The Project Gutenberg eBook, A Group of Noble Dames, by Thomas Hardy

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org

Title: A Group of Noble Dames

Author: Thomas Hardy

Release Date: May 17, 2007 [eBook #3049]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)

***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A GROUP OF NOBLE DAMES***

Transcribed from the 1920 Macmillan and Co. edition by David Price, email
ccx074@pglaf.org

A GROUP OF NOBLE DAMES

THAT IS TO SAY

THE FIRST COUNTESS OF WESSEX
BARBARA OF THE HOSE OF GREBE
THE MARCHIONESS OF STONEHENGE,
LADY MOTTIFONT SQUIRE PETRICK'S LADY
THE LADY ICENWAY ANNA, LADY BAXBY
THE LADY PENELOPE
THE DUCHESS OF HAMPTONSHIRE; AND
THE HONOURABLE LAURA

BY
THOMAS HARDY

'. . . Store of Ladies, whose bright eyes
Rain influence.'--L'ALLEGRO.

WITH A MAP OF WESSEX

MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED
ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON
1920

COPYRIGHT

_First Collected Edition_ 1891
_New Edition and reprints_ 1896-1900
_First published by Macmillan & Co._, _Crown_ 8vo, 1903
_Pocket Edition_ 1907 _Reprinted_ 1911, 1914, 1917, 1919, 1920

Contents:

Preface
Part I--Before Dinner
The First Countess of Wessex
Barbara of the House of Grebe
The Marchioness of Stonehenge
Lady Mottisfont
Part II--After Dinner
The Lady Icenway
Squire Petrick's Lady
Anna, Lady Baxby
The Lady Penelope
The Duchess Of Hamptonshire
The Honourable Laura

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 sing