“He meant, I believe,” replied Jane, “to go to Epsom, the place where

they last changed horses, see the postilions, and try if anything could

be made out from them. His principal object must be to discover the

number of the hackney coach which took them from Clapham. It had come

with a fare from London; and as he thought the circumstance of a

gentleman and lady’s removing from one carriage into another might be

remarked, he meant to make inquiries at Clapham. If he could anyhow

discover at what house the coachman had before set down his fare, he

determined to make inquiries there, and hoped it might not be impossible

to find out the stand and number of the coach. I do not know of any

other designs that he had formed; but he was in such a hurry to be gone,

and his spirits so greatly discomposed, that I had difficulty in finding

out even so much as this.{359}”

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“The Post.”


CHAPTER XLVIII.

THE whole party were in hopes of a letter from Mr. Bennet the next

morning, but the post came in without bringing a single line from him.

His family knew him to be, on all common occasions, a most negligent and

dilatory correspondent; but at such a time they had hoped for exertion.

They were forced to conclude, that he had no pleasing intelligence to

send; but even of that they would have been glad to be certain. Mr.

Gardiner had waited only for the letters before he set off.
When he was gone, they were certain at least of{360} receiving constant

information of what was going on; and their uncle promised, at parting,

to prevail on Mr. Bennet to return to Longbourn as soon as he could, to

the great consolation of his sister, who considered it as the only

security for her husband’s not being killed in a duel.
Mrs. Gardiner and the children were to remain in Hertfordshire a few

days longer, as the former thought her presence might be serviceable to

her nieces. She shared in their attendance on Mrs. Bennet, and was a