"He saw his son every year in London, and was proud of him; and his fond report of him as a very fine young man had made Highbury feel a sort of pride in him too. He was looked on as sufficiently belonging to the place to make his merits and prospects a kind of common concern.

Mr. Frank Churchill was one of the boasts of Highbury, and a lively curiosity to see him prevailed, though the compliment was so little returned that he had never been there in his life. His coming to visit his father had been often talked of but never achieved."

I can't help but find some intrigue and sense of gossip in this mixture: Mr Weston saw his son only once a year in London,yet was a resident of Highbury for many years to date, and yet no-one had ever met with Frank, but he was "one of the boasts of Highbury"!

(Also intriguing is the mention that Frank Churchill had the remains of some of the illness of her mother, earlier in the chapter, and this was considered further reason for the Churchill's to keep him.)