Pagina 176 de 817

Elizabeth felt herself completely taken in. She had fully

proposed being engaged by Wickham for those very dances; and to

have Mr. Collins instead!--her liveliness had been never worse

timed. There was no help for it, however. Mr. Wickham's happiness

and her own was perforce delayed a little longer, and Mr.

Collins's proposal accepted with as good a grace as she could.

She was not the better pleased with his gallantry, from the idea

it suggested of something more. It now first struck her, that she

was selected from among her sisters as worthy of being the

mistress of Hunsford Parsonage, and of assisting to form a

quadrille table at Rosings, in the absence of more eligible

visitors.