The Honor of a Plebeian

"The Honor of a Plebeian" by Eleanor M. Ingram presents a romantic drama. American industrialist John Egerton, descended from a soap-manufacturing family but refined in manner, becomes captivated by a Spanish noblewoman, Beatriz de Guzman, whom he glimpses in a Rouen cathedral. Unable to abandon the deception of attending mass to encounter her, he arranges lodgings with a widow whose pension she frequents. After weeks of courtship facilitated by their hostess, they confess their mutual love. Father Antoine, the cathedral priest, arranges an introduction to Beatriz's impoverished father, Comte de Guzman, who consents to hear Egerton's proposal on one condition: proof of aristocratic ancestry spanning a century. This demand troubles Egerton, whose family wealth derives from commercial enterprise rather than noble lineage. The excerpt terminates as he departs, apparently confronting this obstacle.