The Vicar of Bullhampton · Chapter
Mary Lowther Returns to Bullhampton explained
A month has passed and Mary Lowther returns to Bullhampton in late May.
What happens
A month has passed and Mary Lowther returns to Bullhampton in late May. The case against Sam Brattle remains unresolved with multiple remands, and the Marquis of Trowbridge escalates his conflict with Mr. Fenwick by writing to the bishop, who rebuffs him. Mary faces the awkwardness of meeting Harry Gilmore again, and though she tries to remain aloof, her friend Janet Fenwick senses a possible change in her feelings.
Themes in this chapter
Hypocrisy and Moral Courage
Lord Trowbridge's self-righteous accusations against Fenwick contrast with Fenwick's moral courage in defending Carry Brattle and seeking justice.
Justice and Prejudice
The legal proceedings against Sam Brattle are hampered by prejudice and lack of evidence, while the Marquis's campaign against Fenwick is driven by bias rather than facts.
Love and Marriage
Mary Lowther's internal struggle over whether to accept Harry Gilmore's proposal reflects the tension between personal inclination and social expectation.
Characters to notice
- Mary Lowther
Returns to Bullhampton and must confront her feelings for Harry Gilmore, though she remains conflicted.
- Mr. Fenwick
Writes an angry letter to Lord Trowbridge demanding an apology, and continues to be involved in the Brattle case.
- Harry Gilmore
Meets Mary again at the vicarage and later walks with her, hoping for a change in her feelings.
- Janet Fenwick
Visits Carry Brattle in Salisbury and reports her sullen state; encourages Mary to consider Gilmore.
- Lord Trowbridge
Writes to the bishop complaining about Fenwick, but is rebuffed; his son Lord St. George mocks him.
- Lord St. George
Reads the bishop's reply to his father and sarcastically remarks about the hornet's nest.
- Carry Brattle
Remains in Salisbury, sullen and idle, visited by Mrs. Fenwick but not by the Vicar.
- Sam Brattle
Still missing; his bail may be forfeited if he does not appear by June 5th.
Key passages
“A month went by after the scenes described in the last chapter, and summer had come at Bullhampton. It was now the end of May, and, with the summer, Mary Lowther had arrived.”
After a month, summer arrives at Bullhampton and Mary Lowther returns.
Sets the temporal context for the chapter.
“The police declared that this was rendered necessary by the absence of Sam Brattle—that the magistrates were anxious to give all reasonable time for the production of the man who was out upon bail—and that, as he was undoubtedly concerned in the murder, they were determined to have him.”
The police claimed they needed more time because Sam Brattle was missing, insisting he was involved in the murder.
Explains the legal delay in the case.
“I am informed by my friend, Mr. Gilmore, that your lordship has stated openly that I have made visits to a young woman in Salisbury which are disgraceful to me, to my cloth, and to the parish of which I am the incumbent.”
Fenwick writes to Lord Trowbridge accusing him of slander regarding visits to a young woman in Salisbury.
Highlights the conflict between Fenwick and the Marquis.
“The bishop felt himself to be very much bullied. He had no doubt whatsoever about his parson. He knew that Fenwick was too strong a man to be acted upon beneficially by such advice as to his private conduct as a bishop might give, and too good a man to need any caution as to his conduct.”
The bishop, though feeling bullied, firmly supports Fenwick as a moral and capable clergyman.
Shows the bishop's endorsement of Fenwick despite the Marquis's complaints.
“Carry Brattle was still at Salisbury, but had not been seen by the Vicar for more than a fortnight. The Marquis’s letter, backed as it was in part by his wife’s counsel, had, much to his own disgust, deterred him from seeing the girl.”
Fenwick has avoided visiting Carry Brattle due to the Marquis's accusations, much to his own frustration.
Illustrates the personal cost of the public dispute.
“She knew—she thought she knew—that she must refuse him, and in doing so would simply be making fresh trouble. Would it not have been better for her to have remained at Loring—to have put herself at once on a par with her aunt, and have commenced her life of solitary spinsterhood and dull routine?”
Mary considers refusing Gilmore again, wondering if she should have stayed in Loring to begin a quiet, solitary life.
Reveals Mary's internal conflict about marriage and independence.
