the Peace, knew something of the events of the time, and who had also loved Evelina. And what happens next? Sir Arthur Wardour’s goods are sold up, for Dousterswivel has ruined him. And then? The French are reported to be landing. And then? Lovel rides into the district leading the British troops. He calls himself “Major Nevile” now. But even “Major Nevile” is not his right name, for he is who but the lost child of Lord Glenallan, he is none other than the legitimate heir to an earldom. Partly through Elspeth Mucklebackit, partly through her fellow servant whom he meets as a nun abroad, partly through an uncle who has died, partly through Edie Ochiltree, the truth has come out. There are indeed plenty of reasons for the dénouement, but Scott is not interested in reasons; he dumps them down without bothering to elucidate them; to make one thing happen after another is his only serious aim. And then? Isabella Wardour relents and marries the hero. And then? That is the end of the story. We must not ask “And then?” too often. If the time-sequence is pursued one second too far it leads us into quite another country.
The Antiquary is a book in which the life in time is celebrated instinctively by the novelist, and this must lead to slackening of emotion and