Chapter 3: Thornfield Hall
In 1833, I was eighteen years old. In the summer, Miss Temple left Lowood School. She got married. I wanted to leave Lowood too. I wanted a new life.
‘I will be a governess,’ I thought.
I put an advertisement in a newspaper.
October, 1833. Lowood.
A young woman wants to teach one or two children in their home. She teaches English, Arithmetic, Geography, Religion, French, Drawing and Music.
J.E.
I had a reply to my advertisement. The reply was from Mr.s Fairfax of Thornfield Hall, near Millcote. Millcote was about seventy miles from Lowood School. Mr.s Fairfax wanted a governess for a little girl.
I wrote to Mr.s Fairfax immediately. I was going to be a governess at Thornfield Hall!
I travelled to Millcote in a coach. At Millcote, a servant met me. He took me to Thornfield Hall. At Thornfield Hall, another servant opened the door. She was smiling. She took me into a small, warm room. A lady was in the room. She was sitting by the fire.
‘Are you Mr.s Fairfax?’ I asked her.
‘Yes, my dear,’ she said. ‘And you are Miss Eyre. Are you cold? Sit by the fire, Miss Eyre, A servant will bring you some food.’
‘Mr.s Fairfax is very kind,’ I said to myself. ‘I will be happy here.’
‘Will I see Miss Fairfax tonight?’ I asked.
Mr.s Fairfax looked at me. She smiled.
‘Miss Fairfax? No, no,’ she said. ‘Your pupil’s name is not Miss Fairfax. Your pupil is Adele Varens. Adele’s mother was a Frenchwoman. Adele is Mr. Rochester’s ward. He takes care of her.’
‘Mr. Rochester? Who is Mr. Rochester?’ I asked.
‘Mr. Edward Rochester is the owner of Thornfield Hall,’ Mr.s Fairfax said. ‘I am his housekeeper. I take care of Thornfield Hall. Mr. Rochester is not here now. He does not like this house. He is often away from home.’
I was very tired. Mr.s Fairfax took me up the wide stairs. She took me to my room. I went to bed immediately. And I slept well.
The next morning, I woke early. The sun was shining. I put on a plain black dress. I opened my bedroom door. I walked along a corridor and down the wide stairs. I walked out into the sunny garden.
I turned and I looked up at my new home. Thornfield Hall was a beautiful house with many large windows. The garden was beautiful too.
After a few minutes, Mr.s Fairfax came into the garden. She spoke to me.
‘Good morning, Miss Eyre,’ she said. ‘You have woken early. Miss Adele is here. After breakfast, you must take her to the schoolroom. She must begin her lessons.’
A pretty little girl walked towards me. She was about eight years old. She spoke to me in French and I replied in French.
After breakfast, I took Adele to the schoolroom. We worked all morning. Adele enjoyed her lessons and I was happy.
In the afternoon, Mr.s Fairfax took me into all the rooms of Thornfield Hall. We looked at the paintings and at the beautiful furniture. We walked along the corridors,
‘Come up onto the roof, Miss Eyre,’ Mr.s Fairfax said. ‘You will see the beautiful countryside around Thornfield Hall.’
We walked up many stairs. At last, we were at the top of the house. We walked along the top corridor. Mr.s Fairfax opened a small door and we walked onto the roof.
‘Look, Miss Eyre,’ Mr.s Fairfax said. ‘You can see for many miles.’
We stood on the roof for a few minutes. Then we went back into the house. We walked carefully towards the stairs. The top corridor was narrow and dark.
Suddenly, I heard a strange laugh.
‘Who is that, Mr.s Fairfax?’ I asked.
Mr.s Fairfax did not reply. She knocked on a door.
‘Grace!’ she said. The door opened. Behind the door was a small room. A servant was standing at the door.
‘Be quiet, Grace, please,’ Mr.s Fairfax said.
The woman looked at Mr.s Fairfax. Then she closed the door.
‘That was Grace Poole,’ Mr.s Fairfax said. ‘She works up here. Sometimes she laughs and talks with the other servants. Don’t worry about Grace. Please come downstairs now, Miss Eyre.’