No Name · Chapter
From George Bartram to Miss Garth explained
George Bartram writes to Miss Garth about an extraordinary application made to his uncle's executors regarding a secret trust allegedly discovered by strangers.
What happens
George Bartram writes to Miss Garth about an extraordinary application made to his uncle's executors regarding a secret trust allegedly discovered by strangers. He describes the ongoing search for the trust document, which has so far yielded nothing, and reveals his uncle's tendency to somnambulism, suggesting the east wing should be searched again. He expresses his commitment to fairness and mentions his upcoming travel abroad, offering Miss Garth free admission to St. Crux.
Themes in this chapter
Secrecy and Revelation
The search for a secret trust and the revelation of Admiral Bartram's somnambulism highlight the theme of hidden knowledge coming to light.
Inheritance and Law
The legal complexities of the secret trust and the inheritance dispute are central to the chapter.
Characters to notice
- George Bartram
Writes to Miss Garth about the search for the secret trust and his uncle's somnambulism.
- Miss Garth
Recipient of George Bartram's letter, informed about the trust search and offered admission to St. Crux.
- Admiral Bartram
Deceased uncle of George Bartram; his secret trust and somnambulism are central to the chapter.
- Mrs. Drake
Housekeeper at St. Crux, left in charge and instructed to admit Miss Garth.
- Magdalen Vanstone
Referred to as Mrs. Noel Vanstone; the application concerns her interests.
Key passages
“I trouble you with another letter: partly to thank you for your kind expression of sympathy with me, under the loss that I have sustained; and partly to tell you of an extraordinary application made to my uncle’s executors, in which you and Miss Vanstone may both feel interested, as Mrs. Noel Vanstone is directly concerned in it.”
George writes to Miss Garth to thank her for her condolences and to inform her of a strange claim made to his uncle's executors that involves both her and Mrs. Noel Vanstone.
Opening of the letter, setting the context.
“I have not hesitated to reveal to the lawyer a constitutional peculiarity of my poor uncle’s, which was always kept a secret among us at his own request—I mean his tendency to somnambulism.”
George disclosed to the lawyer a secret about his uncle's sleepwalking, which the family had kept hidden.
Revelation of Admiral Bartram's somnambulism.