that you should be forced to have that disagreeable man all to yourself. But I hope you will not mind it. . . . and there is no occasion for talking to him, except just now and then. So, do not put yourself to inconvenience.” —Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice Madame Girard’s Hat Shop occupied a fashionable corner off Leicester Square. A pair of tall double green doors with elaborate glass panels led the way through an arch into the interior. The showroom was divided between shelves that held madame’s creations, and mirrored alcoves, each with a silk-covered bench, for patrons to try the wares. As they entered, Violet leaned close to whisper in her betrothed’s ear, “Shopping! Frank is missing, and we are shopping.” The prince’s party had split in two with Papa taking the men off to see those great monuments of commerce and government—the Royal Exchange and Hammersley Bank, while Blackstone and Violet took the countess shopping.
