Austen Said:

Patterns of Diction in Jane Austen's Major Novels

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"Oh! Miss Anne, I cannot help wishing Mrs Charles had a little of your method with those children. They are quite different creatures with you! But to be sure, in general they are so spoilt! It is a pity you cannot put your sister in the way of managing them. They are as fine healthy children as ever were seen, poor little dears! without partiality; but Mrs Charles knows no more how they should be treated --! Bless me! how troublesome they are sometimes. I assure you, Miss Anne, it prevents my wishing to see them at our house so often as I otherwise should. I believe Mrs Charles is not quite pleased with my not inviting them oftener; but you know it is very bad to have children with one that one is obligated to be checking every moment; "don't do this," and "don't do that;" or that one can only keep in tolerable order by more cake than is good for them."
"I make a rule of never interfering in any of my daughter-in-law's concerns, for I know it would not do; but I shall tell you, Miss Anne, because you may be able to set things to rights, that I have no very good opinion of Mrs Charles's nursery-maid: I hear strange stories of her; she is always upon the gad; and from my own knowledge, I can declare, she is such a fine-dressing lady, that she is enough to ruin any servants she comes near. Mrs Charles quite swears by her, I know; but I just give you this hint, that you may be upon the watch; because, if you see anything amiss, you need not be afraid of mentioning it."
"Ah! Miss Anne, if it had pleased Heaven to spare my poor son, I dare say he would have been just such another by this time."
"And so then, I suppose,"
"so then he went away to the Laconia, and there he met with our poor boy. Charles, my dear,"
"do ask Captain Wentworth where it was he first met with your poor brother. I always forgot."
"Oh! but, Charles, tell Captain Wentworth, he need not be afraid of mentioning poor Dick before me, for it would be rather a pleasure to hear him talked of by such a good friend."
"And I am sure, Sir,"
"it was a lucky day for us, when you were put captain into that ship. We shall never forget what you did."
"Poor dear fellow!"
"he was grown so steady, and such an excellent correspondent, while he was under your care! Ah! it would have been a happy thing, if he had never left you. I assure you, Captain Wentworth, we are very sorry he ever left you."
"What a great traveller you must have been, ma'am!"
"Aye, to be sure. Yes, indeed, oh yes! I am quite of your opinion, Mrs Croft,"
"There is nothing so bad as a separation. I am quite of your opinion. I know what it is, for Mr Musgrove always attends the assizes, and I am so glad when they are over, and he is safe back again."
We had better put it off. Charles, you had much better go back and change the box for Tuesday. It would be a pity to be divided, and we should be losing Miss Anne, too, if there is a party at her father's; and I am sure neither Henrietta nor I should care at all for the play, if Miss Anne could not be with us."
"how Mr Musgrove and my brother Hayter had met again and again to talk it over; what my brother Hayter had said one day, and what Mr Musgrove had proposed the next, and what had occurred to my sister Hayter, and what the young people had wished, and what I said at first I never could consent to, but was afterwards persuaded to think might do very well,"
"And so, ma'am, all these thing considered,"
"though we could have wished it different, yet, altogether, we did not think it fair to stand out any longer, for Charles Hayter was quite wild about it, and Henrietta was pretty near as bad; and so we thought they had better marry at once, and make the best of it, as many others have done before them. At any rate, said I, it will be better than a long engagement."
"Oh! dear Mrs Croft,"
"there is nothing I so abominate for young people as a long engagement. It is what I always protested against for my children. It is all very well, I used to say, for young people to be engaged, if there is a certainty of their being able to marry in six months, or even in twelve; but a long engagement --"
"By all means, my dear,"
"go home directly, and take care of yourself, that you may be fit for the evening. I wish Sarah was here to doctor you, but I am no doctor myself. Charles, ring and order a chair. She must not walk."
"Oh! my dear, it is quite understood, I give you my word. Captain Harville has no thought but of going."
"To be sure I will, if you wish it. Charles, if you see Captain Harville anywhere, remember to give Miss Anne's message. But indeed, my dear, you need not be uneasy. Captain Harville holds himself quite engaged, I'll answer for it; and Captain Wentworth the same, I dare say."
“I wish you could dance, my dear — I wish you could get a partner.”
“It would have been very shocking to have it torn,”
“would not it? It is such a delicate muslin. For my part I have not seen anything I like so well in the whole room, I assure you.”
“Yes, my dear,”
“it is very uncomfortable indeed.”
“Aye, so we do. That is very disagreeable. I wish we had a large acquaintance here.”
“Very true, my dear; and if we knew anybody we would join them directly. The Skinners were here last year — I wish they were here now.”
“No more there are, indeed. How very provoking! But I think we had better sit still, for one gets so tumbled in such a crowd! How is my head, my dear? Somebody gave me a push that has hurt it, I am afraid.”
“I don’t, upon my word — I wish I did. I wish I had a large acquaintance here with all my heart, and then I should get you a partner. I should be so glad to have you dance. There goes a strange-looking woman! What an odd gown she has got on! How old-fashioned it is! Look at the back.”
“I wish she had been able to dance,”
“I wish we could have got a partner for her. I have been saying how glad I should be if the Skinners were here this winter instead of last; or if the Parrys had come, as they talked of once, she might have danced with George Parry. I am so sorry she has not had a partner!”
“My dear Catherine,”
“do take this pin out of my sleeve; I am afraid it has torn a hole already; I shall be quite sorry if it has, for this is a favourite gown, though it cost but nine shillings a yard.”
“Do you understand muslins, sir?”
“Men commonly take so little notice of those things,”
“I can never get Mr. Allen to know one of my gowns from another. You must be a great comfort to your sister, sir.”
“And pray, sir, what do you think of Miss Morland’s gown?”
“I am quite of your opinion, sir,”
“and so I told Miss Morland when she bought it.”
“Bath is a charming place, sir; there are so many good shops here. We are sadly off in the country; not but what we have very good shops in Salisbury, but it is so far to go — eight miles is a long way;
Mr. Allen says
but I am sure it cannot be more than eight; and it is such a fag — I come back tired to death. Now, here one can step out of doors and get a thing in five minutes.”
“What a delightful place Bath is,”
“and how pleasant it would be if we had any acquaintance here.”
“I wish we had some acquaintance in Bath!”
“How glad I am we have met with Mrs. Thorpe!”