My dear ones join me in Harrogate

[the_comfortable_courtesan]

I am feeling very much better by the time my dearest love arrives in Harrogate, along with our precious angel Flora and Minnie. The latter, that was rather a scrawny creature when taken on, is now filling out considerable, also she no longer moves as if expecting some sudden blow.

O, I say, let me hold the little darling, and Minnie gives her up to me, smiling down at Flora the while.

My little precious is looking exceeding well and already I see she has grown. Also I can see that she most definite looks at things. I look down at her and after a considering moment she gives me a smile. O, I say, tears coming to my eyes, you darling, and give her several kisses.

Is she not a fine creature? says Mrs F-, and I apprehend her to be just as proud of our dear child as I am. Sure she wins hearts everywhere. But tho’ she is so good-humour’d at present (indeed she is as a usual thing), I suspect her tir’d by the arduousness of travel and should be fed and put to bed before she gets into a fret. Minnie says she will see to it at once, and I sign to Tibby to show her to the chamber set aside as a nursery.

Oh my love, says Mrs F- giving me a very warm kiss, you are looking so much more yourself. And even feel so, I reply, sure Harrogate is very restorative - also I have been enjoying the good company of the S-s, they are the most pleasant couple, and their young relatives are much improv’d in their manners and general conduct.

Tibby returns from settling Minnie and Flora and says that she will immediately be about providing us with tea.

Mrs F- and I repose ourselves upon the sopha and gaze happily at one another. My dear love is looking very well herself, hardly in need of recruiting. I ask after our dear Grand Turk, who is, she says, most happily busy about all manner of things, for he goes round whistling, and plays bears with little Quintus (whose elder brothers think that as great schoolboys they are beyond such games, but will indulge purely, they say, in order to accommodate Quintus’s pleasure in it), and continues to doat extremely upon Flora. He is in high hopes that they may be able to move into the new house before the year’s end, though she is not quite so sanguine, for there are matters of furnishings to be thought of.

However, she says with a more sober air, I lately receiv’d such a letter from Lady J-, expressing herself entirely shockt that Mr F- would put me in such peril. While doubtless, she writ, he greatly misses Madame C- during this exploit of hers on the Continent (she does not know why you did not desire her brother His Grace to deploy his connections in the Diplomatick about the matter), surely there are many other demi-mondaines capable of assuaging his masculine needs. She really thinks this is a very poor example and she hopes that I have come through my travails not too badly injur’d by the ordeal.

I do not think, I say, with a slight giggle, that she considers that men may have some preferences in the matter of assuaging their desires.

Still, it worries me a little, says Mrs F-, that he may be getting adverse report because of this.

O, say I, dear Mrs S- did give me rather A Look when the topick arose, but with her – she is always aslant to conventionality, the dear – I fear she supposes that he betray’d me with his own wife and that I should feel much injur’d at this. I bestow a kiss upon her – o, you wicked seducing fiend, sure you are the kind of woman Mr G- would preach against.

My dear love returns the kiss and then says that much as she would delight to retire with me, for Mr F- was most emphatick that their dearest should be well-lookt-after and gave her many particular kisses to convey, she had better see to unpacking and perhaps she should go leave a card on Mrs S-. Indeed, my love, mayhap we could give a little dinner party? For they are the dearest creatures.

Indeed, say I, but should we also have to invite the young K-s? Miss K- is after all out though shows every desire to go back in and hide her head in shame, believes the whole of Society must be gossiping upon her, as if this were not a whole new season with new scandal. And indeed, as to scandal, we may suppose that they would consider our sharing lodgings here quite extraordinary and they are so young, even if somewhat reform’d in their ways, that I have no great trust in their discretion.

It is more than likely that they will see us about, says Mrs F thoughtfully, but perhaps it is better not to force the situation upon them. And sure, we might still be on terms of cool civility. Still, I will leave a card on Mrs S- and mayhap I can take tea or some such with her. - I believe, I say, that she is going about to assemblies for the benefit of little V- and while that would be most unsuited to my bereav’d state, you might enjoy them? - O, would you not be lonely, my love? – My dearest love, I should be here with my angelic Flora. Also I have commenced another Gothick novel. – My clever darling, I yearn to read it. We hear from Mr MacD- that The Gypsy’s Curse should appear in three pretty volumes any day now.

She goes in to unpack her trunks and finds that Tibby has already been at this task, so says she will walk out a little and leave her card with Mrs S-, and then when she comes back we can have the pleasure of bathing the baby. Sure Minnie was quite horrify’d at first by the conjunction of baby and water, having been brought up to believe this most unhealthfull if not immediate fatal, but now takes to it remarkable. She is a good girl. A little slow, perchance, but one that will learn. Does she not come on well?

Indeed, I say, one would hardly know her the same girl. And I can see Tibby’s fingers fairly itching to dress her hair, and she will doubtless also give her instruction on dress. For tho’ I think Minnie must be some years the elder, Tibby is Town-bred and Docket-trained and thinks herself quite the woman of the world.

My love and I exchange a number of kisses before reluctantly drawing apart. Sure if only our dear Grand Turk were also here I should be quite perfectly happy.

Comments

How does the deception by the F-'s work?

[entirelydisregardablelout]

I was just pointed at this work by a review (at alpennia.org) of a printed version.

I have no idea whether anyone will ever see this comment -- whether anyone gets a notification -- or even if I will get a notification of a reply. But I'll try.

From Lady J-'s comment, it appears that Mr. and Mrs. F- are going about saying that Flora is born of Mrs. F-. How could such a plan possibly work? Anyone around Mrs. F- could see that she was not with child (unless she was shoving larger and larger pillows under her dresses), the F-'s leave for, what, a couple of weeks, and they come back with a child. How could anyone suppose that it was of Mrs. F-'s bearing? Once they realize it, why would they hold back from gossiping?

Re: How does the deception by the F-'s work?

[the_comfortable_courtesan]

Not all women show terribly obviously when pregnant, and Mrs F- was already a woman who (in a passage later on) remarks on her figure showing the ravages of childbearing. Also, the clothing of the period was not revealing. That women might effectively conceal pregnancy even from members of the same household is testified to by the existence of the crime 'concealment of pregnancy', that featured in cases of child abandonment and infanticide.

The story the F-s gave out was that they kept it very very quiet because their friends already knew that Mrs F- had nearly died bearing Quintus: but because of her great longing for more children they had consulted a specialist (according to Mr H-, a quack), who had promised that if they followed his instructions she could safely have another child.

They did not even know, until Clorinda made the offer, that she was going to give up Flora.