Summary: Chapter XXVII
While corn prices are low, Farfrae buys a large amount
of corn, and the weather suddenly turns poor again, causing the
harvest to be less successful than predicted. Farfrae prospers as
the corn prices rise, and Henchard laments his rival’s success.
One night, one of Farfrae’s wagoners and one of Henchard’s collide
in the street in front of High-Place Hall. Henchard is summoned
to settle the dispute. Lucetta and Elizabeth-Jane testify that Henchard’s
man was in the wrong, but Henchard’s man maintains that these two
cannot be trusted because “all the women side with Farfrae.”
After the conflict is resolved, Henchard calls on Lucetta
and is told that she cannot see him because she has an appointment.
He hides outside her door and sees Farfrae call for her. As the
couple leave for a walk, Henchard follows them and eavesdrops on
their declarations of love. When Lucetta returns to High-Place Hall,
Henchard surprises her there. He threatens to reveal their past
intimacy unless she agrees to marry him. With Elizabeth-Jane as
a witness, she agrees to do so.
Summary: Chapter XXVIII
The next day, Henchard goes to Town Hall to preside over
a case (he retains his position as a magistrate for one year after
being mayor). There is only one case to be heard—that of an old
woman accused of disorderly conduct. The constable testifies that
the woman insulted him, and the woman interrupts many times during
his testimony with objections. Finally, the woman is granted the
opportunity to offer her defense. She recounts the story of an event
that happened twenty years ago. She was a furmity-merchant at a
fair in Weydon-Priors and witnessed a man sell his wife to a sailor
for five guineas. She identifies Henchard as the guilty party and
asks how such a man can sit in judgment of her. The clerk dismisses
the story as mere fabrication, but Henchard admits its truth and
leaves the court. Lucetta sees a crowd around the Town Hall and
asks her servant what is happening. The servant tells her of Henchard’s
revelation, and Lucetta becomes deeply miserable that she has agreed
to marry him. She departs to the seaside town of Port-Bredy for
a few days.
Summary: Chapter XXIX
Lucetta walks along the road toward Port-Bredy. She stops
a mile outside of Casterbridge and sees Elizabeth-Jane, who has
decided to meet her, approaching. Suddenly, a bull begins to walk
toward them, and the two women retreat into a nearby barn. The bull charges
and traps them in the barn. The bull chases them until a man appears;
he seizes the bull by its nose ring and secures it outside the barn.
The man turns out to be Henchard, and Lucetta is very grateful to
him for saving them. The trio heads home. Lucetta remembers that
she has dropped her muff in the barn, and Elizabeth-Jane offers to
run back and get it. After finding the muff, Elizabeth-Jane runs into
Farfrae on the road. He drives her home, then returns to his own
lodging, where his servants are preparing to move.
Meanwhile, Henchard escorts Lucetta home, apologizing
for his insistence that she marry him. He suggests an indefinite
engagement. When she asks if there is anything she can do to repay
his kindness, he asks her to tell Mr. Grower, one of his creditors,
that they will soon be married—given Lucetta’s wealth, Henchard believes
that this arrangement will persuade Grower to treat his debt more
leniently. Lucetta replies that she cannot do so, since Grower served
as a witness during her wedding to Farfrae, which, she announces,
took place this week secretly in Port-Bredy.
Summary: Chapter XXX
Shortly after Lucetta arrives at home, Farfrae follows
with all his things. All that remains to be done, she claims, is
to tell Elizabeth-Jane of their marriage. Lucetta goes to speak
to Elizabeth-Jane and asks if she remembers the story about her
friend who was torn between the two lovers. Elizabeth-Jane remembers,
and Lucetta makes it clear that that the “friend” of whom she was
speaking is actually herself. Lucetta tells Elizabeth-Jane that
she wishes her to stay in the house as before, and Elizabeth-Jane
says that she will think about it. As soon as Lucetta leaves the
room, however, Elizabeth-Jane makes preparations to depart and
does so later that night.
