Page 45 of The Cheapside Runners
The last made both Miss Blue and Miss White flinch as intended, but the tutor continued without pause.
“Alternatively, a woman could be perfectly innocent and just splurging for once in her life, trying to make herself pretty for her beau, or just trying to give herself a fair chance in the marriage mart. Much like posture and expressions, you have to dig deeper and look at more than one aspect of her character to find the truth… or as close as you can come to it.”
She looked to her charges to see how they reacted beforecontinuing earnestly, if a bit wistfully, “First impressions are dangerous beasts that should not be relied upon. It took me some hard lessons to learn that.”
Miss White asked somewhat timidly, “You mentioned ladies who subtly try to befriend you to get access to a relation. What if they are not the least bit subtle?”
“Then you must take steps to avoid them and cut them out of your life entirely if possible. Such people willneverdo you any good, unless of course they offeryousome particular advantage sufficient to put up with their annoyances. You should never tolerate them due to excessive civility or timidity, or even because they have other relations important to your family. You only have so many hours to live on this earth. While you may have to tolerate your guardian’s or husband’s friends, do not do so without a fight, and beveryaware which snakes you let into your bed. Try to throw the worst of them out before they bite you.”
Miss White and Miss Blue looked thoughtful, which was probably useful—especially when Mrs Black told the group she would cover ways to cut such dead weight out of their lives in the second week of their training, probably on the same day she taught them to bring a man to his knees with a thumb lock.
The first group of four had mixed in with other ladies, and the hidden group could hear quite a lot of conversation. The time of day had been deliberately chosen to maximise the gossip, and Mrs Black walked her charges through listening to what they said and really thinking about it.
Did the tale even make sense? Many did not pass a simple sniff test. Was what they heard from a credible source? What was the purpose of sharing the story? Who gained or lost from the gossip spreading? Was what they heard a cautionary tale they should pay attention to, someone being stabbed in the back and stepped over, or something else? How importantwas the gossip—to you? The latest fashion trend might be marginally useful—the latest scandal amongst people you do not know, much less so. Why should someone waste their time and reputation listening to or repeating gossip about people not important to them? Which people had ongoing rivalries? Were two women competing for one gentleman’s attention, and if so, how much did that tell you to watch your back around them? What behaviours were becoming more or less acceptable? For example, was the waltz now acceptable in polite society, and if so, who could dance it without raising eyebrows? Were country manners becoming more like city manners or the converse? What laws were being discussed in parliament that might affect the price of crops or otherwise affect their livelihoods?
In this way she taught them how to critically listen to what was said or omitted, discard probable mistakes, lies, omissions, exaggerations, slander, distortions, speculation, betrayal, or any of the other dozen ways gossip could do harm. To be fair, she also said it could be informative, cautionary, moral (very occasionally), entertaining, insightful, or amusing.
She also worked her way back to costs, since in the area of finance most ladies were even more ignorant than they were about men. She mentioned the thirty-guinea gown from Bond Street, became ten in their current locale, but might be three in Cheapside. At that point, the gown would be substantially lower quality, but you could get three for the same price, and it would be perfectly good enough for most society.
She went into how to dress to fit your society and explained why wearing a Bond Street silk gown to a country assembly would just make you look ridiculous, which was not necessarily an iron-clad rule, but it was amusing to watch the light of recognition enter the eyes of her charges. She said wearing a rustic country ballgown to a first-circle ball would be the exact same thing in reverse.
A few hours later they had luncheon, then swapped groups so Mrs Black could repeat the lesson, and a few hours later they gratefully went back to their lodgings.
Those ladies who had lived quiet lives without a great deal of female company were astounded by how much talk had assaulted their ears in just a few hours, and how confusing it all was. Those who had lived their lives surrounded by gossip were chagrined to learn how extraordinarily little of it was worthy of their attention, and how much of it was playing with fire.
They had been industrious, thoughtful, insightful, and well-behaved all day, so they were given the handsomest reward imaginable—a dinner much like Mrs Bennet served every day.
Mrs Black used the dinner to summarise what they should have learnt that day.
“Remember this rule:Words matter.Words can be a weapon, but they can also be a shield. Words can offer comfort or pain. They can help or hurt. It is not only words you speak that can affect you. For example, simply listening to spiteful gossip because you are too polite to say anything or leave gives the gossiper more power.”
Surprisingly, Lydia said, “What you say makes sense. I suppose with your ideas about balance, we need to ensure we have both kinds in our arsenal.”
“That is correct, Miss Green. Remember that words you say can hurtyoujust as surely as they can hurt others. In fact, the mere act of hurting someone else harms you, even if they do not retaliate, because it makes you a lesser person.”
The ladies nodded, so Mrs Black continued, “Miss Amber, can you work out other pairs.”
It took a minute for her to come up with, “A blessing or a curse?”
“Very good. Miss Violet?”
“A guide or a trap?”
Mrs Black encouraged them, and the discussion was livelier and more intelligent than it might have been a few days earlier. They continued energetically through several other opposing pairs.
The evening finally came to a close when Jane suggested, “A mirror or a mask.”
That one had everyone thinking for several moments.
Mrs Black finally said, “I think that one is perfect food for thought, so let us retire.”
17.Balancing the Scales
Darcy looked up from the book he was pretending to read by the fire as his cousin entered the study. He had sent a note around to see if the colonel could make it but had not expected such a fast response.
“Richard, good to see you!” he said in greeting. “Tea? Brandy? Food?”
“Luncheon would not be amiss.”
