The Duke’s Children · Chapter
Then He Will Come Again explained
Lady Mabel Grex returns home from a dinner with her father, Lord Grex, who is in a foul mood after losing money on the Derby and being forced to cover his son Percival's debts.
What happens
Lady Mabel Grex returns home from a dinner with her father, Lord Grex, who is in a foul mood after losing money on the Derby and being forced to cover his son Percival's debts. At the dinner, she learns from Dolly Longstaff that Frank Tregear has been gambling heavily. Later, she confides in Miss Cassewary about Tregear's supposed gambling and reveals that Lord Silverbridge has essentially proposed to her, but she spared him out of charity. She reflects on her feelings and the possibility that Silverbridge might return, vowing not to spare him a second time.
Themes in this chapter
Money and Debt
Lord Grex's financial troubles and his son Percival's gambling losses dominate the chapter, highlighting the precariousness of aristocratic wealth and the burden of debt.
Gender Roles and Women's Agency
Lady Mabel is pressured by her father to marry for financial relief, yet she exercises agency by choosing to spare Silverbridge from a marriage she deems unequal, reflecting the limited but real choices available to women of her class.
Love vs. Duty
Mabel grapples with her feelings for Silverbridge and her sense of duty to her family's financial needs, ultimately prioritizing his welfare over her own advantage.
Characters to notice
- Lady Mabel Grex
Returns home with her father after a difficult dinner; learns of Tregear's gambling; confides in Miss Cassewary about Silverbridge's proposal and her decision to spare him.
- Lord Grex
Returns from the Oaks in a bad humour after losing money and being forced to cover Percival's debts; threatens to give up the house in Belgrave Square and pressures Mabel to marry.
- Miss Cassewary
Mabel's companion; listens to Mabel's confidences about Tregear's gambling and Silverbridge's proposal; offers comfort and advice.
- Dolly Longstaff
Sits next to Mabel at dinner; mentions that he and Percival have lost money at the races, and implies that Tregear has also been gambling.
- Sir Timothy Beeswax
Sits next to Mabel at dinner; discusses Silverbridge's switch to the Conservative party and expresses admiration for the Duke of Omnium.
- Lord Silverbridge
Mentioned as having proposed to Mabel in a roundabout way; she spared him but considers that he may return.
- Frank Tregear
Mabel believes he has taken to gambling and lost money at the races, based on Dolly Longstaff's report.
- Lord Percival
Mabel's brother; lost money on the Derby, causing financial complications with their father.
Key passages
“I don't see why the deuce you don't get married. You'll have to do it sooner or later.”
Lord Grex pressures his daughter to marry, implying she is a financial burden.
Reflects the theme of parental authority and the economic pressures on aristocratic women.
“Though I had him in my net, I let him go. Shall I go to heaven for doing that?”
Mabel reflects on her decision to spare Silverbridge from a proposal, questioning her own morality.
Highlights Mabel's internal conflict between self-interest and altruism.
“A real gentleman should never want the money out of another man's pocket;—should never think of money at all.”
Mabel criticizes gambling as ungentlemanly, contrasting it with her own pragmatic view of money.
Illustrates the tension between aristocratic ideals and financial realities.
