself strongly disposed to encourage an

acquaintance she found so agreeable, and to which she could see no

reasonable objection. Captain Jarvis, who was extremely offensive to her,

from his vulgar familiarity, she barely tolerated, from the necessity of

being civil, and keeping up sociability in the neighborhood. It is true,

she could not help being surprised that a gentleman, as polished, as the

colonel, could find any pleasure in an associate like his friend, or even

in the hardly more softened females of his family; then again, the

flattering suggestion would present itself, that possibly he might have

seen Emily at Bath, or Jane elsewhere, and availed himself of the

acquaintance of young Jarvis to get into their neighborhood. Lady Moseley

had never been vain, or much interested about the disposal of her own

person, previously to her attachment to her husband: but her daughters

called forth not a little of her natural pride--we had almost said of her

selfishness.

The attentions of the colonel were of the most delicate and insinuating

kind; and Mrs. Wilson several times turned away in displeasure at herself,

for listening with too much satisfaction to nothings, uttered in an

agreeable manner, or, what was worse, false sentiments supported with the

gloss of language and a fascinating deportment. The anxiety of this lady

on behalf of Emily kept her ever on the alert, when chance, or any chain

of circumstances, threw her in the way of forming new connexions of any

kind; and of late, as her charge approached the period of life her sex

were apt to make that choice from which there is no retreat, her

solicitude to examine the characters of the men who approached her was

really painful. As to Lady Moseley, her wishes disposed her to be easily

satisfied, and her mind naturally shrank from an investigation to which

she felt herself unequal; while Mrs. Wilson was governed by the

convictions of a sound discretion, matured by long and deep reasoning, all

acting on a temper at all times ardent, and a watchfulness calculated to

endure to the end.

"Pray, my lady," said Mrs. Jarvis, with a look of something like

importance, "have you made any discovery about this Mr. Denbigh, who died

in the church lately?"

"You know, Lady Moseley," said Colonel Egerton, "that in town, all the

little accompaniments of such a melancholy death would have found their

way into the prints; and I suppose this is what Mrs. Jarvis alludes to."

Lady Moseley bowed her head with dignity, and the colonel had too much

tact to pursue the conversation; but the captain, whom nothing had ever

yet abashed, exclaimed,

"Oh, I am sure neither the old man nor his son looked much like a duke, or

so much as an officer either," exclaimed Mrs. Jarvis, who thought the

latter rank the dignity in degree next below nobility.

"There sat, in the parliament of this realm, when I was a member, a

General Denbigh," said Mr. Benfield, with his usual deliberation; "he was

always on the same side with Lord Gosford and myself. He and his friend,

Sir Peter Howell, who was the admiral that took the French squadron, in

the glorious administration of Billy Pitt, and afterwards took an island

with this same General Denbigh: aye, the old admiral was a hearty blade; a

good deal such a looking man as my Hector would make."

"Indeed!" said the old gentleman, with a look of surprise, "I never knew

that before; I cannot say they resemble each other much."

"Not that I ever knew, Emmy dear. Sir Frederick Denbigh did not look much

like the admiral; he rather resembled (gathering himself up into an air of

formality, and bowing stiffly to Colonel Egerton) this gentleman, here."

Mrs. Wilson changed the conversation to one more general; but the little

that had fallen from Mr. Benfield gave reason for believing a connexion,

in some way of which they were ignorant, existed between the descendants

of the two veterans, and which explained the interest they felt in each

other.

During dinner, Colonel Egerton placed himself next to Emily, and Miss

Jarvis took, the chair on the other side. He spoke of the gay world, of

watering-places, novels, plays, and still finding his companion reserved,

and either unwilling or unable to talk freely, he tried his favorite

sentiment. He had read poetry, and a remark of his lighted up a spark of

intelligence in the beautiful face of his companion that for a moment

deceived him; but as he went on to point out his favorite beauties, it

gave place to a settled composure, which at last led him to imagine the

casket contained no gem equal to the promise of its brilliant exterior.

After resting from one of his most labored displays of feeling and

imagery, he accidentally caught the eyes of Jane fastened on him with an

expression of no dubious import, and the soldier changed his battery. In

Jane he found a more willing auditor; poetry was the food she lived on,

and in works of the imagination she found her greatest delight. An

animated discussion of the merits of their favorite authors now took

place; to renew which, the colonel early left the dining-room for the

society of the ladies; John, who disliked drinking excessively, being

happy of an excuse to attend him.

The younger ladies had clustered together round a window and even Emily in

her heart rejoiced that the gentlemen had come to relieve herself and

sisters from the arduous task of entertaining women who appeared not to

possess a single taste or opinion in common with themselves.

"You were saying, Miss Moseley," observed the colonel in his most

agreeable manner, as he approached them, "you thought Campbell the most

musical poet we have; I hope you will unite with me in excepting Moore."

Jane turned away in disgust; and that evening, while alone with Clara, she

took a volume of Moore's songs, and very coolly consigned them to the

flames. Her sister naturally asked an explanation of so extraordinary a

procedure.

"Oh!" cried Jane, "I can't abide the book, since that vulgar Miss Jarvis

speaks of it with so much interest. I really believe aunt Wilson is right

in not suffering Emily to read such things." And Jane, who had often

devoured the treacherous lines with ardor, shrank with fastidious delicacy

from the indulgence of a perverted taste, when it became exposed, coupled

with the vulgarity of unblushing audacity.

Colonel Egerton immediately changed the subject to one less objectionable,

and spoke of a campaign he had made in Spain. He possessed the happy

faculty of giving an interest to all he advanced, whether true or not; and

as he never contradicted, or even opposed unless to yield gracefully, when

a lady was his opponent, his conversation insensibly attracted, by

putting the s*x in good humor with themselves. Such a man, aided by the

powerful assistants of person and manners, and no inconsiderable

colloquial talents, Mrs. Wilson knew to be extremely dangerous as a

companion to a youthful female heart; and as his visit was to extend to a

couple of months, she resolved to reconnoitre the state of her pupil's

opinion forthwith in reference to his merits. She had taken too much pains

in forming the mind of Emily to apprehend she would fall a victim to the

eye; but she also knew that personal grace sweetened a benevolent

expression, and added force even to the oracles of wisdom. She labored a

little herself under the disadvantage of what John called a didactic

manner, and which, although she had not the ability, or rather taste, to

amend, she had yet the sense to discern. It was the great error of Mrs.

Wilson to attempt to convince, where she might have influenced; but her

ardor of temperament, and great love of truth, kept her, as it were,

tilting with the vices of mankind, and consequently sometimes in

unprofitable combat. With her charge, however, this could never be said to

be the case, Emily knew her heart, felt her love, and revered her

principles too deeply, to throw away an admonition, or disregard a

precept, that fell from lips she knew never spoke idly or without

consideration.

John had felt tempted to push the conversation with Miss Jarvis, and he

was about to utter something rapturous respecting the melodious poison of

Little's poems, as the blue eye of Emily rested on him in the fulness of

sisterly affection and checking his love of the ridiculous, he quietly

yielded to his respect for the innocence of his sisters; and, as if eager

to draw the attention of all from the hateful subject, he put question

after question to Egerton concerning the Spaniards and their customs.

"Never, madam," he replied. "I have much reason to regret that our service

lay in different parts of the country: his lordship was much with the

duke, and I made the campaign under Marshal Beresford."

Emily left the group at the window, and taking a seat on the sofa by the

side of her aunt, insensibly led her to forget the gloomy thoughts which

had begun to steal over her; which the colonel, approaching where they

sat, continued, by asking--

No reply was made to this remark, and Emily endeavored anxiously to draw

the mind of her aunt to reflections of a more agreeable nature. The

colonel, whose vigilance to please was ever on the alert, kindly aided

her, and they soon succeeded.

The merchant withdrew, with his family and guest, in proper season: and

Mrs. Wilson, heedful of her duty, took the opportunity of a quarter of an

hour's privacy in her own dressing-room in the evening, to touch gently on

the subject of the gentlemen they had seen that day.

"I am not sorry," continued the aunt, "to have you observe more closely

than you have been used to the manners of such women as the Jarvises; they

are too abrupt and unpleasant to create a dread of any imitation; but the

gentlemen are heroes in very different styles."

"Preference, aunt!" said her niece, with a look of astonishment;

"preference is a strong word for either; but I rather think the captain

the most eligible companion of the two. I do believe you see the worst of

him; and although I acknowledge it to be bad enough, he might amend; but

the colonel"--

"Why, everything about the colonel seems so seated, so ingrafted in his

nature, so--so very self-satisfied, that I am afraid it would be a

difficult task to take the first step in amendment--to convince him of its

necessity?

"Did you not hear him talk of those poems, and attempt to point out the

beauties of several works? I thought everything he uttered was referred to

taste, and that not a very natural one; at least," she added with a laugh,

"it differed greatly from mine. He seemed to forget altogether there was

such a thing as principle: and then he spoke of some woman to Jane, who

had left her father for her lover, with so much admiration of her

feelings, to take up with poverty and love, as he called it, in place of

condemning her want of filial piety--I am sure, aunt, if you had heard

that, you would not admire him so much."

"I do not admire him at all, child; I only want to know your sentiments,

and I am happy to find them so correct. It is as you think; Colonel

Egerton appears to refer nothing to principle: even the more generous

feelings I am afraid are corrupted in him, from too low intercourse with

the surface of society. There is by far too much pliability about him for

principle of any kind, unless indeed it be a principle to please, no

matter how. No one, who has deeply seated opinions of right and wrong,

will ever abandon them, even in the courtesies of polite intercourse: they

may be silent but never acquiescent: in short, my dear, the dread of

offending our Maker ought to be so superior to that of offending our

fellow creatures, that we should endeavor, I believe, to be even more

unbending to the follies of the world than we are."

"In the ordinary meaning of the words, he is certainly, my dear; yet you

soon tire of sentiments which will not stand the test of examination, and

of a manner you cannot but see is artificial. He may do very well for a

companion, but very ill for a friend; in short, Colonel Egerton has

neither been satisfied to yield to his natural impressions, nor to obtain

new ones from a proper source; he has copied from bad models, and his work

must necessarily be imperfect."

Kissing her niece, Mrs. Wilson then retired into her own room, with the

happy assurance that she had not labored in vain; but that, with divine

aid, she had implanted a guide in the bosom of her charge that could not

fail, with ordinary care, to lead her straight through the devious path of

female duties.

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