Chapter 10 This time, the general was truly taken aback…
The general was truly taken aback. He stood up and paced around the study twice before returning to his desk. Looking at the petite girl sitting before him, he asked in surprise, "Do you know what a deposit or a bond is? Or have you only heard your father, Mr. Price, mention it briefly?"
You know, let alone a little girl as young as Mary, even General Maxwell's wife still doesn't understand these new terms in the financial investment market. As long as the allowance the general gives her every year is enough, she, like most women of the time, neither understands nor wants to understand how the general's income comes about.
“I understand that deposits are money put into a bank and we can get interest; bonds are like lending money to the government or large companies, and as investors, we can also get a certain amount of interest income every year.”
The general laughed: "Then you should understand that whether it's depositing money in a bank or buying bonds, you're only six years old, and a guardian's signature is required. If Mr. Price were to sign for you, wouldn't that give you away?"
Mary was indeed not very clear about these details. At that time in England, the Bank of England had been established for a long time and was gradually growing into the central bank of the United Kingdom. In addition, many private commercial banks and local trust savings banks had also emerged (established by local nobles, elites, clergy, etc., with the initial purpose of attracting deposits from ordinary people to help them escape poverty). However, banks were still a new thing, and Mary could not find out their specific operating rules.
As Mary's godfather, General Maxwell hadn't actually devoted much to his goddaughter's upbringing. However, seeing how intelligent the little girl was, even though she still harbored a natural disdain for women, he couldn't help but feel that Mary Price possessed such shrewdness at such a young age, and that her beauty could compensate for her shortcomings, making her a promising candidate to marry a gentleman of high standing when she grew up. Therefore, the general had already decided to do his part for her. Had Mary not been so determined not to abandon her younger sister Susan, she could have easily continued living at Maxwell's house with her daughter Anne as his goddaughter.
Seeing Mary's puzzled and troubled expression, he stopped teasing his goddaughter and readily said, "As your godfather, I am also your protector, and I can sign for you. If you trust your godfather, you can sign a trust agreement and give the money to my investment advisor, who will buy bonds in London and earn 5% interest per year; or you can deposit it in a bank, where some deposits offer interest rates between 4% and 4.5%, and some even higher than ordinary bond yields."
Mary was overjoyed. It couldn't be better that her godfather was willing to lend a hand; she no longer had to worry that Lieutenant Price would one day discover her secret. She thought it over carefully: in Britain at this time, even bank deposits weren't a guarantee of safety. Every year, some private banks faced bankruptcy due to poor management and inability to pay high interest rates. Mary simply chose to buy bonds, since the bond market now almost exclusively traded government bonds, which were very safe.
In this way, by this time next year, Mary would receive fifteen pounds in interest income, a figure close to Kate's annual wages for her hard work. To put it another way, William, starting as an ordinary sailor, earned only twenty pounds a year, and after the ship's chief accountant deducted some, he wouldn't even receive the full amount. Therefore, despite feeling somewhat embarrassed, Mary boldly continued to ask her godfather for help in finding William a good captain.
General Maxwell had the advantage of helping, so it was simply a matter of convenience; in the past, he might not have bothered with the Price family's affairs. But now, he was willing to give his goddaughter face, and he planned to meet the young man, William Price. If he seemed like a good person, he might help him again in the future.
As you can imagine, the Price family was overjoyed when Mary returned from her visit to Maxwell's! Mr. Price, abandoning his usual complaints, eagerly recounted his brief experience working with the general and boasted of his past glories.
Mrs. Price kept praising the general, saying he was full of compliments; William was very grateful to his sister Mary, while John and Richard looked at their elder brother with envy. Susan also knew that this was a great thing, and even young Sam, Tom, and Charles were dancing with joy.
Shortly after William met with General Maxwell, he was instructed to seek out the captain of the Antwerp. This captain was highly experienced and had trained many skilled seamen. The Antwerp was not currently on any sea voyage and would be docked in Portsmouth for the next few months. In other words, William could remain at home for some time.
This was exactly what William wanted. After all, he was only eleven years old, and leaving his family at such a young age was a bit difficult for this precocious boy to adjust to. As he became more and more familiar with the duties of a sailor and increasingly looked forward to venturing out to sea, the Christmas season was approaching, and he received even better news—his uncle, Sir Thomas, had invited him to Northamptonshire to spend a week with Fanny.
Both siblings were extremely grateful to their uncle, Sir Thomas, for being able to see his sister Fanny (brother William) one last time before setting sail. Although Sir Thomas couldn't offer much help in William's career, he did what he could. He bought his nephew a nice set of clothes, gave him some life advice, and told him to focus on his career.
This Christmas, the Price family had two fewer older children but an extra baby in their arms. On their way to church, the large group was still the envy of many. Especially in the latter half of the year, although Mrs. Price had more housework to do, she had less to worry about. She looked radiant, almost like a pampered lady.
Unbeknownst to the Prices, Mary had changed her tailor, cut unnecessary expenses, and Fanny had left home, further reducing the Price household's finances. Mary continued to report her expenses to Mrs. Price according to past practices, and Mrs. Price had no suspicions. This year, after Mr. Price received his salary, the family had even saved about twenty pounds.
Like a little groundhog, Mary carefully stored the change she had left over each month after settling her bills in her little box. Just how much money did she secretly save? Perhaps only her younger sister Susan, who lived with her, knew a thing or two. Susan was clever; she knew her sister wanted to save money this way so they could both go to school. She didn't know what was so appealing about school, but Mary insisted on the benefits of education, so Susan wholeheartedly supported her and helped Mary hide her precious box very well.
With the allowance Mrs. Price has been giving her, Mary has saved nearly ten pounds. This amount will continue to increase after William goes to sea, and by next September she should be able to save another ten pounds. With her interest income, she should be able to pay for her and Susan's expenses for a year without any problem.
During this time, Mary often accompanied Anne to her classes, where she learned a great deal about the humanities and arts from her governess, Miss Smith, and also gained an understanding of the situation at two or three girls' schools in Portsmouth.
Mary's past impressions of schools and the textbooks at her brothers' schools misled her. Unlike the schools she had imagined that provided humanities and social science education, the girls' schools in Portsmouth at this time were more like "ladies' training classes" than schools. The number of students in these schools was usually no more than fifty or sixty, and they were almost all sponsored by one or two ladies and taught by four or five female teachers.
Some middle-class families, unable to afford a private governess but still desiring an education for their children, sent their daughters to Miss Smith's tutors. The lessons were identical: etiquette, language, drawing, music, and sewing. These skills were designed to make women more attractive and desirable in the marriage market, not to equip them with genuine skills for making a living.
It might seem unnecessary for Mary to attend such a school, but staying at home every day, listening to Mrs. Price indoctrinate her and her sisters with contemporary expectations of femininity, submissiveness, and humility, was clearly more boring. Mary desperately needed a change of scenery. After comparing several schools, she chose the one sponsored by Mrs. Johnson. It was relatively cheaper, costing only fifteen pounds for tuition and books alone, while the school the Gregory daughters attended charged eighteen pounds for those two items alone. Even including meals, the annual cost of the school sponsored by Mrs. Johnson was only eighteen pounds.
The cost for the two girls was thirty-six pounds, while hiring a governess would only cost thirty or forty pounds. Of course, a governess would need to provide room and board, so her actual income would be slightly higher. It's no wonder Mr. Price was unwilling to send his two daughters to school. In his view, girls' schools and other such fashionable things were just a way to rip them off. Why waste money on his daughters like that? It would be just as good to let them be homeschooled by Mrs. Price.
As Mary flipped through the novels she'd borrowed from the mobile library, she pondered what other convenient ways she could make money. She'd considered submitting articles to popular magazines and newspapers, but that wasn't an option now; she was too young, and she couldn't find a male elder or brother to vouch for her. Continuing to draw designs for the tailor shop wasn't realistic either; Portsmouth wasn't London, and Aunt Taylor's shop needed trendy designs to bring in a steady stream of customers, not too many designs that would create a heavy financial burden.
Fortunately, Mary is not so anxious now. The three hundred pounds gave her some confidence. She is still young and has plenty of time to observe the world. As long as she is patient, there will always be opportunities waiting for her to seize.
Half a year passed by unhurriedly, and just as the summer sea breeze in Portsmouth began to bring the distinctive damp, fishy smell of the ocean, Mary had saved enough money. That day, in the living room, she announced to Mrs. Price, who was casually knitting, that she would be attending Mrs. Johnson's school with Susan that fall, which caused a great uproar in the Price household.
A note from the author:
----------------------
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com