Sir Pitt Crawley was a philosopher with a taste for what is called low

life. His first marriage with the daughter of the noble Binkie had

been made under the auspices of his parents; and as he often told Lady

Crawley in her lifetime she was such a confounded quarrelsome high-bred

jade that when she died he was hanged if he would ever take another of

her sort, at her ladyship's demise he kept his promise, and selected

for a second wife Miss Rose Dawson, daughter of Mr. John Thomas Dawson,

ironmonger, of Mudbury. What a happy woman was Rose to be my Lady

Crawley!

Let us set down the items of her happiness. In the first place, she

gave up Peter Butt, a young man who kept company with her, and in

consequence of his disappointment in love, took to smuggling, poaching,

and a thousand other bad courses. Then she quarrelled, as in duty

bound, with all the friends and intimates of her youth, who, of course,

could not be received by my Lady at Queen's Crawley--nor did she find

in her new rank and abode any persons who were willing to welcome her.

Who ever did? Sir Huddleston Fuddleston had three daughters who all

hoped to be Lady Crawley. Sir Giles Wapshot's family were insulted

that one of the Wapshot girls had not the preference in the marriage,

and the remaining baronets of the county were indignant at their

comrade's misalliance. Never mind the commoners, whom we will leave to

grumble anonymously.

Sir Pitt did not care, as he said, a brass farden for any one of them.

He had his pretty Rose, and what more need a man require than to please

himself? So he used to get drunk every night: to beat his pretty Rose

sometimes: to leave her in Hampshire when he went to London for the

parliamentary session, without a single friend in the wide world. Even

Mrs. Bute Crawley, the Rector's wife, refused to visit her, as she said

she would never give the pas to a tradesman's daughter.

As the only endowments with which Nature had gifted Lady Crawley were

those of pink cheeks and a white skin, and as she had no sort of

character, nor talents, nor opinions, nor occupations, nor amusements,

nor that vigour of soul and ferocity of temper which often falls to the

lot of entirely foolish women, her hold upon Sir Pitt's affections was

not very great. Her roses faded out of her cheeks, and the pretty

freshness left her figure after the birth of a couple of children, and

she became a mere machine in her husband's house of no more use than

the late Lady Crawley's grand piano. Being a light-complexioned woman,

she wore light clothes, as most blondes will, and appeared, in

preference, in draggled sea-green, or slatternly sky-blue. She worked

that worsted day and night, or other pieces like it. She had

counterpanes in the course of a few years to all the beds in Crawley.

She had a small flower-garden, for which she had rather an affection;

but beyond this no other like or disliking. When her husband was rude

to her she was apathetic: whenever he struck her she cried. She had

not character enough to take to drinking, and moaned about, slipshod

and in curl-papers all day. O Vanity Fair--Vanity Fair! This might

have been, but for you, a cheery lass--Peter Butt and Rose a happy man

and wife, in a snug farm, with a hearty family; and an honest portion

of pleasures, cares, hopes and struggles--but a title and a coach and

four are toys more precious than happiness in Vanity Fair: and if Harry

the Eighth or Bluebeard were alive now, and wanted a tenth wife, do you

suppose he could not get the prettiest girl that shall be presented

this season?




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