Proposal
'Give a girl an education and introduce her properly to the world, and ten to one but she has the means of settling well.' Jane Austen
[Mr Collins] “My reasons for marrying are, first, … … To fortune I am perfectly indifferent, and shall make no demand of that nature on your father, since I am well aware that it could not be complied with; and that one thousand pounds in the 4 percents, which will not be yours till after your mother's decease, is all that you may ever be entitled to. On that head, therefore, I shall be uniformly silent; and you may assure yourself that no ungenerous reproach shall ever pass my lips when we are married.”
It was absolutely necessary to interrupt him now.
“You are too hasty, sir,” she cried. “You forget that I have made no answer. Let me do it without further loss of time… …
P&P Chapter 19
~~~
“Pray, be seated, Mr Collins. This may take some time,” Miss Elizabeth Bennet said emphatically.
The clergyman shook his head, perplexed, moved towards a chair, and stared.
“Pull the chair out, stand before it, and lean back.”
Uncertain whether she teased or mocked, Mr William Collins fell back on instinct. He had received clear direction from a woman; absent a compelling reason, he would comply.
“A moment, if you please. I require supplies.”
Elizabeth went to a desk and returned with paper, ink, quill, pencil, and ruler. Resuming her original seat, she drew some faint lines, mended the pen, dipped it, and sat in contemplation for a moment.
“You make a good point regarding fortune, sir. To my chagrin, my parents have saved very little; I shall endeavour to do better. Let us begin.”
Mr Collins shook his head, having no idea what was happening.
“First things first. What, pray tell, is the income from your living?”
Mr Collins puffed out his chest and leaned forward. “It is an excellent living:£600 per annum.”
Elizabeth nodded slightly, dipped the pen, and wrote:+Living £600.
“I assume you take additional income from parish business—marrying, burying, christening—that sort of thing. How much does that bring in?”
“To what do these questions pertain?”
“I shall explain in due time. Pray, answer my questions.”
“I never thought about it. I may get £1 some months and £5 others.”
“Let us work with that. There are probably other things you might do; but let us assume an average of, say £3 per month or £36 per annum. That seems to lack ambition; let us bring it up to £55, assuming modest effort.”
He shook his head while she updated the paper:+M&B &etc. £55.
“Let us see,” she added pensively. “Being new to your profession, you will not have other sources of income, but they may come in time with some effort. I met a Miss Austen in Bath last year. Her father is a rector with a similar income. He earns extra by tutoring boys. Surely you could do that as well, and any educated woman can do the same for girls. Miss Austen did not mention how much money her father brings in, but I should think £55 could be achieved. Let us assume that for the moment, for want of better information.”
Mr Collins’ confusion grew, but Elizabeth continued relentlessly after updating her sheet:+Tutoring £55.
“Of course, the wife of a clergyman should not be idle. I assume there are poultry coops and a pigsty. I should think it easy to raise twice what the family needs and sell the excess. It would not be considered crass or disrespectful. Miss Austen assured me it is quite common, and we even do the same with our home farm, though the family does not do the work. I have only modest understanding of the figures, so let us guess £35 per annum as a good starting place. Hiring local women might increase it, or even taking in farm children for a time, but that is a good beginning.”
She updated her paper:+Poultry £35.
Alarm and confusion mounted with each line. “What are you doing, madam? This is a simple question with only two answers. I do know how the game is played.”
“Game, sir? I do not follow.”
