like a child, and had no experience; for though well over
thirty by now, her name was still Forsyte. But, making all allowances,
her remark did undoubtedly show expansion of the principle of liberty,
decentralisation and shift in the central point of possession from others
to oneself. When Nicholas heard his daughter's remark from Aunt Hester
he had rapped out: "Wives and daughters! There's no end to their liberty
in these days. I knew that 'Jackson' case would lead to things--lugging
in Habeas Corpus like that!" He had, of course, never really forgiven
the Married Woman's Property Act, which would so have interfered with him
if he had not mercifully married before it was passed. But, in truth,
there was no denying the revolt among the younger Forsytes against being
owned by others; that, as it were, Colonial disposition to own oneself,
which is the paradoxical forerunner of Imperialism, was making progress
all the time. They were all now married, except George, confirmed to the
Turf and the Iseeum Club; Francie, pursuing her musical career in a
studio off the King's Road, Chelsea, and still taking 'lovers' to dances;
Euphemia, living at home and complaining of Nicholas; and those two
Dromios, Giles and Jesse Hayman. Of the third generation there were not
very many--young Jolyon had three, Winifred Dartie four, young Nicholas
six already, young Roger had one, Marian Tweetyman one; St. John Hayman
two. But the rest of the sixteen married--Soames, Rachel and Cicely of
James' family; Eustace and Thomas of Roger's; Ernest, Archibald and
Florence of Nicholas'; Augustus and Annabel Spender of the Hayman's--were
going down the years unreproduced.

Thus, of the ten old Forsytes twenty-one young Forsytes had been born;
but of the twenty-one young Forsytes there were as yet only seventeen
descendants; and it already seemed unlikely that there would be more than
a further unconsidered trifle or so. A student of statistics must have
noticed that the birth rate had varied in accordance with the rate of
interest for your money. Grandfather 'Superior Dosset' Forsyte in the
early nineteenth century had been getting ten per cent. for his, hence
ten children. Those ten, leaving out the four who had not married, and
Juley, whose husband Septimus Small had, of course, died almost at once,
had averaged from four to five per cent. for theirs, and produced
accordingly. The twenty-one whom they produced were now getting barely
three