The Project Gutenberg Etext of One of Our Conquerors, v1,
by George Meredith
#77 in our series by George Meredith

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Title: One of Our Conquerors, v1

Author: George Meredith

Edition: 10

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

Release Date: September, 2003 [Etext #4471]
[Yes, we are more than one year ahead of schedule]
[This file was first posted on February 19, 2002]


The Project Gutenberg Etext of One of Our Conquerors, v1, by Meredith
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ONE OF OUR CONQUERORS

By George Meredith

1897



CONTENTS:

BOOK 1.
I.        ACROSS LONDON BRIDGE
II.       THROUGH THE VAGUE TO THE INFINITELY LITTLE
III.      OLD VEUVE
IV.       THE SECOND BOTTLE
V.        THE LONDON WALK WESTWARD
VI.       NATALY
VII.      BETWEEN A GENERAL MAN OF THE WORLD AND A PROFESSIONAL
VIII.     SOME FAMILIAR GUESTS.
IX.       AN INSPECTION OF LAKELANDS
X.        SKEPSEY IN MOTION
XI.       WHEREIN WE BEHOLD THE COUPLE JUSTIFIED OF LOVE HAVING SIGHT OF
          THEIR SCOURGE

BOOK 2.
XII.      TREATS OF THE DUMBNESS POSSIBLE WITH MEMBERS OF A HOUSEHOLD
          HAVING ONE HEART
XIII.     THE LATEST OF MRS. BURMAN
XIV.      DISCLOSES A STAGE ON THE DRIVE TO PARIS
XV.       A PATRIOT ABROAD
XVI.      ACCOUNTS FOR SKEPSEY'S MISCONDUCT, SHOWING HOW IT AFFECTED
          NATALY
XVII.     CHIEFLY UPON THE THEME OF A YOUNG MAID'S IMAGININGS
XVIII.    SUITORS FOR THE HAND OF NESTA VICTORIA

BOOK 3.
XIX.      TREATS OF NATURE AND CIRCUMSTANCE AND THE DISSENSION BETWEEN
          THEM AND OF A SATIRIST'S MALIGNITY IN THE DIRECTION OF HIS
          COUNTRY
XX.       THE GREAT ASSEMBLY AT LAKELAND
XXI.      DARTREY FENELLAN
XXII.     CONCERNS THE INTRUSION OF JARNIMAN
XXIII.    TREATS OF THE LADIES' LAPDOG TASSO FOR AN INSTANCE OF MOMENTOUS
          EFFECTS PRODUCED BY VERY MINOR CAUSES
XXIV.     NESTA'S ENGAGEMENT

BOOK 4.
XXV.      NATALY IN ACTION
XXVI.     IN WHICH WE SEE A CONVENTIONAL GENTLE MAN ENDEAVOURING TO
          EXAMINE A SPECTRE OF HIMSELF
XXVII.    CONTAINS WHAT IS A SMALL THING OR A GREAT, AS THE SOUL OF THE
          CHIEF ACTOR MAY DECIDE
XXVIII.   MRS. MARSETT
XXIX.     SHOWS ONE OF THE SHADOWS OF THE WORLD CROSSING A VIRGIN'S MIND
XXX.      THE BURDEN UPON NESTA
XXXI.     SHOWS HOW THE SQUIRES IN A CONQUEROR'S SERVICE HAVE AT TIMES TO
          DO KNIGHTLY CONQUEST OF THEMSELVES
XXXII.    SHOWS HOW TEMPER MAY KINDLE TEMPER AND AN INDIGNANT WOMAN GET
          HER WEAPON
XXXIII.   A PAIR OF WOOERS
XXXIV.    CONTAINS DEEDS UNRELATED AND EXPOSITIONS OF FEELINGS
XXXV.     IN WHICH AGAIN WE MAKE USE OF THE OLD LAMPS FOR LIGHTING AN
          ABYSMAL DARKNESS

BOOK 5.
XXXVI.    NESTA AND HER FATHER
XXXVII.   THE MOTHER--THE DAUGHTER
XXXVIII.  NATALY, NESTA, AND DARTREY FENELLAN
XXXIX.    A CHAPTER IN THE SHADOW OF MRS. MARSETT
XL.       AN EXPIATION
XLI.      THE NIGHT OF THE GREAT UNDELIVERED SPEECH
XLII.     THE LAST




ONE OF OUR CONQUERORS

By George Meredith

1897



BOOK 1.

I.        ACROSS LONDON BRIDGE
II.       THROUGH THE VAGUE TO THE INFINITELY LITTLE
III.      OLD VEUVE
IV.       THE SECOND BOTTLE
V.        THE LONDON WALK WESTWARD
VI.       NATALY
VII.      BETWEEN A GENERAL MAN OF THE WORLD AND A PROFESSIONAL
VIII.     SOME FAMILIAR GUESTS.
IX.       AN INSPECTION OF LAKELANDS
X.        SKEPSEY IN MOTION



CHAPTER I

ACROSS LONDON BRIDGE

A gentleman, noteworthy for a lively countenance and a waistcoat to match
it, crossing London Bridge at noon on a gusty April day, was almost
magically detached from his conflict with the gale by some sly strip of
slipperiness, abounding in that conduit of the markets, which had more or
less adroitly performed the trick upon preceding passengers, and now laid
this one flat amid the shuffle of feet, peaceful for the moment as the
uncomplaining who have gone to Sabrina beneath the tides.  He was unhurt,
quite sound, merely astonished, he remarked, in reply to the inquiries of
the first kind helper at his elbow; and it appeared an acceptable
statement of his condition.  He laughed, shook his coat-tails, smoothed
the back of his head rather thoughtfully, thankfully received his runaway
hat, nodded bright beams to right and left, and making light of the muddy
stigmas imprinted by the pavement, he scattered another shower of his
nods and smiles around, to signify, that as his good friends would wish,
he thoroughly felt his legs and could walk unaided.  And he was in the
act of doing it, questioning his familiar behind the waistcoat amazedly,
to tell him how such a misadventure could have occurred to him of all
men, when a glance below his chin discomposed his outward face.  'Oh,
confound the fellow!' he said, with simple frankness, and was humorously
ruffled, having seen absurd blots of smutty knuckles distributed over the
maiden waistcoat.

His outcry was no more than the confidential communication of a genial
spirit with that distinctive article of his attire.  At the same time,
for these friendly people about him to share the fun of the annoyance,
he looked hastily brightly back, seeming with the contraction of his
brows to frown, on the little band of observant Samaritans; in the centre
of whom a man who knew himself honourably unclean, perhaps consequently a
bit of a political jewel, hearing one of their number confounded for his
pains, and by the wearer of a superfine dashing-white waistcoat, was
moved to take notice of the total deficiency of gratitude in this kind of
gentleman's look and pocket.  If we ask for nothing for helping gentlemen
to stand upright on their legs, and get it, we expect civility into the
bargain.  Moreover, there are reasons in nature why we choose to give
sign of a particular surliness when our wealthy superiors would have us
think their condescending grins are cordials.

The gentleman's eyes were followed on a second hurried downward grimace,
the necessitated wrinkles of which could be stretched by malevolence to a
semblance of haughty disgust; reminding us, through our readings in
journals, of the wicked overblown Prince Regent and his Court, together
with the view taken of honest labour in the mind of supercilious luxury,
even if indebted to it freshly for a trifle; and the hoar-headed
nineteenth-century billow of democratic ire craved the word to be set
swelling.

'Am I the fellow you mean, sir?' the man said.

He was answered, not ungraciously: 'All right, my man.'

But the balance of our public equanimity is prone to violent antic
bobbings on occasions when, for example, an ostentatious garment shall
appear disdainful our class and ourself, and coin of the realm has not
usurped command of one of the scales: thus a fairly pleasant answer, cast
in persuasive features, provoked the retort:

'There you're wrong; nor wouldn't be.'

'What's that?' was the gentleman's musical inquiry.

'That's flat, as you was half a minute ago,' the man rejoined.

'Ah, well, don't be impudent,' the gentleman said, by way of amiable
remon