Courtesy and Contempt

Chapter 7

Chapter 7Mrs. John Hargrove now established herself as Mistress of Norland; and her mother and sister-in-law were demoted to visitors. As such, however, they were treated by her with quiet courtesy; and of her husband with as much kindness as he could feel to himself, his wife and their child. He really urged them with some seriousness to consider Norland as their home; and since Mrs. Hargrove did not think a plan seemed so suitable to stay there until she could accommodate herself with a house in the neighborhood, his invitation was accepted.

Continuing to exist in a place where everything reminded her of past joys was exactly what came to her mind. In times of happiness, no temperament could be more cheerful than theirs or, to a greater extent, possess that sanguine expectation of happiness that is happiness itself. But in sorrow she had to be swept away by her imagination as well, and as far beyond comfort as in pleasure, she was beyond alloy.

Mrs. John Hargrove did not agree at all with what her husband intended to do for his sisters. To take three thousand pounds from the fortune of her dear little boy would impoverish him terribly. She asked him to think again about the subject. How could he be responsible for robbing his child and his only child of such a large sum? And what a claim could the Miss Hargroves, who were only half-bloodedly related to him, which they saw as no kinship at all, have on his great generosity. It was well known that there should never be affection between the children of a man from different marriages; and why would he ruin himself and her poor little Harry by giving away all his money to his half-sisters?

"It was my father's last request to me," her husband replied, "that I should help his widow and daughters."

"He didn't know what he was talking about, dare I say; ten to one, but he was dazed at the time. Had he been in his right mind, he wouldn't have been able to think of asking you for something away from your own child, half of your fortune."

"He did not ask for a certain sum, my dear Esther; he just asked me in general to help them and make their situation more comfortable than was in his power. Maybe it would have been good if he had left it entirely to me. He could hardly assume that I would neglect her. But since he demanded the promise, I could not give less than it; at least that's what I thought at the time. So the promise has been made and must be carried out. Whenever they leave Norland and settle in a new home, something has to be done for them.

"Well, then let something be done for them; but THAT doesn't have to be three thousand pounds. Remember," she added, "that once the money is gone, it can never return. Your sisters will get married, and so it will be gone forever. If it could actually be restored to our poor little boy...""

Of course," her husband said very seriously, "that would make a big difference. The time may come when Harry will regret that such a large sum has been handed over. For example, if he had a large family, it would be a very practical addition."

"To be sure it would."

"Perhaps it would then be better for all parties if the sum were reduced by half. - Five hundred pounds would be a tremendous increase in their wealth!"

"Oh! beyond anything big! What brother on earth would do only half as much for his sisters, and if it were REALLY his sisters! And as it is – only half blood!

"I don't want to do anything bad," he replied. "On such occasions, it is better to do too much than too little. At least no one can think that I haven't done enough for them: even they themselves can hardly wait any longer."

"You don't know what YOU can expect," said the lady, "but we must not think about her expectations: the question is what you can afford."

"Certainly – and I think I can afford to give them five hundred pounds each. As it stands, without my supplement, each of them will have about three thousand pounds at the death of their mother – a very pleasant fortune for any young woman."

"Of course it is; and in fact, it seems to me that they can't ask for anything more at all. They will have divided ten thousand pounds among themselves. When they get married, they will be sure that they will be fine, and if they don't, they can all live together very comfortably with the interest of ten thousand pounds."

"This is very true, and so I don't know if it wouldn't be more advisable to do something for the mother during her lifetime than for her – something like an annuity, I mean. My sisters would feel the good effects of this as much as they would. A hundred years a year, they would satisfy everyone completely."

However, his wife was a little hesitant to agree to this plan.

"Of course," she said, "it's better than immediately parting with fifteen hundred pounds.

"Fifteen years! my dear Esther; their lives can't be worth half of that purchase."

and with my father it was all the more unfriendly, because otherwise the money would have been available to my mother completely without restriction. It has given me such an abhorrence of annuities that I am sure that I would not commit myself to paying one for the whole world.

"It's certainly an unpleasant thing," Mr. Hargrove replied, "to have such annual deductions from one's income. Your own assets, as your mother rightly says, do NOT belong to you. To be tied to the regular payment of such a sum on each rental day is by no means desirable: it takes away one's independence."

"Undoubtedly; and finally, you have no thanks for it. You consider yourself safe, you are not doing more than what is expected, and it does not arouse gratitude at all. If I were you, everything I have done should be done at my own discretion I would not commit to granting them anything every year. It can be very impractical in some years to save a hundred or even fifty pounds from our own expenses.

"I think you're right, my dear; it would be better if there were no pension in that case; what I may give them occasionally will be of far greater help than an annual allowance, because they would only expand their lifestyle if they felt secure of a greater income and were not six pence richer at the end of the year, so it will certainly be the best kind. A gift of fifty pounds every now and then will keep them from ever getting into trouble for money, and I think I will keep my promise to my father abundantly.

they will pay their mother for their food. Together they will have five hundred a year under them, and what on earth can four women want more than that? - You will live so cheaply! Your household will be nothing at all. You will have no carriage, no horses and hardly any servants; they will not keep company and must not have any expenses! Just imagine how comfortable they will be! Five hundred a year! I'm sure I can't imagine how they're going to spend half of it; and that you give them more, it's pretty absurd to think about it. They will be much more able to give something to YOU." no horses and hardly any servants; they will not keep company and must not have any expenses! Just imagine how comfortable they will be! Five hundred a year! I'm sure I can't imagine how they're going to spend half of it; and that you give them more, it's pretty absurd to think about it. They will be much more able to give something to YOU." no horses and hardly any servants; they will not keep company and must not have any expenses! Just imagine how comfortable they will be! Five hundred a year! I'm sure I can't imagine how they're going to spend half of it; and that you give them more, it's pretty absurd to think about it. You will be much more able to give something to YOU."

"At my word," said Mr. Hargrove, "I think you are absolutely right. My father certainly could not mean anything to me with his request other than what you say Such assistance and kindness to them as you have described them. If my mother moves to another house, my services should be willingly granted to accommodate her as much as possible. Even a small gift of furniture may then be acceptable."

"Sure," Ms. John Hargrove returned. "But ONE thing has to be taken into account. When your father and mother moved to Norland, Stanhill's furniture was sold, but all the porcelain, plates and laundry were saved and are now left to your mother. Her house will therefore be almost fully equipped as soon as she takes it."

"This is undoubtedly a material consideration. A valuable legacy indeed!

"Yes, and the breakfast sporzellan is twice as pretty as what belongs to this house. In my opinion, way too pretty for any place YOU can ever afford to live. But that's the way it is. Her father thought only of YOU. And I must say that you do not owe him any special gratitude or consideration for his wishes; for we know very well that if he could, he would have left them almost everything in the world."

This argument was irresistible. It gave his intentions what was previously lacking in decision; and he finally decided that it would be absolutely unnecessary, if not highly indecent, to do more for his father's widow and children than such kind of neighborly acts, as his own wife pointed out.