Charlotte: The Practical Education of a Distressed Gentlewoman (7 page)

“
She's so earnest. I don't know. I
guess she can't help flaunting her wealth. There she was in her
London finery asking about buying new dresses for the
country.”

“
They do mean well. She just
wanted to fit with the other women.”

“
I know, that's what makes it so
hard. They're neither one thing nor the other.”

“
Meaning?”

“
If they were really noble, then
their wealth would let them stand out from the common herd, and if
they were really of the middling sort, then they would be in the
common herd. Instead, they try to be both and fail
utterly.”

“
That's not fair Charlotte. It's a
pity the church has eliminated confessionals and penance. I'd have
you saying a hundred 'our fathers' for that.”

Dinner started auspiciously. The
Talbot's were not daft enough to use the De Vere plate and dishes
when offering hospitality to the woman they displaced from the
hall. Instead, they 'killed the fatted calf', a lamb actually, to
greet their guests and served dinner using a service brought from
London. Since the ice had not been replenished last winter, there
was a surfeit of meat dishes, ranging from a saddle of lamb, slices
of a roast leg, and lamb collops to a head cheese. There would be
plenty of left-overs and extra meat for the servants.

It wasn't until the females had
retired to let Dr. Answorth and Mr. Talbot enjoy their port and
snuff in peace that any awkwardness arose. Mrs. Talbot precipitated
it by asking Mrs. Answorth and Miss De Vere a simple question, “It
must be awkward to visit the hall and see us here, changing things.
Knowing my son, I'm sure he drove a very hard bargain with you. Was
there anything that you needed or wanted from the hall?”

“
No.”

“
Are you sure? I heard about your
wardrobe Miss De Vere. Freddy was more than a little rude, so
please accept our apologies. We've put the De Vere plate and
service away. It doesn't feel right to use it.”

“
I can't use it now. Where would I
keep it?”

“
Tell you what, when you get
married and set up your own establishment, we'll send it to you.
Can't be fairer than that, can we?”

Charlotte and Mrs. Answorth were
distressed by this blunt conversation about material goods.
Elizabeth, who had been receiving painful lessons in country
manners of late, tried to shift the conversation away and into
safer grounds. “Mother, this isn't the time to discuss these
things, I'm sure the matter can be arranged later. Miss De Vere,
are you looking forward to Thursday's ball?”

“
A bit, Miss Talbot, but it is
likely to be a tedious affair, you see I know everyone who will be
there.”

“
And then you journey for
Bath?”

“
Dr. Answorth has the gout and we
thought the waters might help with it.”

“
I'm sure you're excited at the
thought of the assemblies there. They shouldn't be so
tedious.”

“
They would have to be very
tedious indeed to match Thursday's event.”

One of the footmen gave a discreet
knock on the sitting room door, then opened it. “Mr. Talbot has
arrived.”

Freddy entered the room, dressed in
his traveling clothes. He stopped and stiffly bowed to Mrs.
Answorth and Miss De Vere. They acknowledged his bow with a cool
gesture. Elizabeth on the other hand showed her pleasure at seeing
her brother return.

“
Freddy! We weren't expecting you
until tomorrow.”

“
My business finished sooner than
I expected, so I thought I would catch the afternoon
mail.”

Charlotte gave him a studied
glance. “Surely Mr. Talbot, with all your wealth, you don't take
the mail?”

“
Why not? There's usually good
company on the mail, it's much cheaper than going post and I'm not
above a little mixing with low society. There were a couple of
newspaper men going to Bristol to write about the harbor, and some
ship or another that was being launched.”

Mrs. Answorth commented dryly, “I
see.”

“
I suppose father and Dr. Answorth
are still closeted with the port. Should I go and release
them?”

“
Please.”

When Freddy entered the dining room
he found the two men deep in discussion. The port sat, barely
tasted, on the table in front of them. Dr. Answorth, who sat there
with a slightly stunned look, was saying, “A school, for the
indigent, here, in Staverton?”

“
Why not? I had my start from a
school like that.” Mr. Talbot noticed his son, “Freddy, you're
here, come join us. I was just discussing our ideas for a school
with Dr. Answorth.”

Dr. Answorth recovered a little
from the stunning news and said, “Mr. Frederick, please come and
sit with us.”

Frederick readily assented. Dr.
Answorth gathered his thoughts, “I rather thought this bank of
yours was what you wanted to talk to me about. This idea of a
charity school, I'm not sure about that.”

“
The bank was just something that
addresses a pressing need. The day I arrived one of the farmers
tried to borrow the money for a plow from me. Seems there was no
way for them to get credit, even when the risk was minimal. I don't
like making personal loans, too many things can go wrong, all of
which can make for hard feelings.”

“
So you organized a
bank?”

“
Of course. Now they own shares in
it and it's their money too. That way they won't waste
it.”

“
Father, how much did you drop
into it?”

“
Not much, a hundred pounds. About
a third of the capitalization.”

Dr. Answorth brought the
conversation back to what interested him, “About this school idea
of yours. When you said indigent, how indigent did you
mean?”

“
I got the idea from Miss More's
Christian Morals
. That we who are blessed ought to aid the
less fortunate.”

Dr. Answorth groaned. “The
evangelicals are not popular around here.”

“
Aye, just as well. She was
against teaching anything useful to the poor. Just enough reading
to read their bibles and say their prayers. Still, can't say I
wasn't influenced by it.”

“
So you're not thinking of an
evangelical school?”

“
No, teach them a trade or
something useful. I worked my way up from almost naught, and don't
see why anyone else shouldn't at least have the chance to better
themselves.”

These sentiments, while dangerously
leveling, were a vast improvement over a pack of canting
methodists.

“
I don't see why that should be a
problem. Have you gone far along in your plans?”

“
Not yet. It's early
days.”

Dr. Answorth mentally asserted that
he would do his best to ensure it stayed 'early days' for as long
as possible.

Wednesday morning, Freddy and
Elizabeth in his gig with Henry his groom sitting on the back
called on the Answorths. Hearing the noise of the carriage, and
peeking out through her curtains, Charlotte told her maid, “Are we
never to be free of these Talbot's?”

It wasn't purely a social call.
Freddy inquired if Dr. Answorth were available. He and his sister
were led into Dr. Answorth's study. They closed the door behind
them and asked his pardon for disturbing him so early.

“
It is not a problem. However,
since we met last night, what is the purpose of this
call?”

Freddy looked at his sister then
told the vicar. “It's not for general knowledge, my father has
grown a little eccentric of late.”

“
Eccentric?”

“
There's a reason he's moved to
the country, out of the city.”

“
Oh.”

Elizabeth continued, “We're hoping
the fresh air and quiet living will help him.”

“
Help him?”

“
He's become a bit reckless,
there's a reason I'm now head of the firm. It will take a year or
so, but we'll soon have his damage fixed.”

“
Damage? You aren't wealthy after
all?”

“
Didn't say that. No, we're not in
trouble, not even sailing into the wind as it were. Just we should
be in fair weather and there were some storm clouds on the horizon.
I've steered us free of that.”

“
So why are you telling me
this?”

“
I'd like to look at this bank
idea of his. Check the books. He may have been 'optimistic' in his
enthusiasm. It won't hurt us if it fails, Lizzy spends that much on
a dress.”

“
Only once, for a court dress.”
She added, “Waste of money in the end, though, as I couldn't be
presented at court.”

“
But if it takes the farmer's
money, it could be terrible for them.”

“
I wondered about that. Here's my
copy of the charter, and the initial sums deposited.” Freddy spent
the next minutes carefully reading, as Dr. Answorth worried that he
had given his blessings to a terrible idea. Freddy looked up. “It
looks like a standard banking charter. That's good, but it is
dreadfully undercapitalized.”

“
What does that mean?”

Elizabeth explained, “I think
Freddy means that a run on the bank could break it. Is that
right?”

“
Mostly. It also issues insurance.
They can't cover all the obligations if they come due at the same
time. It's also not clear where the income will come from to pay
interest due on the accounts.”

“
Oh, dear God, What can be
done?”

Freddy reassured him, “It's not
that bad. There is a reasonable chance it will float by itself.
What I need you to do is keep me informed, and failing that, tell
Lizzy.”

“
Miss Talbot?”

“
Yes, she has signature authority
for enough of the ready to cover the bank's
obligations.”

“
Your sister?”

Elizabeth asked, “Is there anything
wrong with that?”

“
No, it's just highly
irregular.”

Freddy explained, “I can't be here
all the time, my mother has very little business sense, and my
father is a bit eccentric. So Elizabeth it is. She already does the
books at the hall.”

“
Yes I see. I suppose it makes
sense.”

“
She's very good at it you know. I
generally run my ideas by her. She has saved my bacon more than
once.”

Elizabeth blushed and attempted to
shift the subject, “We've trespassed on enough of your time, See
you at the ball on Thursday?”

Charlotte watched from behind her
curtains as Freddy and Elizabeth boarded their carriage and left
the vicarage grounds. She bounded downstairs to find the vicar and
ask what happened. Dr. Answorth was unusually uncommunicative. “I'm
sorry dear girl, but there really is little I can tell
you.”

“
Dr. Answorth, surely there wasn't
anything too secret was there?”

“
It was told to me in confidence.
I can add that you shouldn't paint the younger Talbot's with the
same brush that you use for the older ones.”

“
What do you mean?”

“
As our savior said, 'judge not,
lest ye be judged.' Let me leave it at that.”

The parish hall was brightly lit on
Thursday evening as the excited cream of society for Staverton,
Holt and surrounding parishes came to the ball. Carriages were
parked throughout the little town and all the stables were full of
horses awaiting their return trip in the morning. While their
masters eagerly entered the parish hall, the grooms, footmen and
associated drivers or postilions found their way to the pubs. The
leader of the orchestra, a small group of musicians who rode up
from nearby Bath for the evening, found Dr. Answorth and asked when
they should begin.

“
In a moment,” he replied, then he
addressed the crowd, “I thought for the first dance we should have
young Mr. Talbot and Miss De Vere start the set.”

Charlotte shuddered at the thought.
She had warned Dr. Answorth that this would not work and he had
ignored her. Freddy, who was standing in the back with his family,
listening to his father chat with one of the neighboring squires,
was only slightly less annoyed. He told Elizabeth, “Well, needs
must. Once more unto the breach dear friends. Stiffen the sinews,
summon up the blood.”

“
It won't be that bad. Just dance
with her the one time. It's only to start the ball.”

He calmly walked to the front of
the hall and gracefully bowed to Charlotte. She stiffly curtsied to
him and they took up positions at the head of the line. The band
struck up the country dance 'Welcome to All Strangers' and the
dance began.

Freddy asked, “I believe it is
customary to converse during the figures.”

To which Charlotte replied,
“Customary, but not required.”

“
Come Miss De Vere, what have I
done to warrant such silence?”

“
This,” Charlotte pulled a note
from her sash, the hundred pound note Freddy had secreted in her
dresses, and handed it to him. “I don't want your pity.”