A Group of Noble Dames

A GROUP OF NOBLE DAMES

THOMAS HARDY

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ISBN: 978-1-4114-3637-4

PREFACE

THE pedigrees of our county families, arranged in diagrams on the pages of county histories, mostly appear at first sight to be as barren of any touch of nature as a table of logarithms. But given a clue—the faintest tradition of what went on behind the scenes, and this dryness as of dust may be transformed into a palpitating drama. More, the careful comparison of dates alone—that of birth with marriage, of marriage with death, of one marriage, birth, or death with a kindred marriage, birth, or death—will often effect the same transformation, and anybody practised in raising images from such genealogies finds himself unconsciously filling into the framework the motives, passions, and personal qualities which would appear to be the single explanation possible of some extraordinary conjunction in times, events, and personages that occasionally marks these reticent family records.

Out of such pedigrees and supplementary material most of the following stories have arisen and taken shape.

I would make this preface an opportunity of expressing my sense of the courtesy and kindness of several bright-eyed Noble Dames yet in the flesh, who, since the first publication of these tales in periodicals, six or seven years ago, have given me interesting comments and conjectures on such of the narratives as they have recognized to be connected with their own families, residences, or traditions; in which they have shown a truly philosophic absence of prejudice in their regard of those incidents whose relation has tended more distinctly to dramatize than to eulogize their ancestors. The outlines they have also given of other singular events in their family histories for use in a second "Group of Noble Dames," will, I fear, never reach the printing-press through me; but I shall store them up in memory of my informants' good nature.

T. H.

June 1896.

CONTENTS

PART I

BEFORE DINNER

DAME THE FIRST—THE FIRST COUNTESS OF WESSEX. By the Local Historian

DAME THE SECOND—BARBARA OF THE HOUSE OF GREBE. By the Old Surgeon

DAME THE THIRD—THE MARCHIONESS OF STONEHENGE. By the Rural Dean

DAME THE FOURTH—LADY MOTTISFONT. By the Sentimental Member

PART II

AFTER DINNER

DAME THE FIFTH—THE LADY ICENWAY. By the Churchwarden

DAME THE SIXTH—SQUIRE PETRICK'S LADY. By the Crimson Maltster

DAME THE SEVENTH—ANNA, LADY BAXBY. By the Colonel

DAME THE EIGHTH—THE LADY PENELOPE. By the Man of Family

DAME THE NINTH—THE DUCHESS OF HAMPTONSHIRE. By the Quiet Gentleman

DAME THE TENTH—THE HONOURABLE LAURA. By the Spark

DAME THE FIRST

THE FIRST COUNTESS OF WESSEX

By the Local
Historian.

KING'S-HINTOCK COURT (said the narrator, turning over his memoranda for reference)—King's-Hintock Court is, as we know, one of the most imposing of the mansions that overlook our beautiful Blackmoor or Blakemore Vale. On the particular occasion of which I have to speak this building stood, as it had often stood before, in the perfect silence of a calm clear night, lighted only by the cold shine of the stars. The season was winter, in days long ago, the last century having run but little more than a third of its length. North, south, and west, not a casement was unfastened, not a curtain undrawn; eastward, one window on the upper floor was open, and a girl of twelve or thirteen was leaning over the sill. That she had not taken up the position for purposes of observation was apparent at a glance, for she kept her eyes covered with her hands.