A Country Gentleman and His Family · Chapter
XIII explained
Dick Cavendish takes a nighttime walk, visits Lizzie Hampson at her grandmother's shop, and later reveals to the rector that he must leave suddenly, citing mysterious news received at the post-office.
What happens
Dick Cavendish takes a nighttime walk, visits Lizzie Hampson at her grandmother's shop, and later reveals to the rector that he must leave suddenly, citing mysterious news received at the post-office. His thoughts turn unexpectedly to Chatty Warrender, whom he imagines with a bowl of roses.
Themes in this chapter
Secrecy and the Past
Dick's mysterious errand and guarded conversation with Lizzie Hampson hint at hidden knowledge about her former mistress.
Love and Marriage
Dick's sudden vision of Chatty Warrender suggests the beginning of romantic feelings, amidst his reputation as a lighthearted flirt.
Characters to notice
- Dick Cavendish
Takes a walk, visits Lizzie Hampson, and decides to leave the rectory abruptly after receiving mysterious news.
- Lizzie Hampson
Found sewing in her grandmother's shop; engages in a guarded conversation with Dick about her former mistress.
- Minnie Chatty Warrender
Appears in Dick's imagination holding a bowl of roses, sparking a new romantic interest.
- Mrs. Wilberforce
Disapproves of Dick's late walk and comments on the creeping of late hours.
- Mr. Wilberforce
Invites Dick for a smoke; is surprised by Dick's sudden decision to leave and tries to guess the reason.
Key passages
“He went right into the big clump of laurels, and speared himself on the prickles of the old hawthorn before he emerged from the Rectory gates.”
He walked into a thicket of laurels and got scratched by a hawthorn bush before leaving the Rectory grounds.
Describes Dick's clumsy start to his nighttime walk.
“Two or three dogs, sworn enemies to innovation, scented him, and protested at their loudest against the novelty, not to say wickedness, of a passenger at that hour of the night.”
A few dogs, hostile to any change, barked loudly at him for being out so late, as if it were a sinful novelty.
Illustrates the rural suspicion of unusual nighttime activity.
“She walked into his imagination at the mere passage of these words through his head, stepping across the threshold of his fancy with almost as strong a sensation of reality as if she had pushed open his door and come into the room.”
The thought of her entered his mind so vividly that it felt as real as if she had physically entered his room.
Shows the sudden and powerful emergence of Chatty in Dick's thoughts.