Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen Chapter 20 As the Miss Dashwoods entered the drawing room of the park the next day at one door,
Mrs.
Palmer came running in at the other,
Looking as good-humoured and merry as before.
"'I'm so glad to see you,
' said she,
"'for it is so bad a day I was afraid you might not come,
"'which would be a shocking thing as we go away tomorrow.
"'I'm so sorry we cannot stay longer.
"'However,
We shall meet again in town very soon,
I hope.
' They were obliged to put an end to such an expectation.
"'Not go to town?
' cried Mrs.
Palmer with a laugh.
"'I shall be quite disappointed if you do not.
"'I could get the nicest house in the world for you next door to ours in Hanover Square.
' They thanked her,
But were obliged to resist all her entreaties.
"'Oh,
My love!
' cried Mrs.
Palmer to her husband,
Who had just entered the room.
"'You must help me persuade the Miss Dashwoods to go to town this winter.
' Her love made no answer,
And after slightly bowing to the ladies,
Began complaining of the weather.
"'How horrid this all is!
' said he.
"'Such weather makes everything and everybody disgusting.
"'Dullness is as much produced within doors as without by rain.
"'What the devil does Sir John mean by not having a billiard room in his house?
' The rest of the company soon dropped in.
"'I'm afraid,
Miss Marianne,
' said Sir John,
"'you have not been able to take your usual walk to Allingham today.
' Marianne looked very grave and said nothing.
"'Oh,
Don't be so sly before us,
' said Mrs.
Palmer,
"'for we know all about it,
I assure you,
And I admire your taste very much,
"'for I think he is extremely handsome.
"'We do not live a great way from him in the country,
You know.
"'I never was at his house,
But they say it's a pretty sweet place.
' "'As vile a spot as I ever saw in my life,
' said Mr.
Palmer.
Marianne remained perfectly silent,
Though her countenance betrayed her interest in what was said.
"'Is it very ugly?
' continued Mrs.
Palmer.
"'Then it must be some other place that's so pretty,
I suppose.
' When they were seated in the dining room,
Sir John observed with regret that they were only eight altogether.
"'My dear,
' he said to his lady,
"'why did you not ask the Gilbers to come to us today?
' "'Did I not tell you,
Sir John,
When you spoke to me about it before,
"'that it could not be done?
"'They dined with us last night.
' "'You and I,
Sir John,
' said Mrs.
Jennings,
"'should not stand upon such ceremony.
' "'Then you will be very ill-bred,
' cried Mr.
Palmer.
"'My love,
You contradict everybody,
' said his wife with her usual laugh.
"'Do you know you're quite rude?
' "'I did not know I contradicted anybody "'in calling your mother ill-bred.
' "'You might abuse me as you please,
' "'said the good-natured old lady.
"'You have taken Charlotte off my hands "'and cannot give her back again.
' Charlotte laughed heartily to think her husband could not get rid of her,
And exultingly said she did not care how cross he was to her as they must live together.
The studied indifference,
Insolence and discontent of her husband gave her no pain,
And when he scolded or abused her,
She was highly diverted.
"'Mr.
Palmer is so droll,
' said she in a whisper to Eleanor.
"'He is always out of humour.
' Eleanor was not inclined,
After a little observation,
To give him credit for being so genuinely and unaffectedly ill-natured or ill-bred as he wished to appear.
His temper might perhaps be a little soured by finding that through some unaccountable bias in favour of beauty,
He was the husband of a very silly woman.
But she knew that this kind of blunder was too common for any sensible man to be lastingly hurt by it.
It was rather a wish of distinction,
She believed,
Which produced his contemptuous treatment of every body and his general abuse of everything before him.
It was the desire of appearing superior to other people.
"'Oh,
My dear Miss Dashwood,
' said Mrs.
Palmer soon afterwards,
"'will you come and spend some time at Cleveland this Christmas?
' "'Now pray do,
And come while the Westons are with us.
' "'My love,
' applying to her husband,
"'don't you long to have the Miss Dashwoods come to Cleveland?
' They both eagerly and resolutely declined her invitation.
"'But indeed you must and shall come.
"'You cannot think what a sweet place Cleveland is.
"'And we're so gay now,
For Mr.
Palmer's always going about "'the country canvassing against the election.
"'But poor fellow,
It's very fatiguing to him,
"'for he's forced to make everybody like him.
' "'Eleanor could hardly keep her countenance "'as she assented to the hardship of such an obligation.
"'How charming it will be,
' said Charlotte,
"'when he's in Parliament,
Won't it?
"'But do you know he says he'll never frank for me?
"'He declares he won't.
"'Don't you,
Mr.
Palmer?
' "'Mr.
Palmer took no notice of her.
"'He cannot bear writing,
You know,
' she continued.
"'He says it's quite shocking.
' "'No,
' said he,
"'I never said anything so irrational.
"'Don't palm all your abuses of language upon me.
"'There now,
You see how droll he is.
"'Sometimes he won't speak to me for half a day altogether,
"'and then he comes out with something so droll "'about anything in the world.
' "'She surprised Eleanor very much "'as they returned into the drawing room,
"'by asking her whether she did not like Mr.
Palmer excessively.
' "'Certainly,
' said Eleanor.
"'He seems very agreeable.
"'Well,
I'm so glad you do.
"'Mr.
Palmer's excessively pleased with you and your sisters,
"'I can tell you.
"'And you can't think how disappointed he will be "'if you don't come to Cleveland.
' "'Eleanor was again obliged to decline her invitation,
"'and by changing the subject put a stop to her entreaties.
"'She thought it probable that as they lived in the same county,
"'Mrs.
Palmer might be able to give some more particular account "'of Willoughby's general character "'than could be gathered from the Middleton's partial acquaintance with him.
"'She began by inquiring if they saw much of Mr.
Willoughby at Cleveland,
"'and whether they were intimately acquainted with him.
"'Oh dear,
Yes,
I know him extremely well,
' replied Mrs.
Palmer.
"'Not that I ever spoke to him indeed,
But I have seen him for ever in town.
"'Romare saw him here once before,
But I was with my uncle at Weymouth.
"'However,
I dare say we should have seen a great deal of him in Somersetshire,
"'if it had not happened very unluckily "'that we should never have been in the country together.
"'I know why you inquire about him very well.
"'Your sister is to marry him.
' "'Upon my word,
' replied Eleanor,
"'you know much more of the matter than I do,
"'if you have any reason to expect such a match.
"'Don't pretend to deny it,
Because you know it's what everybody talks of.
"'I assure you I heard of it in my way through town.
"'My dear Mrs.
Palmer!
' "'Upon my honour I did.
"'I met Colonel Brandon Monday morning at Bond Street,
"'and he told me of it directly.
"'Colonel Brandon tell you of it?
"'Surely you must be mistaken.
"'To give such intelligence to a person who could not be interested in it,
"'even if it were true,
"'is not what I should expect Colonel Brandon to do.
"'But I do assure you it was so.
"'When we met him,
He began talking of my brother and sister,
"'and one thing and another,
And I said to him,
"'So,
Colonel,
There is a new family come to Barton Cottage,
I hear,
"'and Mama sends me word they're very pretty,
"'and that one of them is going to be married to Mr.
Willoughby of Coombe Magna.
"'Is it true,
Pray?
' "'And what did the Colonel say?
' "'Oh,
He did not say very much,
But he looked as if he knew it to be true.
"'Mr.
Brandon was very well,
I hope.
"'Oh yes,
Quite well,
And so full of your praises.
"'He did nothing but say fine things of you.
"'I am flattered by his commendation,
' said Eleanor.
"'He seems an excellent man,
And I think him uncommonly pleasing.
' "'So do I.
"'He's such a charming man that it's quite a pity he should be so grave and so dull.
"'Mama said he was in love with your sister too.
"'Is Mr.
Willoughby much known in your part of Somersetshire?
' said Eleanor.
"'Oh yes,
Extremely well.
"'That is,
I do not believe many people are acquainted with him "'because Coombe Magna is so far off.
"'But they all think him extremely agreeable,
I assure you.
"'Nobody is more liked than Mr.
Willoughby wherever he goes,
"'and so you may tell your sister.
"'Mrs.
Palmer's information respecting Willoughby was not very material,
"'but any testimony in his favour,
However small,
Was pleasing to her.
' "'I'm so glad we got acquainted at last,
' continued Charlotte.
"'And now I hope we shall always be great friends.
"'And I'm so glad your sister's going to be well married.
"'I hope you will be a great deal at Coombe Magna.
' "'You have been long acquainted with Colonel Brandon,
Have you not?
' said Eleanor.
"'Yes,
A great while,
Ever since my sister married.
"'He was a particular friend of Sir John's,
I believe,
' she added in a low voice.
"'He would have been very glad to have had me if he could,
"'but Mama did not think the match good enough for me.
"'Otherwise Sir John would have mentioned it to the Colonel,
"'and we should have been married immediately.
"'Did not Colonel Brandon know of Sir John's proposal to your mother before it was made?
' "'Had he never owned his affection to yourself?
"'Oh no,
But if Mama had not objected to it,
"'I dare say he would have liked it of all things.
"'However,
I'm much happier as I am.
"'Mr Palmer is just the type of man that I like.
'"
