miss elizabeth. i have struggled in vain and i can bear it no longer. these past months have been a torment. i came to rosings with the single object of seeing you. i had to see you. i have fought against my better judgment, my family’s expectation, the inferiority of your birth, my rank and circumstance, all these things and i’m willing to put then aside and ask you to end my agony. (i don’t understand.) i love you. most ardently. please do me the honor of accepting my hand.