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RUSHWORTH was at the door to receive his fair...
11:10 PM, Wednesday, May 5, 2010
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RUSHWORTH was at the door to receive his fair lady; and the
whole party were welcomed by him with due attentionIn the drawing-
room they were met with equal cordiality by the mother, and
Miss Bertram had all the distinction with each that she could wish
After the business of arriving was over, it was first necessary to eat,
and the doors were thrown open to admit them through one or two
intermediate rooms into the appointed dining-parlour, where a collation
was prepared with abundance and eleganceMuch was said,
and much was ate, and all went wellThe particular object of the
day was then consideredCrawford like, in what
manner would he chuse, to take a survey of the grounds? Mr
Rushworth mentioned his curricleCrawford suggested the
greater desirableness of some carriage which might convey more
than two?To be depriving themselves of the advantage of other
eyes and other judgments, might be an evil even beyond the loss of
present pleasureRushworth proposed that the chaise should be taken also;
but this was scarcely received as an amendment: the young ladies
neither smiled nor spokeHer next proposition, of shewing the house
to such of them as louis vuitton speedy bag on sale had not been there before, was more acceptable,
for Miss Bertram was pleased to have its size displayed, and all were
glad to be doing something
The whole party rose accordingly, and under MrsRushworth?s
guidance were shewn through a number of rooms, all lofty, and
many large, and amply furnished in the taste of fifty years back,
with shining floors, solid mahogany, rich damask, marble, gilding,
and carving, each handsome in its wayOf pictures there were abundance,
and some few good, but the larger part were family portraits,
no longer anything to anybody but MrsRushworth, who had been
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at great pains to learn all that the housekeeper could teach, and was
now almost equally well qualified to shew the houseOn the present
occasion she addressed herself chiefly to Miss Crawford and Fanny,
but there was no comparison in the willingness of their attention;
for Miss Crawford, who had seen scores of great houses, and cared
for none of them, had only the appearance of civilly listening, while
Fanny, to whom everything was almost as interesting as it was new,
attended with unaffected earnestness to all that MrsRushworth
could rolex replica relate of the family in former times, its rise and grandeur,
regal visits and loyal efforts, delighted to connect anything with
history already known, or warm her imagination with scenes of the
past
The situation of the house excluded the possibility of much prospect
from any of the rooms; and while Fanny and some of the others
were attending MrsRushworth, Henry Crawford was looking
grave and shaking his head at the windowsEvery room on the west
front looked across a lawn to the beginning of the avenue immediately
beyond tall iron palisades and gates
Having visited many more rooms than could be supposed to be of
any other use than to contribute to the window-tax, and find employment
for housemaids, ?Now,? said MrsRushworth, ?we are
coming to the chapel, which properly we ought to enter from above,
and look down upon; but as we are quite among friends, I will take
you in this way, if you will excuse meFanny?s imagination had prepared her for something
grander than a mere spacious, oblong room, fitted up for the
purpose of devotion: with nothing more striking or more solemn
than the profusion of mahogany, and the crimson velvet cushions
appearing hermes birkin over the ledge of the family gallery above?I am disappointed,?
said she, in a low voice, to Edmund?This is not my idea
of a chapelThere is nothing awful here, nothing melancholy, nothing
grandHere are no aisles, no arches, no inscriptions, no banners
No banners, cousin, to be ?blown by the night wind of heaven
No signs that a ?Scottish monarch sleeps below?
?You forget, Fanny, how lately all this has been built, and for how
confined a purpose, compared with the old chapels of castles and
monasteriesIt was only for the private use of the familyThey have
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Jane Austen
been buried, I suppose, in the parish churchThere you must look
for the banners and the achievements
?It was foolish of me not to think of all that; but I am disappointedRushworth began her relation?This chapel was fitted up as
you see it, in James the Second?s timeBefore that period, as I understand,
the pews were only wainscot; and there is some reason to
think that the linings and cushions of the pulpit and family seat
were only purple cloth; but this is not quite certainIt is a handsome
chapel, and was formerly in constant use both morning and
eveningPrayers were always tiffany co read in it by the domestic chaplain,
within the memory of many; but the late MrRushworth left it off
?Every generation has its improvements,? said Miss Crawford,
with a smile, to EdmundRushworth was gone to repeat her lesson to MrCrawford;
and Edmund, Fanny, and Miss Crawford remained in a cluster together
?It is a pity,? cried Fanny, ?that the custom should have been discontinued
It was a valuable part of former timesThere is something
in a chapel and chaplain so much in character with a great
house, with one?s ideas of what such a household should be! A whole
family assembling regularly for the purpose of prayer is fine!?
?Very fine indeed,? said Miss Crawford, laughing?It must do the
heads of the family a great deal of good to force all the poor housemaids
and footmen to leave business and pleasure, and say their
prayers here twice a day, while they are inventing excuses themselves
for staying away
?That is hardly Fanny?s idea of a family assembling,? said Edmund
?If the master and mistress do not attend themselves, there must be
more harm than good in the custom
?At any rate, it is safer to leave people to their own devices on omega mens watch on sale such
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