Chapter Eleven

At Longbourn, Catherine had few friends who were not someone else's friend first.

Maria Lucas was Lydia's friend above all, and Miss King was so rarely in company that she could not really be called friend to anyone, though she and Mary sometimes exchanged letters. Charlotte was Lizzy's friend and confidant, though she was a pleasant enough acquaintance, and now she was married to Mr. Collins and living in Kent. Miss Bond and the Miss Longs were much as Maria; Lydia's friends who accepted Catherine's presence as a default.

Amelia Harding and her cousin-by-marriage Miss Dupain, and their friends Miss Flemming and Miss Sharpe were the first friends Kitty had made for herself, and she hoped that they continued as such.

Amelia was rather like Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst in her background, except that her brother had already purchased an estate, after selling off his Steel and Iron mills to his assortment of cousins, one of whom she had promoted to Kitty for his plans to begin producing mechanical parts. Mr. Smith, who had acted as her Agent in negotiating the deal, had sent off the signed contract only yesterday. She shared Kitty's interest in engineering and mechanical drawing, but was determined to study more before venturing into any grand ideas of her own.

Miss Penelope Flemming had her roots firmly in Trade, and the family was likely to stay there for another generation or two, though her parents had hopes of marrying their daughters to Gentlemen. Her interest lay in architecture and archeology, and plans were being made for a tour of St. Alphage Garden, and the ruins of the medieval church there, to see if they could re-create what the old church once looked like. She had yet to decide whether her interest was to be a hobby or a serious pursuit, though Kitty suspected her indecision stemmed as much from lack of opportunity as from genuine uncertainty.

Miss Henrietta Sharpe was another gentleman's daughter, but rather less focused than the rest of their little circle. She drew tolerably well, played to an acceptable standard, had a rudimentary knowledge of several sciences, and was determined to learn as many subjects as she could, by whatever means became available to her. In some ways, she reminded Kitty of her sister Elizabeth; reading whatever took her fancy, mastering the pianoforte and other arts to the degree deemed necessary, but lacking the desire or dedication to be considered truly proficient. Or Truly Accomplished,

according to Mr. Darcy's high standards as held forth one evening at Netherfield. What Henretta sought from the meetings, even she had yet to determine, but Catherine liked to think that she rounded them out well.

Miss Chloe Dupain's grandfather had been the youngest son of a Duke, whose family had already given two spares to the Church and the Army, and thus allowed him to seek his future on foreign shores. He'd met and married a French heiress when they both studied at the University of Bologna [9] in Italy, happily taken her name [10] , and settled down with her in France, a scant few years before what France called the Glorious Revolution and the rest of the world knew as The Great Terror.

Miss Dupain's grandparents had been Country aristocrats, less oppressive of their local peasantry than many others, and being located near the coast, had managed to flee with their young children, and the bulk of their possessions and fortune before the mob arrived. That fortune had allowed the Dupain's to purchase an estate worth a few thousand per annum, and some carefully-chosen investments, and a generation later, they were thriving. They did not forget their roots, however, and her family history had left Chloe with a number of opinions that her Ducal cousins might prefer she lacked.

Chief among them was the determination to found a school for girls that taught more than just the social graces, that education and opportunity for the lower classes was vital to the stability of the state, and that the original Bluestockings had been fools for eschewing politics.

The latter opinion had come out as a result of one of Michael's instigating remarks about their Bluestocking Chapter. Chloe had taken offence to the comparison, and that had led to a rousing debate that Sir Jasper's nearest brother was clearly aware he was losing, but just as clearly unsure how he had come to that point. John, the third Longbottom brother, had eschewed hiding in the study in favour of watching Chloe with stars in his eyes.

Mama had noticed, and the matchmaker's gleam in her eye was likely the only reason the debate had been allowed to get so heated. Or go on so long. Mrs. Longbottom looked both amused and extremely pleased with herself.

Chloe jabbed a finger in Michael's direction. "Furthermore, it is the duty, no, the obligation of the privileged to support the lower classes in their advancement! Those with no education and no opportunity will listen to anyone charismatic and convincing enough to tell them who to blame for their misery. Did England's own Civil War not start because a King refused to listen to the complaints of his nobles?"

Clearly, oration had formed a significant part of Chloe's education. Michael took advantage of the opportunity for rebuttal. "That's something of an over-simplification, you must admit. Besides, if everyone is educated, who will do the work that requires little education? Street-sweepers and lamp lighters will always be needed, as will shepherds and farm labourers. What will become of those professions?"

Kitty saw the opportunity to interject... and bring the topic back to the original planned subject, which had been the modernising of factories. "The heights of education are not for everyone, and there will always be those who prefer the country to the city, or are willing do to the least they may to earn their keep. When my brother Bingley modernised his factories last year, there were many who wished to keep to the old looms, and still do so, despite the proven benefits of machine looms."

A quick glance at Amelia had her jumping in. "With so many factories modernising, education of the working class is a necessity, as grunt work is replaced by jobs fixing and maintaining the machines. But with steam- power gaining momentum, there will always be someone needed to shovel coal or stoke a boiler."

The debate progressed from there, with arguments for and against each side. The devaluation of skilled trade, and the limitations of machinery. Issues of supply and demand, as even the new machines could only produce as long as there was raw materials available, which led to a disagreement over the difficulty of imports during wartime, and the supposition that Napoleon would be defeated eventually.

Finally, Mama and Mrs. Longbottom called a halt for lunch, which the other young ladies had been invited to join. As a lovely game pie was served, Sir Jasper caught Chloe's eye. "We ended up talking around the point, but why do you think the Bluestockings were foolish for disdaining politics?"

Chloe gestured with her fork, "I see their reasoning; being apolitical allowed them greater acceptance within society, but it was an utter waste of their influence [11] ."

She paused to take a bite of her food, and Catherine thought over what she knew of the Bluestocking Society. Great-Grandmother Bennet had been a satellite member, accounting for at least half of Papa's impressive library. Miss Bingley had indirectly compared Lizzy to a bluestocking, but she had not meant it as a compliment. "They were among the wealthy and powerful, and with their contacts on both sides of Parliament... well, educational reforms would not have been easy , but certainly achievable."

Amelia nodded emphatically. "Instead, their lack of engagement led to their dispersement, when Parliament changed to those less accepting of opinionated women, and the Bluestocking Society lacked the numbers or the cultivated influence to counter their new lack of popularity."

Henrietta also counted a Bluestocking among her ancestry, if Kitty recalled correctly. "That is not to say that they necessarily could have saved the Society, but if they'd had more support outside of their own families, it might have been a longer battle."

Mama and Mrs. Longbottom exchanged smiles as Penelope agreed firmly. "Well, we shall have to agree that whatever we make of our own education, we shall not hoard it to ourselves."

***

The following morning, Catherine received a letter from Lydia.

How strange, to read the familiar chatter, and realise how much she had grown away from the follower she had once been.

This letter was only the second that she had received from the youngest Bennet sister, other than a short note around the time they were planning the London trip, which had contained an apology for past behaviour and a promise to do better, which had nearly prompted Kitty to write to Jane for reassurance that Lydia had not been stolen away by some Faerie Queen and replaced with an entirely different person. Mary had received a similar letter, and had looked prepared to ask Mr. McKnight whether the Anglican church practiced Exorcisms.

Thankfully, Mama had received a note from Jane around the same time, explaining it as Lydia having encountered an unpleasant individual, resulting in a changed perspective. Doubtless there was far more that Jane and Lydia were not saying, but Kitty was willing to be cautiously optimistic.

‘ My dear Kitty,

What an adventure I have had! My eyes have been opened in ways I never could have imagined in our little corner of Hertfordshire, and were it not for attending Mary's wedding, I should be contriving of ways to remain here forever!

Our sisters were right; accompanying Jane on her wedding tour was good for me, and it has turned my head entirely away from Officers. Much has happened that I am cannot adequately describe in a letter, and I can hardly wait to tell you about it in person.

When you return from your London visit, might you be able to assist me in improving my drawing skills? Jane is better at still-life and landscape sketches, and you have the most experience of all of us.

If you do not wish to, or lack the time, I will request that Papa find a tutor, instead.

Your affectionate sister, Lydia B.

The Lydia of a few months ago would never have thought to ask whether or not Kitty wanted to help her with something, or considered the imposition on Catherine's time. The Old Lydia might not have even viewed her sister's time and effort as having any value at all. Perhaps this seeming transformation was genuine.

In any case, Catherine could certainly find time to impart some advice, before she started planning her own wedding.