“Oh, what a goose he has been!”

Emily was shocked and baffled by Melmouth's actions.  She strongly believed her disapproval, and that of her parents, was justified and that Melmouth's actions were very wrong.

Emily's Diary, Saturday 12th January, 1839 (p85-86)

The more I think upon this unhappy occasion, the more unacceptable do I feel of understanding it – that one so educated as my brother, with so low an opinion of the acquirement of romance in general…should have taken one to be his companion through life who, to use his own words, can hardly read and write, is to me a perfect paradox, and I can not help thinking that he knowing how wrongly he has acted, and knowing how justly angry we all shall be with him, has experienced it all as badly as he possible could – At least I will hope so, till under his own hand I see the contrary.”

It seems that Charles and Augusta's response to their sons marriage was less than warm.  Emily was surprised by the silence that followed. Despite the regret and humility of his initial letter, it seems that Melmouth Hall was not afraid to stand up to, or maybe even resist, his family.  After all, he had married Charlotte, for whatever reason, and acted in a way that he knew they would find inappropriate.

Emily's Diary, Sunday 20th January, 1839 (p105)

"Can it be that Melmouth thinks we are angry with him? Or is he himself angry?  Oh! If he knew what suspense we are all in he could not, I am sure he could not refuse to write to us any longer!”

Partly, because of Mama's health, and partly because of the terrible news, the Hall family traveled to stay with their aunt and uncle in Tooting. The antagonism between Melmouth and his family continued, and Emily continued to record it.

Emily's Diary, Sunday April 7th ,1839 (p233)

“By the way, Aunt Mary cam into our room last night in her dressing gown, and told us that Uncle Fuller had kindly invited Melmouth and his lady to dinner, but that he had refused on the ground that he had a friend coming to spend the day with his – He was very vexed…he says it will be some time before he asked him again – “

But, Melmouth did show that day, and walked home from Church with Emily:

“I was for a few minute in a puzzle how to begin the circulation but he soon relieved my perplexity by saying as he led my away “So, my uncle is angry with me for not baring home my wife, is he?”  Having himself made a beginning it was easy for me to go on and I took advantage of it to speak my mind pretty plainly, and tell him how wrongly I though in not having brought her after what had passed – In  all of which he replied by saying he felt sure she could not stand being introduced to all of us at once_ as she is of a highly nervous temperament and withal in bad health and very timid.”

 Melmouth also repeated his contention, first articulated in his letter to his parents, that Charlotte was inferior to them.  However, he also stressed the qualities in which she could be equal to them. 

“I failed in bringing him around to my way of thinking_and at length he talked about her saying “that she is inferior to us in every particular except in her earnest desire to improve and in her perfect innocence of disposition_in neither of which she is the inferior of anyone”_I asked if she were pretty_but he thinks not…However, said he, you shall see her and judge for yourself.”

  A desire to improve, especially morally, was seen as a very positive attribute in the early nineteenth century, and innocence was perceived by many as virtue in a woman.  However, even these qualities did not mean that a girl from the lower echelons of society would be accepted in the Hall family.  As Emily noted, fretting about whether or not Charlotte would show:

  “…it would never do for us to go to her_even if aunt and uncle would permit it which I am sure they won’t.”

When Melmouth finally met up with his parents, the atmosphere was undoubtedly tense:

 “What passed between Melmouth and Papa and Mama I do not know, but at luncheon he was not having it, as mama said he had gone into the garden…”

However, the ties between siblings could be very close, and Emily found that she did not have in it her to reject her brother for long. Emily went to find her Melmouth, and when she discovered him he looked like he had been “crying for an hour”.

  “ …won’t you come in, I added, seeing me, he hesitated – “yes”, he said, putting his arm around me and drawing he nearer to him – “bless you” he added."

  While her loyalty to her brother remained almost in tact, this did not mean that Emily would accept Charlotte.  Most of the descriptions in her diary are rather scathing.  When later that same day Melmouth relented and fetched his wife to meet his family, Emily wrote:

  “She is tallish but I was heartily disappointed in her beauty -  for she had not much, though to be sure I should hardly judge her by her appearance today…so I shall delay my description till the next time I see her.”

Ellen's descriptions were little kinder, and it seems that meeting Charlotte only affirmed Emily's belief that her poor, misguided "goose" of a brother deserved his moment of disgrace:

 “I hope Melmouth feels it as he ought – for I am sure he did not deserve it.”

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