More Letters From Pemberley by Jane Dawkins Page A

winter and spring (in part due to the cold weather but mostly due to pressing bills and debts) were in very low spirits and, needing to get away from the everyday tedium of the north, had in mind to set out for Bath, which they felt would restore them in every way. My Mother, having received a similar letter and agreeing wholeheartedly with the scheme, had hopes of improving upon it by persuading my Father to join them there. He, however, could not be prevailed upon, no matter how loudly and often she railed that his Wife’s health and nerves were in pressing need of Bath’s restorative waters. Chagrined, she sent Lydia a sum of money (without my Father’s knowledge) to assist with their expenses, whereupon Lydia ordered new clothes, whose cost exceeded by several pounds the sum my Mother had sent, thereby adding to the burden of their debts.
    She then applied to Jane for assistance, who despite her reservations about the wisdom of the whole venture, was forthcoming and sent money, cautioning, however, that it might be wiser to use these funds to clear their debts and pay their bills; and further suggesting (dear Jane!) that they might save the expense of travelling to Bath by coming to stay at The Great House. For her trouble and generosity Jane received neither acknowledgement nor thanks.
    Nothing further was heard from them until the beginning of June when Jane received a letter from Lydia, postmarked in Bath, that Wickham, having at first won a great deal of money at the gambling tables, proceeded then to lose it, and more besides (for which, Lydia insisted, some disreputable officers were at fault—certainly not her Husband). Now they found themselves in such deeply compromising circumstances that the very real threat of debtors’ prison lay before them!
    Jane at once put the whole business before her Husband. The situation being beyond the scope of Mr. Bingley’s experience, they directly (and most unwillingly, having some limited knowledge of Mr. Darcy’s past dealings with Mr. Wickham) applied to Mr. Darcy for advice. His immediate thought was to do nothing at all—a spell in debtors’ prison at Bath might prove to be of more lasting benefit to the Wickhams than the waters, but upon reflection, and seeing our discomfort at the prospect of a Sister imprisoned, he undertook to engage the services of an attorney of his acquaintance in Bath, who might ascertain the extent and sum of these debts.
    In due course, Mr. Tarnlow sent Mr. Darcy a long list (some three pages, closely written) of debtors with varying sums of money against their names. As he read, my Husband’s face grew darker and darker with anger.
    “Lizzy, were it not for you and your Sister Jane, I should not put forth one penny to satisfy these debts. They are a selfish, worthless couple, who do not deserve the effort and money it will take to sort out their costly muddles—and you know as well as I, Lizzy, they won’t even thank us for our trouble, and will take it as their due! This will be the second time I have come to Wickham’s aid and somehow I must make sure it is the last.”
    Kitty, meanwhile, informed us of the uproar at Longbourn. In desperation I suppose, Lydia had applied to my Mother for money, begging her to intercede with my Father and send funds for their relief. Once again, Mamma’s attempts to get him to rush off to Bath proved fruitless, and she took to her room. By now my Father was fully to blame for the disaster—had they been at Bath with the Wickhams, this could never have happened. First Brighton, now Bath, and her poor, poor Lydia, all alone and at the mercy of scurrilous ne’er-do-wells with no one to take her part, &c., &c. Moreover, by my Mother’s reckoning, Mr. Darcy was also at fault, if you please—he should have immediately set out for Bath to settle the business. With his connections and money the whole matter would have been over in a trice! It appears that only Jane and Mr. Bingley were quite