第74章[第1頁/共6頁]

“I had not been long in Hertfordshire,before I saw,in common with others,that Bingley preferred your elder sister to any other young woman in the country.But it was not till the evening of the dance at Netherfield that I had any apprehension of his feeling a serious attachment. I had often seen him in love before.At that ball,while I had the honour of dancing with you,I was first made acquainted,by Sir William Lucas's accidental information, that Bingley's attentions to your sister had given rise to a general expectation of their marriage.He spoke of it as a certain event, of which the time alone could be undecided.From that moment I observed my friend's behaviour attentively; and I could then perceive that his partiality for Miss Bennet was beyond what I had ever witnessed in him.Your sister I also watched. Her look and manners were open, cheerful, and engaging as ever, but without any symptom of peculiar regard, and I remained convinced from the evening's scrutiny,that though she re