Vanity Fair - Page 105/573

Captain Crawley came every day, and received bulletins from Miss

Rebecca respecting his aunt's health. This improved so rapidly, that

poor Briggs was allowed to see her patroness; and persons with tender

hearts may imagine the smothered emotions of that sentimental female,

and the affecting nature of the interview.

Miss Crawley liked to have Briggs in a good deal soon. Rebecca used to

mimic her to her face with the most admirable gravity, thereby

rendering the imitation doubly piquant to her worthy patroness.

The causes which had led to the deplorable illness of Miss Crawley, and

her departure from her brother's house in the country, were of such an

unromantic nature that they are hardly fit to be explained in this

genteel and sentimental novel. For how is it possible to hint of a

delicate female, living in good society, that she ate and drank too

much, and that a hot supper of lobsters profusely enjoyed at the

Rectory was the reason of an indisposition which Miss Crawley herself

persisted was solely attributable to the dampness of the weather? The

attack was so sharp that Matilda--as his Reverence expressed it--was

very nearly "off the hooks"; all the family were in a fever of

expectation regarding the will, and Rawdon Crawley was making sure of

at least forty thousand pounds before the commencement of the London

season. Mr. Crawley sent over a choice parcel of tracts, to prepare

her for the change from Vanity Fair and Park Lane for another world;

but a good doctor from Southampton being called in in time, vanquished

the lobster which was so nearly fatal to her, and gave her sufficient

strength to enable her to return to London. The Baronet did not

disguise his exceeding mortification at the turn which affairs took.

While everybody was attending on Miss Crawley, and messengers every

hour from the Rectory were carrying news of her health to the

affectionate folks there, there was a lady in another part of the

house, being exceedingly ill, of whom no one took any notice at all;

and this was the lady of Crawley herself. The good doctor shook his

head after seeing her; to which visit Sir Pitt consented, as it could

be paid without a fee; and she was left fading away in her lonely

chamber, with no more heed paid to her than to a weed in the park.

The young ladies, too, lost much of the inestimable benefit of their

governess's instruction, So affectionate a nurse was Miss Sharp, that

Miss Crawley would take her medicines from no other hand. Firkin had

been deposed long before her mistress's departure from the country.

That faithful attendant found a gloomy consolation on returning to

London, in seeing Miss Briggs suffer the same pangs of jealousy and

undergo the same faithless treatment to which she herself had been

subject.