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Wives and Daughters

E >> Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell >> Wives and Daughters




When she came to a sense of the present, Mrs. Gibson was saying,--

'Upon my word, though Roger Hamley has never been a great favourite
of mine, this little attention of his has reminded me very forcibly
of a very charming young man--a ~soupirant~, as the French would
call him--Lieutenant Harper--you must have heard me speak of him,
Molly?'

'I think I have!' said Molly, absently.

'Well, you remember how devoted he was to me when I was at Mrs
Duncombe's, my first situation, and I only seventeen. And when the
recruiting party was ordered to another town, poor Mr. Harper came
and stood opposite the schoolroom window for nearly an hour, and I
know it was his doing that the band played "The girl I left behind
me," when they marched out the next day. Poor Mr. Harper! It was
before I knew dear Mr. Kirkpatrick! Dear me. How often my poor heart
has had to bleed in this life of mine! not but what dear papa is a
very worthy man, and makes me very happy. He would spoil me, indeed,
if I would let him. Still he is not as rich as Mr. Henderson.'

That last sentence contained the germ of Mrs. Gibson's present
grievance. Having married. Cynthia, as her mother put it--taking
credit to herself as if she had had the principal part in the
achievement--she now became a little envious of her daughter's good
fortune in being the wife of a young, handsome, rich and moderately
fashionable man, who lived in London. She naively expressed her
feelings on this subject to her husband one day when she was really
not feeling quite well, and when consequently her annoyances were
much more present to her mind than her sources of happiness.

'It is such a pity!' said she, 'that I was born when I was. I should
so have liked to belong to this generation.'

'That's sometimes my own feeling,' said he. 'So many new views seem
to be opened in science, that I should like, if it were possible, to
live till their reality was ascertained, and one saw what they led
to. But I don't suppose that's your reason, my dear, for wishing to
be twenty or thirty years younger.'

'No, indeed. And I did not put it in that hard unpleasant way; I
only said I should like to belong to this generation. To tell the
truth, I was thinking of Cynthia. Without vanity, I believe I was as
pretty as she is--when I was a girl, I mean; I had not her dark
eye-lashes, but then my nose was straighter. And now look at the
difference! I have to live in a little country town with three
servants, and no carriage; and she with her inferior good looks will
live in Sussex Place,' and keep a man and a brougham, and I don't
know what. But the fact is, in this generation there are so many
more rich young men than there were when I was a girl.'

'Oh, ho! so that's your reason, is it, my dear. If you had been
young now you might have married somebody as well off as Walter?'

'Yes!' said she. 'I think that was my idea. Of course I should have
liked him to be you. I always think if you had gone to the bar you
might have succeeded better, and lived in London, too. I don't think
Cynthia cares much where she lives, yet you see it has come to her.'

'What has--London?'

'Oh, you dear, facetious man. Now that's just the thing to have
captivated a jury. I don't believe Walter will ever be so clever as
you are. Yet he can take Cynthia to Paris, and abroad, and
everywhere. I only hope all this indulgence won't develope the
faults in Cynthia's character. It's a week since we heard from her,
and I did write so particularly to ask her for the autumn fashions
before I bought my new bonnet. But riches are a great snare.'

'Be thankful you are spared temptation, my dear.'

'No, I'm not. Every body likes to be tempted. And, after all, it's
very easy to resist temptation, if one wishes.'

'I don't find it so easy,' said her husband.

'Here's medicine for you, mamma,' said Molly, entering with a letter
held up in her hand. 'A letter from Cynthia.'

'Oh, you dear little messenger of good news! There was one of the
heathen deities in Mangnall's ~Questions~ whose office that was. The
letter is dated from Calais. They're coming home! She's bought me a
shawl and a bonnet! The dear creature! Always thinking of others
before herself. good fortune cannot spoil her. They've a fortnight
left of their holiday! Their house is not quite ready; they're
coming here. Oh, now, Mr. Gibson, we must have the new dinner service
at Watts's I've set my heart on so long! "Home" Cynthia calls this
house. I'm sure it has been a home to her, poor darling! I doubt if
there is another man in the world who would have treated his
stepdaughter like dear papa! And, Molly, you must have a new gown.'

'Come, come! Remember I belong to the last generation,' said Mr
Gibson.

'And Cynthia will not notice what I wear,' said Molly, bright with
pleasure at the thought of seeing her again.

'No! but Walter will. He has such a quick eye for dress, and I think
I rival papa; if he is a good stepfather, I'm a good stepmother, and
I could not bear to see my Molly shabby, and not looking her best, I
must have a new gown too. It won't do to look as if we had nothing
but the dresses which we wore at the wedding!'

But Molly stood against the new gown for herself, and urged that if
Cynthia and Walter were to come to visit them often, they had better
see them as they really were, in dress, habits, and appointments.
When Mr. Gibson had left the room, Mrs. Gibson softly reproached Molly
for her obstinacy.

'You might have allowed me to beg for a new gown for you, Molly,
when you knew how much I had admired that figured silk at Brown's
the other day. And now, of course, I can't be so selfish as to get
it for myself, and you to have nothing. You should learn to
understand the wishes of other people. Still, on the whole, you are
a dear, sweet girl, and I only wish--well, I know what I wish; only
dear papa does not like it to be talked about. And now cover me up
close, and let me go to sleep, and dream about my dear Cynthia and
my new shawl!'

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