19 Persuasion Read By Stephanie Poppins

The story concerns Anne Elliot, an Englishwoman of 27 years, whose family moves to lower their expenses and reduce their debt by renting their home to an admiral and his wife. In this episode: Anne tries hard to contain her glee.

Keywords: Stephanie Poppins English voice relax rest sleep bedtime story tales authentic classic literature

Transcript

Hello.

Welcome to Sleep Stories with Steph,

Your go-to romantic podcast that guarantees you a calm and entertaining transition into a great night's sleep.

Come with me as we immerse ourselves in a romantic journey to a time long since forgotten.

But before we begin,

Let's take a moment to focus on where we are now.

Take a deep breath in through your nose and let it out with a long sigh.

Now close your eyes and feel yourself sink deeper into the support beneath you.

It is time to relax and fully let go.

There is nothing you need to be doing now and nowhere you need to go.

Happy listening.

Persuasion by Jane Austen Volume 2,

Chapter 7 I,

Miss Louisa Musgrove,

That is the name,

Continued the Admiral.

I wish young ladies had not such a number of fine Christian names.

I should never be out if they were all Sophies or something of that sort.

Anyway,

This Miss Louisa was to marry Frederick,

Or so we thought.

He was courting her week after week.

The only wonder was what they could be waiting for till the business at Lyme came.

And then,

Indeed,

It was clear enough they must wait till her brain was set to right.

But there was always something odd in the way of going on.

Instead of staying at Lyme,

Frederick went off to Plymouth,

Then he went off to see Edward.

We've seen nothing of him since November.

Even Sophie could not understand it.

And now Louisa Musgrove is to marry James Benwick.

I thought Benwick a very pleasing young man.

I understand he bears an excellent character,

Said Anne.

Oh yes,

There's not a word to be said against James Benwick.

He is only a commander,

Said the admiral.

And these are bad times for getting on.

But he's not another thought I know of.

An excellent,

Good-hearted fellow,

I assure you.

Although that soft sort of manner does not do him justice.

Indeed you are mistaken,

Sir,

Said Anne.

I should never agore want of spirit from Captain Benwick's manners.

I thought them particularly pleasing,

And I will answer for it they were generally pleased.

Well,

Ladies are the best judges.

But James Benwick's rather too piano for me,

And although very likely it's all our partiality,

Sophie and I cannot help thinking about Frederick's manners being much better than his.

There's something about Frederick much more to our taste.

And the thing is certainly true,

It's not a mere bit of gossip.

We have it from Frederick himself.

His sister had a letter from him yesterday in which he tells of it,

And he just had it in a letter from Harville,

Written on the spot from Uppercross.

I fancy they're all at Uppercross.

This was an opportunity which Anne could not resist.

I hope,

Admiral,

I hope there's nothing in the style of Captain Wentworth's letter to make you and Mrs Croft particularly uneasy.

It did seem last autumn as if there were an attachment between him and Louise in Musgrove.

Not at all,

Not at all,

Said the Admiral.

There's not an oath or murmur from beginning to end.

Anne looked down to hide her smile.

No,

No,

Frederick's not a man to whine and complain.

He's too much spirit for that.

If the girl likes another man better,

It is very fit she should have him.

But now he must begin again with someone else.

I think we must get him to Bath.

Sophie must write and beg him to come to Bath.

There are pretty girls enough here,

I'm sure.

It would be of no use to go to Uppercross again,

For that other Miss Musgrove,

I find,

Is bespoke by her cousin,

A young parson.

Do not think,

Miss Elliot,

We had better try and get Captain Wentworth to Bath.

While they were taking this walk,

Captain Wentworth was already on his way thither.

Before Mrs Croft had written,

He was arrived and the very next time Anne walked out,

She saw him.

Mr Elliot was attending his two cousins and Mrs Clay.

They were in Milsom Street.

It began to rain,

Not much,

But enough to make shelter desirable for women and quite enough to make it very desirable for Miss Elliot to have the advantage of being conveyed home in Lady Dalrymple's carriage,

Which was seen waiting a little distance away.

She,

Anne and Mrs Clay,

Therefore,

Turned into mollens while Mr Elliot stepped to Lady Dalrymple to request her assistance.

He soon joined them again,

Successful,

Of course.

Lady Dalrymple would be most happy to take them home and would call for them in a few minutes.

Her ladyship's carriage was a barouche and did not hold more than four with any comfort.

Miss Catteret was with her mother.

Consequently,

It was not reasonable to expect accommodation for all three camped and placed ladies.

There could be no doubt as to Miss Elliot.

Whoever suffered inconvenience,

She must suffer none,

But it occupied a little time to settle the point of civility between the other two.

The rain was a mere trifle and Anne was more sincere in preferring a walk with Mr Elliot.

But the rain was also a mere trifle to Mrs Clay.

She would hardly allow it even to drop at all and her boots were so thick,

Much thicker than Miss Anne's,

And in short,

Her civility rendered her quite as anxious to be left to walk with Mr Elliot as Anne could be.

And it was discussed between them with a generosity so polite and so determined that the others were obliged to settle it for them.

Miss Elliot,

Maintaining Mrs Clay,

Had a little cold already and missed Mr Elliot deciding on appeal that his cousin Anne's boots were rather thickest.

It was fixed accordingly that Mrs Clay should be at the party in the carriage and just as they had reached this point where Anne,

As she sat near the window,

Described most decidedly and distinctly Captain Wentworth walking down the street.

Her start was perceptible only to herself but she instantly felt she was the greatest simpleton in the world,

The most unaccountable and absurd.

For a few minutes she saw nothing before her.

It was all confusion.

She was lost and when she'd scolded back her senses she found the others still waiting for the carriage and Mr Elliot just setting off for Union Street on a commission of Mrs Clay's.

She now felt a great inclination to go to the outer door.

She wanted to see if it rained.

Why was she to suspect herself of another motive?

Captain Wentworth must be out of sight.

She left her seat.

She would go.

One half of her should not always be so much wiser than the other half or always suspecting the other of being worse than it was.

She would see if it rained.

She was sent back,

However,

In a moment by the entrance of Captain Wentworth himself among a party of gentlemen and ladies,

Evidently his acquaintance,

And whom he must have joined a little below Milsome Street.

He was more obviously struck and confused by the sight of her than she'd ever observed before.

He looked quite red.

For the first time since their renewed acquaintance,

Anne felt she was betraying the least sensibility of the two.

She had the advantage of him in the preparation of the last few moments.

All the overpowering,

Blinding,

Bewildering first effects of strong surprise were over with her.

Still,

However,

She had enough to feel.

It was agitation,

Pain,

Pleasure,

A something between delight and misery.

He spoke to her then turned away.

The character of his manner was embarrassment.

She could not have called it either cold or friendly or anything as certainly as embarrassed.

After a short interval,

However,

He came towards her and spoke again.

Mutual inquiries on common subjects passed,

Neither of them probably much the wiser for what they heard,

And Anne continuing falling sensible of his being less at ease than formerly.

They had,

By dint of being so very much together,

Got to speak to each other with a considerable portion of apparent indifference and calmness,

But he could not do it now.

Time had changed him,

Or Louisa had changed him.

There was consciousness of some sort or another.

He looked very well,

Not as if he'd been suffering in health or spirits,

And he talked of Uppercross,

Of the Musgroves,

Nay,

Even of Louisa,

And had even a momentary look of his own arch significance as he named her.

But yet it was Captain Wentworth not comfortable,

Not easy,

Not able to feign that he was.

It did not surprise,

But it grieved Anne to observe Elizabeth would not know him.

She saw that he saw Elizabeth,

That Elizabeth saw him,

That there was complete internal recognition on each side.

She was convinced he was ready to be acknowledged as an acquaintance,

Expecting it,

And she had the pain of seeing her sister turn away with unalterable coldness.

Lady Dalrymple's carriage,

For which Miss Elliot was growing very impatient,

Now drew up.

The servant came in to announce it.

It was beginning to rain again,

And altogether there was a delay and a bustle and a talking,

Which must make all the little crowd in the shop understand that Lady Dalrymple was calling to convey Miss Elliot.

At last Miss Elliot and her friend,

Unattended but by the servant,

Were walking off,

And Captain Wentworth,

Watching them,

Turned again to Anne,

And by manner rather than words was offering his services to her.

I'm very much obliged to you,

Was her answer,

But I'm not going with them.

The carriage would not accommodate so many.

I walk,

I prefer walking.

But it rains!

Oh,

Very little,

Nothing that I regard.

After a moment's pause he said,

Though I came only yesterday,

I've equipped myself properly for Bath already,

You see,

Pointing to a new umbrella.

I wish you would make use of it,

If you're determined to walk,

Though I think it would be more prudent to let me get you a chair.

Anne was very much obliged to him,

But declined it all,

Repeating her conviction that the rain would come to nothing at present,

And adding,

I am only waiting for Mr.

Elliot.

He'll be here in a minute,

I'm sure.

She had hardly spoken the words when Mr.

Elliot walked in.

Captain Wentworth recollected him perfectly.

There was no difference between him and the man who had stood on the steps at Lyme,

Admiring Anne as she passed,

Except in the air and look and manner of the privileged relation and friend.

He came in with eagerness,

Appeared to see and think only of her,

Apologised for his stay,

Was grieved to have kept her waiting,

And anxious to get her away without further loss of time,

And before the rain increased.

And in another moment they walked off together,

Her arm in his,

A gentle and embarrassed glance,

And a good morning to you,

Being all that Anne had time for,

As she passed away.

Reviews

Lovely narration as always. Though the extra clicks to reach this page break thread with the relaxing benefits (I have worn to IT my thoughts on these test features, simple is better!)..
Hopefully a happier story for Anne now. A tricky tale to follow, though I am keen to know the outcome. 🧡
Edit: Your tracks are easy to find🥰. Sorry, I meant after playing any track on I.T. there are several test pages that follow, 'how do you feel?', 'thoughts? ', 'share?' Etc. The listener has to click through each of these pages, from 4 to 6 of them, in order to reach your final page to leave a review on your track. Frustrating, I have written to I.T. and they are testing 2 different designs. 😓

Ooh, a little spark and smolder… finally!😂 thank you, dear one!🙏🏼❤️