📖 About This Book · Starvecrow Farm · by Stanley J. Weyman
First published in 1905 by LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. NEW YORK LONDON AND BOMBAY
Setting: Lake District, 1819 – a period of post-war economic depression, political unrest, and radical agitation.
Key Themes: elopement and romantic idealism · class conflict · political radicalism · surveillance and authority · women's independence.
Major Characters: Henrietta (young heroine) · Captain Anthony Clyne (naval officer, conservative, Henrietta's former suitor).
Plot Arc: The novel follows the elopement of Henrietta and Alan Stewart, their flight through the Lake District, and the shadow of pursuit and political conspiracy that hangs over their romance.
Chapter XII · The Old Love
Summary
- Mr. Sutton is deeply hurt by Henrietta's rejection but rallies his resolve, drawing inspiration from stories of Swift, Voltaire, and Rousseau, who persisted despite slights.
- He adopts a strategy of humble self-effacement, following Henrietta and offering small services without addressing her directly.
- Henrietta is unnerved by his persistent, cringing presence and begins to fear him.
- She is also shadowed by Mr. Bishop, the Bow Street runner, who suspects she knows where Walterson (Alan Stewart) is hiding.
- Henrietta decides to escape her watchers by walking into the hills. She slips out the back of the inn and climbs towards the high ground.
- Near Hinkson's farm, she sees Mr. Hornyold approaching and slips into the farmyard to avoid him.
- She knocks on the farmhouse door and, receiving no answer, steps inside. From a half-open stairway door, Alan Stewart's face looks out at her.
- Both are petrified. Henrietta turns and walks out slowly, returning to the road in a state of shock.
- She reflects on her former lover with disgust and dreads the prospect of being called as a witness at his trial.
- On the path through the wood, she meets Mr. Bishop, who presses her for information about Stewart. She refuses and escapes from him.
- Henrietta is torn between her repulsion for Stewart and her refusal to betray him, knowing that her folly will soon be public knowledge.
📖 Glossary of Period Terms
- Yokel
- A country person, typically considered unsophisticated or simple.
- Lout
- An awkward, clumsy, or ill-mannered person.
Analysis
- Sutton's Persistence and Vanity: Sutton's response to Henrietta's rejection reveals his vanity and his capacity for self-deception. He compares himself to famous authors who overcame similar obstacles, inflating his own importance. His strategy of silent devotion is a form of passive aggression that wears on Henrietta's nerves.
- Henrietta's Isolation: The chapter emphasises Henrietta's loneliness and vulnerability. She is pursued by three men for different reasons: Sutton for marriage, Bishop for information, and Hornyold for base pleasure. Each treats her as a means to an end, not as a person. Her sense of being "fair game" is acute and painful.
- The Shock of Recognition: Henrietta's encounter with Alan Stewart at Hinkson's farm is a turning point. She sees him not as a romantic figure but as a frightened, dangerous fugitive. The "gleam wild and murderous" in his eyes strips away the last of her illusions.
- Class and the Law: Bishop's approach to Henrietta shows how the law operated in practice. He offers her a way out if she will inform on Stewart, suggesting that the authorities are more interested in a conviction than in justice.
- Henrietta's Moral Conflict: Despite her revulsion, Henrietta cannot bring herself to betray Stewart. Her refusal to become an informer reflects her sense of honour and her unwillingness to be complicit in a man's death. This moral scruple is a sign of her character, even as it prolongs her suffering.
- The Public Shame: Henrietta's dread of exposure is a recurring theme. She is haunted by the prospect of being questioned in court, of having her folly published in the newspapers. The novel suggests that for a woman of her class, public disgrace is a punishment worse than many others.
Sutton recalls stories of Jonathan Swift (1667–1745), Voltaire (1694–1778), and Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778), all of whom were known for their complicated relationships with women. Swift had a long, ambiguous friendship with Esther Johnson ("Stella") and Esther Vanhomrigh ("Vanessa"). Voltaire had a famous intellectual partnership with Émilie du Châtelet. Rousseau's relationships, particularly with Thérèse Levasseur, were also well known. Sutton's references are somewhat inaccurate, but they serve to inflate his self-importance.
This phrase alludes to the tales of the Arabian Nights, in which the Caliph Harun al-Rashid frequently disguises himself as a commoner and encounters ordinary people. The reference to "princesses wedded with calendars" recalls stories where royal daughters marry humble men. Sutton uses this to suggest that such romantic opportunities are rare and that he should not let this chance slip away.
The Bow Street Runners were an early form of organised police force in London, established in the mid-18th century. They were known for their effectiveness in catching criminals and were often sent to the countryside to pursue suspects. Mr. Bishop's presence in the Lake District shows how far the Runners could travel in pursuit of a fugitive.
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