The Small Bachelor · Chapter
XV explained
Molly and Sigsbee Horatio arrive at George's apartment after a delay, where Molly finds Officer Garroway recovering from a pepper attack by Mrs.
What happens
Molly and Sigsbee Horatio arrive at George's apartment after a delay, where Molly finds Officer Garroway recovering from a pepper attack by Mrs. Waddington. After Garroway leaves, Molly waits on the roof and is reunited with George. They embrace, but George fears they were seen by Lancelot Biffen. Molly reveals her plan to pack a suitcase, marry George the next morning, and elope. She insists George eat dinner before she returns, and he heads to the Purple Chicken.
Themes in this chapter
Love and Marriage
Molly and George's reunion and her plan to elope highlight the theme of love overcoming obstacles.
Deception and Appearances
Mrs. Waddington's burglary and the planned raid on the Purple Chicken involve hidden identities and deceptive actions.
Characters to notice
- Molly Waddington
Arrives at George's apartment, speaks with Officer Garroway, waits on the roof, reunites with George, and declares her plan to elope with him.
- Sigsbee H. Waddington
Travels with Molly to New York, muttering 'Gallagher' to himself, and is dropped off at Police Headquarters.
- Officer Garroway
Found at George's apartment after being pepper-sprayed by Mrs. Waddington; informs Molly of the burglary and his upcoming raid on the Purple Chicken.
- George Finch
Reunites with Molly on the roof, fears they were seen by Lancelot Biffen, and agrees to have dinner at the Purple Chicken as Molly insists.
- Lancelot Biffen
Mentioned by George as a snooping neighbor who might have spied on them from the fire escape.
Key passages
“Halfway to New York, however, a blowout had arrested their progress: and the inability of Sigsbee H. to make a quick job of fixing the spare wheel had further delayed them.”
A tire burst halfway to New York, and Sigsbee H. was slow to fix the spare, causing further delay.
Explains the delay in Molly and Sigsbee's arrival.
“The one small point that differentiated him from a corpse was the fact that he was sneezing.”
The only sign that Officer Garroway was alive was his sneezing.
Describes Garroway's disheveled state after the pepper attack.
“I thought I saw someone on the fire-escape, darling.”
George thought he spotted someone on the fire escape.
George's fear of being watched by Lancelot Biffen.
“I'm going home now to pack a suitcase. Then I'll drive back to New York and stay the night at an hotel, and tomorrow we'll be married early in the morning, and in the afternoon we'll go off together, all alone, miles and miles from everybody.”
Molly plans to pack, stay at a hotel, marry George early tomorrow, and then elope.
Molly's decisive plan to elope with George.