# ■ 3 Mr Collins visits Longbourn

‘I hope，my dear，’said Mr Bennet to his wife at break- fast the next morning，‘that you have told the cook to send up a good dinner today，as I am expecting a visitor．’

‘Who is it， my dear？ I know of nobody who is coming， un- less Charlotte Lucas happens to call in， and I hope my dinners are good enough for her．’

‘The person I'm talking about is a gentleman and a stranger．’

Mrs Bennet's eyes shone with excitement．‘It's Mr Bingley，I'm sure！ Why，Jane，you never mentioned it！Well，I’ll be extremely glad to see him． Lydia， my love，ring the bell．I must speak to the cook at once．’

‘It is not Mr Bingley，’said her husband．‘It's a person whom I have never seen before．’

This caused general astonishment， and he had the pleasure of being eagerly questioned by his wife and five daughters all at the same time． Having amused himself for some time with their curiosity，he finally explained．‘I have recently received a letter from my cousin，Mr Collins，who，as you know，will inherit all my property when I die， and may throw you out of this house as soon as he wants．’

‘Oh， my dear！’cried his wife．‘Please don't mention that hateful man． It's the hardest thing in the world to accept the fact that your property is not left to your own children， and I'm sure， if I were you， I'd have tried to do something about it．’

Jane and Elizabeth tried to explain the legal situation to her again．They had often attempted to do this before．But it was a matter which Mrs Bennet refused to understand， and she con- tinued to complain bitterly about Mr Collins．

‘It certainly is most unjust，’agreed Mr Bennet，‘and noth- ing can clear Mr Collins from the guilt of inheriting this house．But if you listen while I read his letter to you，you may perhaps be a little softened by his manner of expressing himself．’

He read aloud the following letter：

Dear Sir，

The disagreement between you and my late respected fa- ther always worried me， and since his death I have frequently wished to improve the relationship between our families．Af- ter a long period of study and training I have recently become a priest，and have been fortunate enough to gain the patron- age of Lady Catherine de Bourgh， widow of Sir Lewis de Bourgh．This generous lady has given me the post of rector at Hunsford， which was luckily vacant．Hunsford is the village near her own large country house in Kent．Here I carry out the duties of my profession whenever necessary， and I take great care to behave at all times with grateful respect towards her ladyship．As a priest，moreover， I feel it my duty to encourage all families in my area of influence to live peacefully．Because of this，I flatter myself that I am acting correctly in offering you my friendship．I am of course concerned that when I even- tually inherit all your property， your daughters will doubtless be very poor，and I do apologize for this．I promise you I am ready to make amends in every possible way—but more about this later．If you do not object， I propose to visit you and your family on Monday November 18th，at four o’clock， and shall probably stay until the following Saturday week．This will cause me no inconvenience at all，as Lady Catherine is far from objecting to my occasional absence from my duties．

I remain，dear sir，with respectful good wishes to your lady and your daughters， your friend， William Collins．

‘So we can expect this peace-making gentleman at four o’clock today，’said Mr Bennet，as he folded up the letter．‘He appears to be a most polite and serious young man．How considerate of Lady Catherine to allow him to visit us！’

‘Well，if he is ready to make amends to the girls in some way， I shall certainly not discourage him，’said Mrs Bennet．

‘Although it's difficult，’said Jane，‘to guess how he in- tends to do that，it's good of him to want to help us．’

‘I think he's peculiar，’said Elizabeth．‘He sounds too pleased with himself，and he speaks so politely of Lady Cather- ine！And why does he apologize for inheriting Father's prop- erty in future？ We know it's not his fault．Can he be a sensible man，sir？’she added，turning to Mr Bennet．

‘No， my dear， I think not．I have great hopes of finding him quite the opposite．There is a mixture of servility and self- importance in his letter， which promises to be entertaining．I am impatient to see him．’

Mary，the middle daughter， who spent most of her time reading and who seldom joined in family conversations， now re- marked that in her opinion his letter was well expressed．But Kitty and Lydia did not show any interest in the letter or its writer．As it was highly unlikely that their cousin would arrive in a regimental uniform， they could not imagine having any pleasure in meeting him． Their mother， however， had changed her attitude towards Mr Collins after his letter， and was now preparing to meet him with such calmness that it astonished her husband and daughters．

Mr Collins arrived punctually， and was received with great politeness by the whole family． Mr Bennet indeed said little，but the ladies were ready enough to talk， and Mr Collins did not seem in need of encouragement．He was a tall， heavy- looking young man of twenty-five．His expression was serious，and his manners very formal．Soon after his arrival， he said to Mrs Bennet，‘Madam， I must compliment you on having such a fine family of daughters． I had heard much of their beauty， but I find them even more beautiful than reports have stated．I do not doubt you will see them all well married quite soon．’

Mrs Bennet never quarrelled with compliments，and she answered，‘You're very kind，sir，and indeed I do hope so，be-cause otherwise they’ll have nothing at all to live on．’

‘You refer perhaps to my inheriting the Bennet property？’

‘Ah，yes，sir，I do！You must confess it is a sad business for my poor girls．’

‘I am very aware，madam，of the hardship to your lovely daughters—and could say more about this，but I am cautious of saying too much too soon．But I would like to say that I have come prepared to admire the young ladies．And perhaps when we know each other better—’

The bell rang for dinner，and the family moved into the dining-room with their guest．The girls smiled secretly at each other，as Mr Collins praised the hall，the dining-room and all the furniture．Mrs Bennet would normally have been delighted with such praise，but she could not help thinking that he was perhaps admiring it all as his future property．The dinner，too， he considered excellent，and he asked which of his charming cousins was responsible for it．But Mrs Bennet explained quite sharply to him that they were very well able to afford a good cook，and that her daughters had nothing to do in the kitchen． He begged her pardon immediately for offending her，and con- tinned to apologize for about a quarter of an hour．

Mr Bennet had hardly spoken up to now，but he thought it was time to enter the conversation．‘You seem very fortunate in your patron，Mr Collins，’he said．

He could not have chosen a better opening remark．Mr Collins spoke enthusiastically for several minutes in praise of Lady Catherine．‘Never in my life have I witnessed such con- siderate behaviour in a person of high birth！Although she is such a great lady，she has never treated me with disdain．She talks to me almost as an equal，and gives me advice．For exam- ple，she has recommended me to marry as soon as possible．And do you know，she has asked me to dinner twice at her house！ Some people consider her proud，but she has only ever been kind to me．She even took the trouble to visit my small house， and was thoughtful enough to suggest one or two improve- ments—some shelves upstairs．’

‘That is very correct and polite，I'm sure，’said Mrs Bennet．‘Does she live near you，sir？’

‘Only a small country road separates my poor house from Rosings Park，her ladyship's home．’

‘I think you said she is a widow？Has she any family？’

‘She has only one daughter，who will inherit Rosings and all Lady Catherine's property．A most charming young lady，un- fortunately in weak health．I often pay her some little compli- ment on her appearance or her accomplishments when I visit Rosings．Lady Catherine appreciates these compliments to her daughter，and I see it as my duty to please her ladyship．’

‘I am sure you're right，’said Mr Bennet．‘No doubt you are expert at flattering with delicacy．May I ask how you think of these pleasing compliments？’

‘Some of them come to me at the time，but in my spare moments I do occasionally prepare a few words which may be suitable for different occasions．’

Mr Bennet listened to his cousin with the greatest emjoyment．Mr Collins was as foolish as he had hoped．But by tea-time Mr Bennet had had enough，and after tea，asked his guest to read aloud to the ladies．However，when a novel was handed to Mr Collins，he looked shocked，and protested that he never read novels．He chose a religious book instead，and start- ed reading in a slow，serious voice．Lydia could not hide her boredom for long，and after only three pages she interrupted him rudely，to ask her mother a question about one of the offi- cers in Meryton Mr Collins was offended，and refused to read any more，although Mrs Bennet and her other daughters apolo- gized for Lydia's lack of manners．

Mr Collins was not a sensible man，and neither education nor society had improved him．The respect he felt for his patron， and his very good opinion of himself and his new position， made him proud and servile at the same time．Now that he had a home and a considerable income，he had decided to marry． The Bennet girls，who would lose their inheritance because of him，had a reputation for being attractive and charming，and his idea of making amends to them was to marry one of them． He considered this an excellent plan，and thought himself ex- tremely generous and unselfish in carrying it out．

He had known he was right when he arrived at Longbourn and saw Jane Bennet's lovely face．As the eldest，she should marry first，and for the first evening she was his choice．But the next morning，after a fifteen-minute conversation with Mrs Bennet，he had to change his mind．When he explained that he was hoping to find a wife among her daughters，she replied， with a happy smile，that her eldest daughter was very likely to be engaged soon．‘But there are my other daughters，Mr Collins，’she continued，encouragingly．

Mr Collins had only to change from Jane to Elizabeth，and it was soon done—done while Mrs Bennet was pouring the tea． Next to Jane in birth and beauty，Elizabeth was the obvious choice．

Mr Bennet was delighted，hoping that she might soon have two daughters married．The man whom she had so disliked the day before was now a favourite with her．

■ 3 柯林斯先生造訪浪搏恩

“親愛的，我希望你已經通知過廚師今天送上一份像樣的晚飯，我有客人來。”第二天早飯後班納特先生對妻子說。

“親愛的，是誰？除了夏洛特·盧卡斯偶爾來一趟，我不知道誰還會來。要是她，家常便飯就夠了。”

“我說的那個人是個有教養的男人，一個陌生人。”

班納特太太激動得兩眼放光。“是彬格萊先生，我敢肯定！簡，你怎麼從來沒有提過！啊，能見到他我高興極了。麗迪亞，我的乖，快拉鈴。我得馬上跟廚師講。”

“不是彬格萊先生，”她丈夫說，“這個人我以前從來沒有見過。”

一言既出，滿座皆驚。太太和五個女兒異口同聲，急切地向他發問，這使他十分得意。他先拿她們的好奇心逗了一會兒樂，最後作了解釋。“最近，我收到了遠房侄子柯林斯先生的一封來信。你們知道，我死後他要繼承我的一切財產，到時候可能隨時把你們趕出這幢房子。”

“哦，親愛的！”他妻子叫道。“請不要提那個可惡的傢伙。自己的財產不留給自己的孩子，這恐怕是世界上最難叫人接受的事情了。我要是你的話，肯定不會就此罷休。”

簡和伊麗莎白又向她解釋了一遍法律上的具體情況。她們以前經常向她解釋，可是這種事班納特太太拒不理解，她繼續叫苦不迭地對柯林斯先生發牢騷。

“這件事當然很不公平，”班納特先生表示贊同，“柯林斯先生繼承這幢房子受之有愧，無論怎樣他都難以免於這種愧疚。可是，如果你願意聽聽他的來信，他說話的口氣也許會使你的態度緩和一點。”

他大聲朗讀了以下這封信：

親愛的先生，

閣下與先父之不和一直令我深感不安。自從先父去世之後我一直希望重修兩家之好。經過長期學習與培訓，我已於最近成為牧師，並萬分榮幸地獲得劉易斯·德·包爾公爵的遺孀凱瑟琳·德·包爾夫人的恩寵。這位慷慨的夫人將漢斯福的教區長職位賜與了我，當時，這個職位正好空缺。漢斯福是個村莊，位於這位夫人在肯特郡巨大的鄉間別墅附近。在此，一有必要，我便履行自己的職責，而且無時無刻不極力表現出對夫人的感激和尊敬。另外，作為一名牧師，我感到有責任盡我力之所及，促進本教區家家戶戶親善和睦。有鑑於此，我自信向您伸出友誼之手是正確之舉。我最終繼承您的財產之後，諸位令媛一定會一無所有，對此我自然深感不安，併為此真切道歉。我向您保證我願意盡一切可能給予補償——這一點容後再敘。如果您不反對，我擬於11月18日星期一4點鐘前來拜謁您和全家，並有可能在貴府打擾至星期六離開。這不會引起我什麼不便，因為凱瑟琳夫人對於我偶爾離開職守絕無反對之意。

親愛的先生，我向尊夫人及諸位令媛致以尊敬的、良好的祝願。您的朋友威廉·柯林斯。

“所以，今天下午4點這位和事佬先生就要來了，”班納特先生說著，一面把信摺疊起來。“他像是一位知書達禮、嚴肅認真的年輕人。凱瑟琳夫人允許他拜訪我們，真是體貼入微呀！”

“那麼，如果他願意用某種方式給女兒們以補償的話，我當然不會給他潑冷水，”班納特太太說。

“雖然很難猜測，”簡說，“他打算如何補償我們，不過，他想幫助我們，倒是件好事。”

“我覺得他有點兒古怪，”伊麗莎白說。“他聽起來過於自鳴得意，談起凱瑟琳夫人又過於客氣！他將來繼承父親的財產為什麼要道歉？我們知道那不是他的錯。先生，他會是個理智的人嗎？”她轉向班納特先生，補充道。

“我想不是，親愛的。他極有可能恰恰相反。他在信中顯得既卑躬屈膝，又妄自尊大，這一定很有趣，我真想馬上見到他。”

年紀居中的女兒瑪麗大部分時間都在讀書，很少參與家人的談話，這時她插話說，在她看來，這封信意思表達得恰如其分。可是吉蒂和麗迪亞對這封信和它的作者沒表現出任何興趣。她們想象不出來見到表兄會有什麼樂趣，因為他極不可能穿著軍服來。不過，她們的母親聽完信之後改變了對柯林斯先生的態度，現在準備著心平氣和地迎接他，這使得丈夫和女兒們大為驚訝。

柯林斯先生準時到達，受到了全家極為客氣的接待。班納特先生實際上沒說幾句話，可是女士們總是有話可說，而柯林斯先生似乎也不需要鼓勵。這個年輕人25歲，高高的個子，樣子很穩重。他表情嚴肅，言談拘謹。他來到不久，就對班納特太太說：“夫人，您有這麼多懂事的女兒，我必須向您表示祝賀。關於她們的美貌我耳聞很多，如今相見，才知道比傳聞的漂亮百倍。我相信，您不久就會看到她們一個個喜結良緣。”

對於別人的誇獎，班納特太太從來不爭執，於是她回答道：“謝謝你的吉言，先生，我確實希望她們找到好男人，不然的話，她們生活就無依無靠了。”

“您大概是指我要繼承班納特家的財產一事吧？”

“啊，是的，先生，一點兒不錯！你也得承認，對我那可憐的女兒來說，這可不是什麼令人高興的事。”

“夫人，我十分清楚令媛們的困難處境——關於這一點，我還有話要說，可是我十分注意講話要寧少勿多，寧晚勿早。不過，我願意告訴您，對於到這裡後對姑娘們產生愛慕之情，我是有思想準備的。也許等我們互相熟悉之後——”

開飯的鈴聲響了，全家人同客人一起來到了餐廳。柯林斯先生稱讚客廳、餐廳和所有的傢俱，姑娘們對此偷偷地相視而笑。要在往常，班納特夫人聽到這樣的讚美，一定會樂滋滋的，可是這次她禁不住心裡嘀咕，說不定他是在欣賞自己未來的財產呢。晚飯他也說好極了，就問是哪位迷人的表妹的手藝。可是班納特夫人十分尖刻地向他解釋說，他們完全請得起好廚師，女兒們根本不用下廚房。他於是趕緊請她原諒自己的冒失，接著又道歉了大約一刻鐘。

到現在為止，班納特先生幾乎還沒有說什麼話，但是，他覺得現在應該介入談話了。“柯林斯先生，你被授與聖職似乎非常幸運，”他說。

他選的這句開場白再合適不過了。柯林斯先生興致勃勃地講了幾分鐘，稱讚凱瑟琳夫人。“我一生中還從來沒有見過出身如此高貴的人會這樣體貼人！雖然她是一位貴婦人，可是她從來都沒有看不起我。她和我談話幾乎就像和同等身份的人談話一樣，還給我提出建議。例如，她建議我儘早結婚。而且，您知道嗎，她請我到她家吃過兩次飯！有人認為她高傲，可是她對我從來都很和藹。她甚至不怕麻煩到寒舍去過一次，還十分細心地讓我作一兩處改進——在樓上放幾個架子。”

“我相信她做得很對、很有禮貌，”班納特太太說，“她住得離你近嗎，先生？”

“夫人的家、羅新斯莊園和寒舍僅有一條鄉間小路相隔。”

“我想你剛說過她是個寡婦？有孩子嗎？”

“她只有一個女兒，將會繼承羅新斯莊園和凱瑟琳夫人所有的財產。是一位很有魅力的年輕小姐，可惜健康狀況欠佳。我拜訪羅新斯時經常稍稍稱讚一下她的容貌和才藝。凱瑟琳夫人很喜歡對她女兒的稱讚。我把取悅夫人當成了我的職責。”

“我認為你做得對，”班納特先生說。“你奉承人體貼入微，毫無疑問是個專家。請問你是怎麼想起這些取悅之辭的？”

“有些是當下隨口說的，不過，空閒時我也準備幾句，也許在不同的場合可以用上。”

班納特先生饒有興趣地聽了這位侄子的談話。柯林斯先生正像他所預料的那樣愚蠢。到喝茶時分，班納特先生覺得已經聽夠了，茶點過後，他便請客人給姑娘們大聲讀點東西。可是，柯林斯先生一看到遞給他的是小說，臉上馬上露出吃驚的神色，堅持說他從來不讀小說。相反，他選了一本宗教方面的書，然後用緩慢、嚴肅的聲調讀了起來。麗迪亞不會長時間地掩飾自己的厭倦情緒，他只讀了三頁，她便粗魯地打斷了他，問她母親麥裡屯一位軍官的情況怎麼樣了。柯林斯先生感情受到了傷害，拒絕再往下讀，儘管班納特太太和其他幾個女兒為麗迪亞的失禮道了歉。

柯林斯先生不是一位很有理智的人，教育和社會都改變不了他。對保護人的尊敬、自命不凡和新職位使得傲氣和奴性在他身上並存。他現在既然有了窩，收入又相當可觀，於是便決定結婚了。班納特家的姑娘以嬌媚迷人聞名遐邇，他所謂的補償就是同其中的一位姑娘結婚，以彌補這些姑娘因為他而失去的繼承權。他認為這是一個極好的計劃，還覺得自己使之付諸實施，非常慷慨無私。

他到達浪搏恩，見了簡·班納特可愛的臉蛋後，便肯定自己的決定是正確的。簡作為長女，應當首先結婚，在頭天晚上，他就選中了她。但第二天早上與班納特太太經過15分鐘的交談，他就不得不改變自己的想法了。他解釋說他要在幾位姑娘中找一位妻子時，班納特太太臉上洋溢出幸福的微笑，她回答說，大女兒很可能不久就訂婚。“可是我還有別的女兒呢，柯林斯先生，”她繼續說，語調中帶著鼓勵。

柯林斯先生不得不把簡換成伊麗莎白，不一會兒就定了下來——班納特太太沏茶時他做出了決定。伊麗莎白在年齡和姿色上都僅次於簡，選她是很顯然的。

班納特太太樂滋滋的，滿心希望不久將有兩個女兒嫁出去。前一天她還感到厭惡的那個男人一下子成了她的掌上明珠。