📖 About This Book · Ovington's Bank - by Stanley J. Weyman
First published in London in 1922 by John Murray
Setting: Aldersbury, 1825 – the speculative mania before the financial panic.
Key Themes: class and social mobility · financial speculation · integrity vs. ambition · love and sacrifice.
Major Characters: Arthur Bourdillon (ambitious, charming) · Clement Ovington (honest, nature-loving) · Josina Griffin (the Squire's daughter) · Squire Griffin (proud, blind) · Charles Ovington (self-made banker) · Rodd (loyal cashier).
Plot Arc: The novel follows the rise and fall of a speculative bank, interwoven with a romantic plot. Arthur's ambition leads him to fraud; Clement's honesty redeems him; the Squire's pride is humbled; love triumphs over prejudice.
Summary
- Arthur warns Ovington that the Squire is in a bad mood, but the banker is confident he can persuade him. Ovington rides to Garth to propose the railroad scheme.
- The Squire refuses emphatically. He despises the "smoking, stinking steam-wagons" and sees the railroad as a threat to his land, his way of life, and his coach-horses. He accuses Ovington of being a "money-making" upstart.
- Ovington hints that Parliament could grant compulsory powers to build the railroad across Garth, even without the Squire's consent. The Squire is enraged.
- On his way back, Ovington is stopped by several townspeople eager to invest in his schemes. He is hailed as a financial wizard.
- That evening, Ovington offers Arthur a partnership in the bank. Arthur is to bring in £5,000 (from his mother's mortgage on Garth). The partnership is agreed.
Analysis
- Clash of Two Worlds: The confrontation between Ovington and the Squire is the novel's central symbolic moment. The banker (new money, commerce) versus the squire (old money, land).
- The Squire's Pride: His refusal is not just about the railroad; it's about the erosion of his world. He cannot bear the thought of his land being "scored and smirched" by industry.
- Ovington's Ambition and Revenge: Ovington is stung by the Squire's contempt. His offer of partnership to Arthur is both genuine and a calculated move to annoy the Squire by using Arthur to call in the mortgage on Garth.
- Arthur's Pragmatism: Arthur accepts the partnership eagerly, seeing it as the key to his future. He is willing to sacrifice family ties for commercial success.
The "Queen's Case" refers to the 1820 affair of Queen Caroline, the estranged wife of George IV. The King tried to divorce her through a parliamentary bill, but the public supported the Queen. The Squire, a Tory, should have supported the King, but his hatred of the "new men" (like Peel) in government made him sympathise with her instead.
George Canning and William Huskisson were politicians associated with liberal Toryism and free trade. Their rise to power in the 1820s symbolised the growing influence of commerce and industry. Lord Liverpool was the aging Prime Minister. The Squire saw Liverpool's promotion of these "new men" as a sign of weakness.
William Cobbett (1763–1835) was a radical reformer and agricultural writer. He promoted "Cobbett's corn" (Indian corn / maize) as a crop for Britain in his Cottage Economy (1821). The reference shows Clement's interest in agricultural innovation, which contrasts with the Squire's traditionalism.
Lombard Street in London was the historic centre of banking and finance. It was the home of the Bank of England and many private banks. In the novel, Ovington dreams of conquering Lombard Street—a symbol of his ambition to rise to the top of the financial world.
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