“This is a parade,”he cried,“which does one good;it gives such an elegance to misfortune!Another day I will do the same;I will sit in my library,in my nightcap and powdering gown,and give as much trouble as I can;or,perhaps,I may defer it till Kitty runs away.”

As Mrs.Gardiner began to wish to be at home,it was settled that she and the children should go to London,at the same time that Mr.Bennet came from it.The coach,therefore,took them the first stage of their journey, and brought its master back to Longbourn.

“Yes;where else can they be so well concealed?”

The present unhappy state of the family rendered any other excuse for the lowness of her spirits unnecessary; nothing, therefore,could be fairly conjectured from that,though Elizabeth, who was by this time tolerably well acquainted with her own feelings, was perfectly aware that, had she known nothing of Darcy,she could have borne the dread of Lydia's infamy somewhat better.It would have spared her,she thought,one sleepless night out of two.

“Lizzy,I bear you no ill-will for being justified in your advice to me last May,which,considering the event,shows some greatness of mind.”

“You go to Brighton. I would not trust you so near it as Eastbourne for fifty pounds!No,Kitty,I have at last learnt to be cautious,and you will feel the effects of it.No officer is ever to enter into my house again,nor even to pass through the village. Balls will be absolutely prohibited,unless you stand up with one of your sisters.And you are never to stir out of doors till you can prove that you have spent ten minutes of every day in a rational manner.”