["[Event happened on 2024-01-01 The user is reading a book]\n<User> Elizabeth related to Jane the next day, what had passed between Mr.\nWickham and herself. Jane listened with astonishment and concern;--she\nknew not how to believe that Mr. Darcy could be so unworthy of Mr.\nBingley's regard; and yet, it was not in her nature to question the\nveracity of a young man of such amiable appearance as Wickham.--The\npossibility of his having really endured such unkindness, was enough to\ninterest all her tender feelings; and nothing therefore remained to be\ndone, but to think well of them both, to defend the conduct of each, and\nthrow into the account of accident or mistake, whatever could not be\notherwise explained. \"They have both,\" said she, \"been deceived, I dare say, in some way or\nother, of which we can form no idea. Interested people have perhaps\nmisrepresented each to the other. It is, in short, impossible for us to\nconjecture the causes or circumstances which may have alienated them,\nwithout actual blame on either side.\" \"Very true, indeed;--and now, my dear Jane, what have you got to say in\nbehalf of the interested people who have probably been concerned in the\nbusiness?--Do clear _them_ too, or we shall be obliged to think ill of\nsomebody.\" \"Laugh as much as you chuse, but you will not laugh me out of my\nopinion. My dearest Lizzy, do but consider in what a disgraceful light\nit places Mr. Darcy, to be treating his father's favourite in such a\nmanner,--one, whom his father had promised to provide for.--It is\nimpossible. No man of common humanity, no man who had any value for his\ncharacter, could be capable of it. Can his most intimate friends be so\nexcessively deceived in him? oh! no.\" \"I can much more easily believe Mr. Bingley's being imposed on, than\nthat Mr. Wickham should invent such a history of himself as he gave me\nlast night; names, facts, every thing mentioned without ceremony.--If it\nbe not so, let Mr. Darcy contradict it. Besides, there was truth in his\nlooks.\" \"It is difficult indeed--it is distressing.--One does not know what to\nthink.\" \"I beg your pardon;--one knows exactly what to think.\" But Jane could think with certainty on only one point,--that Mr.\nBingley, if he _had been_ imposed on, would have much to suffer when the\naffair became public. The two young ladies were summoned from the shrubbery where this\nconversation passed, by the arrival of some of the very persons of whom\nthey had been speaking; Mr. Bingley and his sisters came to give their\npersonal invitation for the long expected ball at Netherfield, which was\nfixed for the following Tuesday. The two ladies were delighted to see\ntheir dear friend again, called it an age since they had met, and\nrepeatedly asked what she had been doing with herself since their\nseparation. To the rest of the family they paid little attention;\navoiding Mrs. Bennet as much as possible, saying not much to Elizabeth,\nand nothing at all to the others. They were soon gone again, rising from\ntheir seats with an activity which took their brother by surprise, and\nhurrying off as if eager to escape from Mrs. Bennet's civilities. The prospect of the Netherfield ball was extremely agreeable to every\nfemale of the family. Mrs. Bennet chose to consider it as given in\ncompliment to her eldest daughter, and was particularly flattered by\nreceiving the invitation from Mr. Bingley himself, instead of a\nceremonious card. Jane pictured to herself a happy evening in the\nsociety of her two friends, and the attentions of their brother; and\nElizabeth thought with pleasure of dancing a great deal with Mr.\nWickham, and of seeing a confirmation of every thing in Mr. Darcy's\nlooks and behaviour. The happiness anticipated by Catherine and Lydia,\ndepended less on any single event, or any particular person, for though\nthey each, like Elizabeth, meant to dance half the evening with Mr.\nWickham, he was by no means the only partner who could satisfy them, and\na ball was at any rate, a ball. And even Mary could assure her family\nthat she had no disinclination for it. \"While I can have my mornings to myself,\" said she, \"it is enough.--I\nthink it no sacrifice to join occasionally in evening engagements. Society has claims on us all; and I profess myself one of those who\nconsider intervals of recreation and amusement as desirable for every\nbody.\" Elizabeth's spirits were so high on the occasion, that though she did\nnot often speak unnecessarily to Mr. Collins, she could not help asking\nhim whether he intended to accept Mr. Bingley's invitation, and if he\ndid, whether he would think it proper to join in the evening's\namusement; and she was rather surprised to find that he entertained no\nscruple whatever on that head, and was very far from dreading a rebuke\neither from the Archbishop, or Lady Catherine de Bourgh, by venturing to\ndance. \"I am by no means of opinion, I assure you,\" said he, \"that a ball of\nthis kind, given by a young man of character, to respectable people, can\nhave any evil tendency; and I am so far from objecting to dancing myself\nthat I shall hope to be honoured with the hands of all my fair cousins\nin the course of the evening, and I take this opportunity of soliciting\nyours, Miss Elizabeth, for the two first dances especially,--a\npreference which I trust my cousin Jane will attribute to the right\ncause, and not to any disrespect for her.\" Elizabeth felt herself completely taken in. She had fully proposed being\nengaged by Wickham for those very dances:--and to have Mr. Collins\ninstead! her liveliness had been never worse timed. There was no help\nfor it however. Mr. Wickham's happiness and her own was per force\ndelayed a little longer, and Mr. Collins's proposal accepted with as\ngood a grace as she could. She was not the better pleased with his\ngallantry, from the idea it suggested of something more.--It now first\nstruck her, that _she_ was selected from among her sisters as worthy of\nbeing the mistress of Hunsford Parsonage, and of assisting to form a\nquadrille table at Rosings, in the absence of more eligible visitors. The idea soon reached to conviction, as she observed his increasing\ncivilities toward herself, and heard his frequent attempt at a\ncompliment on her wit and vivacity; and though more astonished than\ngratified herself, by this effect of her charms, it was not long before\nher mother gave her to understand that the probability of their marriage\nwas exceedingly agreeable to _her_. Elizabeth however did not chuse to\ntake the hint, being well aware that a serious dispute must be the\nconsequence of any reply. Mr. Collins might never make the offer, and\ntill he did, it was useless to quarrel about him. If there had not been a Netherfield ball to prepare for and talk of, the\nyounger Miss Bennets would have been in a pitiable state at this time,\nfor from the day of the invitation, to the day of the ball, there was\nsuch a succession of rain as prevented their walking to Meryton once. No\naunt, no officers, no news could be sought after;--the very shoe-roses\nfor Netherfield were got by proxy. Even Elizabeth might have found some\ntrial of her patience in weather, which totally suspended the\nimprovement of her acquaintance with Mr. Wickham; and nothing less than\na dance on Tuesday, could have made such a Friday, Saturday, Sunday and\nMonday, endurable to Kitty and Lydia. Till Elizabeth entered the drawing-room at Netherfield and looked in\nvain for Mr. Wickham among the cluster of red coats there assembled, a\ndoubt of his being present had never occurred to her. The certainty of\nmeeting him had not been checked by any of those recollections that\nmight not unreasonably have alarmed her. She had dressed with more than\nusual care, and prepared in the highest spirits for the conquest of all\nthat remained unsubdued of his heart, trusting that it was not more than\nmight be won in the course of the evening. But in an instant arose the\ndreadful suspicion of his being purposely omitted for Mr. Darcy's\npleasure in the Bingleys' invitation to the officers; and though this\nwas not exactly the case, the absolute fact of his absence was\npronounced by his friend Mr. Denny, to whom Lydia eagerly applied, and\nwho told them that Wickham had been obliged to go to town on business\nthe day before, and was not yet returned; adding, with a significant\nsmile,\n\n\"I do not imagine his business would have called him away just now, if\nhe had not wished to avoid a certain gentleman here.\"\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-01, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far.", "[Event happened on 2024-01-02 The user is reading a book]\n<User> This part of his intelligence, though unheard by Lydia, was caught by\nElizabeth, and as it assured her that Darcy was not less answerable for\nWickham's absence than if her first surmise had been just, every feeling\nof displeasure against the former was so sharpened by immediate\ndisappointment, that she could hardly reply with tolerable civility to\nthe polite inquiries which he directly afterwards approached to\nmake.--Attention, forbearance, patience with Darcy, was injury to\nWickham. She was resolved against any sort of conversation with him, and\nturned away with a degree of ill humour, which she could not wholly\nsurmount even in speaking to Mr. Bingley, whose blind partiality\nprovoked her. But Elizabeth was not formed for ill-humour; and though every prospect\nof her own was destroyed for the evening, it could not dwell long on her\nspirits; and having told all her griefs to Charlotte Lucas, whom she had\nnot seen for a week, she was soon able to make a voluntary transition to\nthe oddities of her cousin, and to point him out to her particular\nnotice. The two first dances, however, brought a return of distress;\nthey were dances of mortification. Mr. Collins, awkward and solemn,\napologising instead of attending, and often moving wrong without being\naware of it, gave her all the shame and misery which a disagreeable\npartner for a couple of dances can give. The moment of her release from\nhim was ecstacy. She danced next with an officer, and had the refreshment of talking of\nWickham, and of hearing that he was universally liked. When those dances\nwere over she returned to Charlotte Lucas, and was in conversation with\nher, when she found herself suddenly addressed by Mr. Darcy, who took\nher so much by surprise in his application for her hand, that, without\nknowing what she did, she accepted him. He walked away again\nimmediately, and she was left to fret over her own want of presence of\nmind; Charlotte tried to console her. \"I dare say you will find him very agreeable.\" \"Heaven forbid!--_That_ would be the greatest misfortune of all!--To\nfind a man agreeable whom one is determined to hate!--Do not wish me\nsuch an evil.\" When the dancing recommenced, however, and Darcy approached to claim her\nhand, Charlotte could not help cautioning her in a whisper not to be a\nsimpleton and allow her fancy for Wickham to make her appear unpleasant\nin the eyes of a man of ten times his consequence. Elizabeth made no\nanswer, and took her place in the set, amazed at the dignity to which\nshe was arrived in being allowed to stand opposite to Mr. Darcy, and\nreading in her neighbours' looks their equal amazement in beholding it. They stood for some time without speaking a word; and she began to\nimagine that their silence was to last through the two dances, and at\nfirst was resolved not to break it; till suddenly fancying that it would\nbe the greater punishment to her partner to oblige him to talk, she made\nsome slight observation on the dance. He replied, and was again silent. After a pause of some minutes she addressed him a second time with\n\n\"It is _your_ turn to say something now, Mr. Darcy.--_I_ talked about\nthe dance, and _you_ ought to make some kind of remark on the size of\nthe room, or the number of couples.\" He smiled, and assured her that whatever she wished him to say should be\nsaid. \"Very well.--That reply will do for the present.--Perhaps by and bye I\nmay observe that private balls are much pleasanter than public\nones.--But _now_ we may be silent.\" \"Do you talk by rule then, while you are dancing?\" \"Sometimes. One must speak a little, you know. It would look odd to be\nentirely silent for half an hour together, and yet for the advantage of\n_some_, conversation ought to be so arranged as that they may have the\ntrouble of saying as little as possible.\" \"Are you consulting your own feelings in the present case, or do you\nimagine that you are gratifying mine?\" \"Both,\" replied Elizabeth archly; \"for I have always seen a great\nsimilarity in the turn of our minds.--We are each of an unsocial,\ntaciturn disposition, unwilling to speak, unless we expect to say\nsomething that will amaze the whole room, and be handed down to\nposterity with all the eclat of a proverb.\" \"This is no very striking resemblance of your own character, I am sure,\"\nsaid he. \"How near it may be to _mine_, I cannot pretend to say.--_You_\nthink it a faithful portrait undoubtedly.\" \"I must not decide on my own performance.\" He made no answer, and they were again silent till they had gone down\nthe dance, when he asked her if she and her sisters did not very often\nwalk to Meryton. She answered in the affirmative, and, unable to resist\nthe temptation, added, \"When you met us there the other day, we had just\nbeen forming a new acquaintance.\" The effect was immediate. A deeper shade of hauteur overspread his\nfeatures, but he said not a word, and Elizabeth, though blaming herself\nfor her own weakness, could not go on. At length Darcy spoke, and in a\nconstrained manner said,\n\n\"Mr. Wickham is blessed with such happy manners as may ensure his\n_making_ friends--whether he may be equally capable of _retaining_ them,\nis less certain.\" \"He has been so unlucky as to lose _your_ friendship,\" replied Elizabeth\nwith emphasis, \"and in a manner which he is likely to suffer from all\nhis life.\" Darcy made no answer, and seemed desirous of changing the subject. At\nthat moment Sir William Lucas appeared close to them, meaning to pass\nthrough the set to the other side of the room; but on perceiving Mr.\nDarcy he stopt with a bow of superior courtesy to compliment him on his\ndancing and his partner. \"I have been most highly gratified indeed, my dear Sir. Such very\nsuperior dancing is not often seen. It is evident that you belong to the\nfirst circles. Allow me to say, however, that your fair partner does not\ndisgrace you, and that I must hope to have this pleasure often repeated,\nespecially when a certain desirable event, my dear Miss Eliza, (glancing\nat her sister and Bingley,) shall take place. What congratulations will\nthen flow in! I appeal to Mr. Darcy:--but let me not interrupt you,\nSir.--You will not thank me for detaining you from the bewitching\nconverse of that young lady, whose bright eyes are also upbraiding me.\" The latter part of this address was scarcely heard by Darcy; but Sir\nWilliam's allusion to his friend seemed to strike him forcibly, and his\neyes were directed with a very serious expression towards Bingley and\nJane, who were dancing together. Recovering himself, however, shortly,\nhe turned to his partner, and said,\n\n\"Sir William's interruption has made me forget what we were talking of.\" \"I do not think we were speaking at all. Sir William could not have\ninterrupted any two people in the room who had less to say for\nthemselves.--We have tried two or three subjects already without\nsuccess, and what we are to talk of next I cannot imagine.\" \"What think you of books?\" said he, smiling. \"Books--Oh! no.--I am sure we never read the same, or not with the same\nfeelings.\" \"I am sorry you think so; but if that be the case, there can at least be\nno want of subject.--We may compare our different opinions.\" \"No--I cannot talk of books in a ball-room; my head is always full of\nsomething else.\" \"The _present_ always occupies you in such scenes--does it?\" said he,\nwith a look of doubt. \"Yes, always,\" she replied, without knowing what she said, for her\nthoughts had wandered far from the subject, as soon afterwards appeared\nby her suddenly exclaiming, \"I remember hearing you once say, Mr. Darcy,\nthat you hardly ever forgave, that your resentment once created was\nunappeasable. You are very cautious, I suppose, as to its _being\ncreated_.\" \"I am,\" said he, with a firm voice. \"And never allow yourself to be blinded by prejudice?\" \"I hope not.\" \"It is particularly incumbent on those who never change their opinion,\nto be secure of judging properly at first.\" \"May I ask to what these questions tend?\" \"Merely to the illustration of _your_ character,\" said she, endeavouring\nto shake off her gravity. \"I am trying to make it out.\" \"And what is your success?\" She shook her head. \"I do not get on at all. I hear such different\naccounts of you as puzzle me exceedingly.\" \"I can readily believe,\" answered he gravely, \"that report may vary\ngreatly with respect to me; and I could wish, Miss Bennet, that you were\nnot to sketch my character at the present moment, as there is reason to\nfear that the performance would reflect no credit on either.\"\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-02, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far.", "[Event happened on 2024-01-05 The user is reading a book]\n<User> \"But if I do not take your likeness now, I may never have another\nopportunity.\" \"I would by no means suspend any pleasure of yours,\" he coldly replied. She said no more, and they went down the other dance and parted in\nsilence; on each side dissatisfied, though not to an equal degree, for\nin Darcy's breast there was a tolerable powerful feeling towards her,\nwhich soon procured her pardon, and directed all his anger against\nanother. They had not long separated when Miss Bingley came towards her, and with\nan expression of civil disdain thus accosted her,\n\n\"So, Miss Eliza, I hear you are quite delighted with George\nWickham!--Your sister has been talking to me about him, and asking me a\nthousand questions; and I find that the young man forgot to tell you,\namong his other communications, that he was the son of old Wickham, the\nlate Mr. Darcy's steward. Let me recommend you, however, as a friend,\nnot to give implicit confidence to all his assertions; for as to Mr.\nDarcy's using him ill, it is perfectly false; for, on the contrary, he\nhas been always remarkably kind to him, though George Wickham has\ntreated Mr. Darcy in a most infamous manner. I do not know the\nparticulars, but I know very well that Mr. Darcy is not in the least to\nblame, that he cannot bear to hear George Wickham mentioned, and that\nthough my brother thought he could not well avoid including him in his\ninvitation to the officers, he was excessively glad to find that he had\ntaken himself out of the way. His coming into the country at all, is a\nmost insolent thing indeed, and I wonder how he could presume to do it. I pity you, Miss Eliza, for this discovery of your favourite's guilt;\nbut really considering his descent, one could not expect much better.\" \"His guilt and his descent appear by your account to be the same,\" said\nElizabeth angrily; \"for I have heard you accuse him of nothing worse\nthan of being the son of Mr. Darcy's steward, and of _that_, I can\nassure you, he informed me himself.\" \"I beg your pardon,\" replied Miss Bingley, turning away with a sneer. \"Excuse my interference.--It was kindly meant.\" \"Insolent girl!\" said Elizabeth to herself.--\"You are much mistaken if\nyou expect to influence me by such a paltry attack as this. I see\nnothing in it but your own wilful ignorance and the malice of Mr. Darcy.\" She then sought her eldest sister, who had undertaken to make\ninquiries on the same subject of Bingley. Jane met her with a smile of\nsuch sweet complacency, a glow of such happy expression, as sufficiently\nmarked how well she was satisfied with the occurrences of the\nevening.--Elizabeth instantly read her feelings, and at that moment\nsolicitude for Wickham, resentment against his enemies, and every thing\nelse gave way before the hope of Jane's being in the fairest way for\nhappiness. \"I want to know,\" said she, with a countenance no less smiling than her\nsister's, \"what you have learnt about Mr. Wickham. But perhaps you have\nbeen too pleasantly engaged to think of any third person; in which case\nyou may be sure of my pardon.\" \"No,\" replied Jane, \"I have not forgotten him; but I have nothing\nsatisfactory to tell you. Mr. Bingley does not know the whole of his\nhistory, and is quite ignorant of the circumstances which have\nprincipally offended Mr. Darcy; but he will vouch for the good conduct,\nthe probity and honour of his friend, and is perfectly convinced that\nMr. Wickham has deserved much less attention from Mr. Darcy than he has\nreceived; and I am sorry to say that by his account as well as his\nsister's, Mr. Wickham is by no means a respectable young man. I am\nafraid he has been very imprudent, and has deserved to lose Mr. Darcy's\nregard.\" \"Mr. Bingley does not know Mr. Wickham himself?\" \"No; he never saw him till the other morning at Meryton.\" \"This account then is what he has received from Mr. Darcy. I am\nperfectly satisfied. But what does he say of the living?\" \"He does not exactly recollect the circumstances, though he has heard\nthem from Mr. Darcy more than once, but he believes that it was left to\nhim _conditionally_ only.\" \"I have not a doubt of Mr. Bingley's sincerity,\" said Elizabeth warmly;\n\"but you must excuse my not being convinced by assurances only. Mr.\nBingley's defence of his friend was a very able one I dare say, but\nsince he is unacquainted with several parts of the story, and has learnt\nthe rest from that friend himself, I shall venture still to think of\nboth gentlemen as I did before.\" She then changed the discourse to one more gratifying to each, and on\nwhich there could be no difference of sentiment. Elizabeth listened with\ndelight to the happy, though modest hopes which Jane entertained of\nBingley's regard, and said all in her power to heighten her confidence\nin it. On their being joined by Mr. Bingley himself, Elizabeth withdrew\nto Miss Lucas; to whose inquiry after the pleasantness of her last\npartner she had scarcely replied, before Mr. Collins came up to them and\ntold her with great exultation that he had just been so fortunate as to\nmake a most important discovery. \"I have found out,\" said he, \"by a singular accident, that there is now\nin the room a near relation of my patroness. I happened to overhear the\ngentleman himself mentioning to the young lady who does the honours of\nthis house the names of his cousin Miss de Bourgh, and of her mother\nLady Catherine. How wonderfully these sort of things occur! Who would\nhave thought of my meeting with--perhaps--a nephew of Lady Catherine de\nBourgh in this assembly!--I am most thankful that the discovery is made\nin time for me to pay my respects to him, which I am now going to do,\nand trust he will excuse my not having done it before. My total\nignorance of the connection must plead my apology.\" \"You are not going to introduce yourself to Mr. Darcy?\" \"Indeed I am. I shall intreat his pardon for not having done it earlier. I believe him to be Lady Catherine's _nephew_. It will be in my power to\nassure him that her ladyship was quite well yesterday se'night.\" Elizabeth tried hard to dissuade him from such a scheme; assuring him\nthat Mr. Darcy would consider his addressing him without introduction as\nan impertinent freedom, rather than a compliment to his aunt; that it\nwas not in the least necessary there should be any notice on either\nside, and that if it were, it must belong to Mr. Darcy, the superior in\nconsequence, to begin the acquaintance.--Mr. Collins listened to her\nwith the determined air of following his own inclination, and when she\nceased speaking, replied thus,\n\n\"My dear Miss Elizabeth, I have the highest opinion in the world of your\nexcellent judgment in all matters within the scope of your\nunderstanding, but permit me to say that there must be a wide difference\nbetween the established forms of ceremony amongst the laity, and those\nwhich regulate the clergy; for give me leave to observe that I consider\nthe clerical office as equal in point of dignity with the highest rank\nin the kingdom--provided that a proper humility of behaviour is at the\nsame time maintained. You must therefore allow me to follow the dictates\nof my conscience on this occasion, which leads me to perform what I look\non as a point of duty. Pardon me for neglecting to profit by your\nadvice, which on every other subject shall be my constant guide, though\nin the case before us I consider myself more fitted by education and\nhabitual study to decide on what is right than a young lady like\nyourself.\" And with a low bow he left her to attack Mr. Darcy, whose\nreception of his advances she eagerly watched, and whose astonishment at\nbeing so addressed was very evident. Her cousin prefaced his speech with\na solemn bow, and though she could not hear a word of it, she felt as if\nhearing it all, and saw in the motion of his lips the words \"apology,\"\n\"Hunsford,\" and \"Lady Catherine de Bourgh.\" --It vexed her to see him\nexpose himself to such a man. Mr. Darcy was eyeing him with unrestrained\nwonder, and when at last Mr. Collins allowed him time to speak, replied\nwith an air of distant civility. Mr. Collins, however, was not\ndiscouraged from speaking again, and Mr. Darcy's contempt seemed\nabundantly increasing with the length of his second speech, and at the\nend of it he only made him a slight bow, and moved another way. Mr.\nCollins then returned to Elizabeth. \"I have no reason, I assure you,\" said he, \"to be dissatisfied with my\nreception. Mr. Darcy seemed much pleased with the attention.\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-05, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far.", "[Event happened on 2024-01-07 The user is reading a book]\n<User> He answered\nme with the utmost civility, and even paid me the compliment of saying,\nthat he was so well convinced of Lady Catherine's discernment as to be\ncertain she could never bestow a favour unworthily. It was really a very\nhandsome thought. Upon the whole, I am much pleased with him.\" As Elizabeth had no longer any interest of her own to pursue, she turned\nher attention almost entirely on her sister and Mr. Bingley, and the\ntrain of agreeable reflections which her observations gave birth to,\nmade her perhaps almost as happy as Jane. She saw her in idea settled in\nthat very house in all the felicity which a marriage of true affection\ncould bestow; and she felt capable under such circumstances, of\nendeavouring even to like Bingley's two sisters. Her mother's thoughts\nshe plainly saw were bent the same way, and she determined not to\nventure near her, lest she might hear too much. When they sat down to\nsupper, therefore, she considered it a most unlucky perverseness which\nplaced them within one of each other; and deeply was she vexed to find\nthat her mother was talking to that one person (Lady Lucas) freely,\nopenly, and of nothing else but of her expectation that Jane would be\nsoon married to Mr. Bingley.--It was an animating subject, and Mrs.\nBennet seemed incapable of fatigue while enumerating the advantages of\nthe match. His being such a charming young man, and so rich, and living\nbut three miles from them, were the first points of self-gratulation;\nand then it was such a comfort to think how fond the two sisters were of\nJane, and to be certain that they must desire the connection as much as\nshe could do. It was, moreover, such a promising thing for her younger\ndaughters, as Jane's marrying so greatly must throw them in the way of\nother rich men; and lastly, it was so pleasant at her time of life to be\nable to consign her single daughters to the care of their sister, that\nshe might not be obliged to go into company more than she liked. It was\nnecessary to make this circumstance a matter of pleasure, because on\nsuch occasions it is the etiquette; but no one was less likely than Mrs.\nBennet to find comfort in staying at home at any period of her life. She\nconcluded with many good wishes that Lady Lucas might soon be equally\nfortunate, though evidently and triumphantly believing there was no\nchance of it. In vain did Elizabeth endeavour to check the rapidity of her mother's\nwords, or persuade her to describe her felicity in a less audible\nwhisper; for to her inexpressible vexation, she could perceive that the\nchief of it was overheard by Mr. Darcy, who sat opposite to them. Her\nmother only scolded her for being nonsensical. \"What is Mr. Darcy to me, pray, that I should be afraid of him? I am\nsure we owe him no such particular civility as to be obliged to say\nnothing _he_ may not like to hear.\" \"For heaven's sake, madam, speak lower.--What advantage can it be to you\nto offend Mr. Darcy?--You will never recommend yourself to his friend by\nso doing.\" Nothing that she could say, however, had any influence. Her mother\nwould talk of her views in the same intelligible tone. Elizabeth blushed\nand blushed again with shame and vexation. She could not help frequently\nglancing her eye at Mr. Darcy, though every glance convinced her of what\nshe dreaded; for though he was not always looking at her mother, she was\nconvinced that his attention was invariably fixed by her. The expression\nof his face changed gradually from indignant contempt to a composed and\nsteady gravity. At length however Mrs. Bennet had no more to say; and Lady Lucas, who\nhad been long yawning at the repetition of delights which she saw no\nlikelihood of sharing, was left to the comforts of cold ham and chicken. Elizabeth now began to revive. But not long was the interval of\ntranquillity; for when supper was over, singing was talked of, and she\nhad the mortification of seeing Mary, after very little entreaty,\npreparing to oblige the company. By many significant looks and silent\nentreaties, did she endeavour to prevent such a proof of\ncomplaisance,--but in vain; Mary would not understand them; such an\nopportunity of exhibiting was delightful to her, and she began her song. Elizabeth's eyes were fixed on her with most painful sensations; and she\nwatched her progress through the several stanzas with an impatience\nwhich was very ill rewarded at their close; for Mary, on receiving\namongst the thanks of the table, the hint of a hope that she might be\nprevailed on to favour them again, after the pause of half a minute\nbegan another. Mary's powers were by no means fitted for such a display;\nher voice was weak, and her manner affected.--Elizabeth was in agonies. She looked at Jane, to see how she bore it; but Jane was very composedly\ntalking to Bingley. She looked at his two sisters, and saw them making\nsigns of derision at each other, and at Darcy, who continued however\nimpenetrably grave. She looked at her father to entreat his\ninterference, lest Mary should be singing all night. He took the hint,\nand when Mary had finished her second song, said aloud,\n\n\"That will do extremely well, child. You have delighted us long enough. Let the other young ladies have time to exhibit.\" Mary, though pretending not to hear, was somewhat disconcerted; and\nElizabeth sorry for her, and sorry for her father's speech, was afraid\nher anxiety had done no good.--Others of the party were now applied to. \"If I,\" said Mr. Collins, \"were so fortunate as to be able to sing, I\nshould have great pleasure, I am sure, in obliging the company with an\nair; for I consider music as a very innocent diversion, and perfectly\ncompatible with the profession of a clergyman.--I do not mean however to\nassert that we can be justified in devoting too much of our time to\nmusic, for there are certainly other things to be attended to. The\nrector of a parish has much to do.--In the first place, he must make\nsuch an agreement for tythes as may be beneficial to himself and not\noffensive to his patron. He must write his own sermons; and the time\nthat remains will not be too much for his parish duties, and the care\nand improvement of his dwelling, which he cannot be excused from making\nas comfortable as possible. And I do not think it of light importance\nthat he should have attentive and conciliatory manners towards every\nbody, especially towards those to whom he owes his preferment. I cannot\nacquit him of that duty; nor could I think well of the man who should\nomit an occasion of testifying his respect towards any body connected\nwith the family.\" And with a bow to Mr. Darcy, he concluded his speech,\nwhich had been spoken so loud as to be heard by half the room.--Many\nstared.--Many smiled; but no one looked more amused than Mr. Bennet\nhimself, while his wife seriously commended Mr. Collins for having\nspoken so sensibly, and observed in a half-whisper to Lady Lucas, that\nhe was a remarkably clever, good kind of young man. To Elizabeth it appeared, that had her family made an agreement to\nexpose themselves as much as they could during the evening, it would\nhave been impossible for them to play their parts with more spirit, or\nfiner success; and happy did she think it for Bingley and her sister\nthat some of the exhibition had escaped his notice, and that his\nfeelings were not of a sort to be much distressed by the folly which he\nmust have witnessed. That his two sisters and Mr. Darcy, however, should\nhave such an opportunity of ridiculing her relations was bad enough, and\nshe could not determine whether the silent contempt of the gentleman, or\nthe insolent smiles of the ladies, were more intolerable. The rest of the evening brought her little amusement. She was teazed by\nMr. Collins, who continued most perseveringly by her side, and though he\ncould not prevail with her to dance with him again, put it out of her\npower to dance with others. In vain did she entreat him to stand up with\nsomebody else, and offer to introduce him to any young lady in the room. He assured her that as to dancing, he was perfectly indifferent to it;\nthat his chief object was by delicate attentions to recommend himself to\nher, and that he should therefore make a point of remaining close to her\nthe whole evening. There was no arguing upon such a project. She owed\nher greatest relief to her friend Miss Lucas, who often joined them, and\ngood-naturedly engaged Mr. Collins's conversation to herself. She was at least free from the offence of Mr. Darcy's farther notice;\nthough often standing within a very short distance of her, quite\ndisengaged, he never came near enough to speak.\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-07, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far.", "[Event happened on 2024-01-08 The user is reading a book]\n<User> She felt it to be the\nprobable consequence of her allusions to Mr. Wickham, and rejoiced in\nit. The Longbourn party were the last of all the company to depart; and by a\nmanoeuvre of Mrs. Bennet had to wait for their carriages a quarter of\nan hour after every body else was gone, which gave them time to see how\nheartily they were wished away by some of the family. Mrs. Hurst and her\nsister scarcely opened their mouths except to complain of fatigue, and\nwere evidently impatient to have the house to themselves. They repulsed\nevery attempt of Mrs. Bennet at conversation, and by so doing, threw a\nlanguor over the whole party, which was very little relieved by the\nlong speeches of Mr. Collins, who was complimenting Mr. Bingley and his\nsisters on the elegance of their entertainment, and the hospitality and\npoliteness which had marked their behaviour to their guests. Darcy said\nnothing at all. Mr. Bennet, in equal silence, was enjoying the scene. Mr. Bingley and Jane were standing together, a little detached from the\nrest, and talked only to each other. Elizabeth preserved as steady a\nsilence as either Mrs. Hurst or Miss Bingley; and even Lydia was too\nmuch fatigued to utter more than the occasional exclamation of \"Lord,\nhow tired I am!\" accompanied by a violent yawn. When at length they arose to take leave, Mrs. Bennet was most pressingly\ncivil in her hope of seeing the whole family soon at Longbourn; and\naddressed herself particularly to Mr. Bingley, to assure him how happy\nhe would make them, by eating a family dinner with them at any time,\nwithout the ceremony of a formal invitation. Bingley was all grateful\npleasure, and he readily engaged for taking the earliest opportunity of\nwaiting on her, after his return from London, whither he was obliged to\ngo the next day for a short time. Mrs. Bennet was perfectly satisfied; and quitted the house under the\ndelightful persuasion that, allowing for the necessary preparations of\nsettlements, new carriages and wedding clothes, she should undoubtedly\nsee her daughter settled at Netherfield, in the course of three or four\nmonths. Of having another daughter married to Mr. Collins, she thought\nwith equal certainty, and with considerable, though not equal, pleasure. Elizabeth was the least dear to her of all her children; and though the\nman and the match were quite good enough for _her_, the worth of each\nwas eclipsed by Mr. Bingley and Netherfield.\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-08, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far."]
[{"question": "Summarize the content of the book I read from 2024-01-01 to 2024-01-08", "answer": "Netherfield Ball, Elizabeth Bennet, Mr. Collins, Jane Bennet, Mr. Bingley, Mrs. Bennet, Mr. Darcy, Wickham, Bingley sisters, Mary Bennet, Mr. Bennet, dance invitation, two dances, disappointment, gossip, potential engagement, embarrassment, singing performance, polite conversation, tension, humiliation, unfounded rumor, audience, amusement, dissatisfaction, anger, younger sisters, restraint"}]