Bingley,from this time,was of course a daily visitor at Longbourn;coming frequently before breakfast,and always remaining till after supper;unless when some barbarous neighbour,who could not be enough detested,had given him an invitation to dinner which he thought himself obliged to accept.
This naturally introduced a panegyric from Jane on his diffidence, and the little value he put on his own good qualities.Elizabeth was pleased to find that he had not betrayed the interference of his friend;for,though Jane had the most generous and forgiving heart in the world,she knew it was a circumstance which must prejudice her against him.
“If you were to give me forty such men, I never could be so happy as you.Till I have your disposition,your goodness,I never can have your happiness. No, no, let me shift for myself; and, perhaps,if I have very good luck,I may meet with another Mr. Collins in time.”
“He has made me so happy,”said she,one evening,“by telling me that he was totally ignorant of my being in town last spring!I had not believed it possible.”
“He made a little mistake to be sure;but it is to the credit of his modesty.”
Mary petitioned for the use of the library at Netherfield;and Kitty begged very hard for a few balls there every winter.