About thirty years ago Miss Maria Ward, of Huntingdon, with only seven thousand pounds, hadthe good luck to captivate Sir Thomas Bertram, of Mansfield Park, in the county of Northampton, and to be thereby raised to the rank of a baronet's lady, with all the comforts and consequences ofan handsome house and large income. All Huntingdon exclaimed on the greatness of the match, andher uncle, the lawyer, himself, allowed her to be at least three thousand pounds short of anyequitable claim to it. She had two sisters to be benefited by her elevation; and such of theiracquaintance as thought Miss Ward and Miss Frances quite as handsome as Miss Maria, did notscruple to predict their marrying with almost equal advantage. But there certainly are not so manymen of large fortune in the world as there are pretty women to deserve them. Miss Ward, at the endof half a dozen years, found herself obliged to be attached to the Rev. Mr. Norris, a friend of herbrother-in-law, with scarcely any private fortune, and Miss Frances fared yet worse. Miss Ward'smatch, indeed, when it came to the point, was not contemptible: Sir Thomas being happily able togive his friend an income in the living of Mansfield; and Mr. and Mrs. Norris began their career ofconjugal felicity with very little less than a thousand a year. But Miss Frances married, in thecommon phrase, to disoblige her family, and by fixing on a lieutenant of marines, without education, fortune, or connexions, did it very thoroughly. She could hardly have made a more untoward choice.Sir Thomas Bertram had interest, which, from principle as well as pride-from a general wish ofdoing right, and a desire of seeing all that were connected with him in situations of respectability, hewould have been glad to exert for the advantage of Lady Bertram's sister; but her husband'sprofession was such as no interest could reach; and before he had time to devise any other methodof assisting them, an absolute breach between the sisters had taken place. It was the natural result ofthe conduct of each party, and such as a very imprudent marriage almost always produces. To saveherself from useless remonstrance, Mrs. Price never wrote to her family on the subject till actuallymarried. Lady Bertram, who was a woman of very tranquil feelings, and a temper remarkably easyand indolent, would have contented herself with merely giving up her sister, and thinking no moreof the matter; but Mrs. Norris had a spirit of activity, which could not be satisfied till she had writtena long and angry letter to Fanny, to point out the folly of her conduct, and threaten her with all itspossible ill consequences. Mrs. Price, in her turn, was injured and angry; and an answer, whichcomprehended each sister in its bitterness, and bestowed such very disrespectful reflections on thepride of Sir Thomas as Mrs. Norris could not possibly keep to herself, put an end to all intercoursebetween them for a considerable perio