第118章[第1页/共5页]

On such encouragement to ask,Elizabeth was forced to put it out of her power,by running away.

“Lizzy, I never gave you an account of my wedding, I believe. You were not by,when I told mamma and the others all about it. Are not you curious to hear how it was managed?”

“La!You are so strange!But I must tell you how it went off.We were married, you know, at St. Clement's, because Wickham's lodgings were in that parish.And it was settled that we should all be there by eleven o'clock.My uncle and aunt and I were to go together;and the others were to meet us at the church.

“Mr.Darcy!”repeated Elizabeth,in utter amazement.

“Oh!certainly,”said Elizabeth,though burning with curiosity;“we will ask you no questions.”

“Oh,yes!―he was to come there with Wickham,you know.But gracious me!I quite forgot!I ought not to have said a word about it.I promised them so faithfully!What will Wickham say?It was to be such a secret!”

Wickham's affection for Lydia was just what Elizabeth had expected to find it;not equal to Lydia's for him.She had scarcely needed her present observation to be satisfied,from the reason of things,that their elopement had been brought on by the strength of her love,rather than by his;and she would have wondered why, without violently caring for her,he chose to elope with her at all, had she not felt certain that his flight was rendered necessary by distress of circumstances; and if that were the case, he was not the young man to resist an opportunity of having a companion.