Project Gutenberg 2007-01-01 Public domain in the USA. 183 Merriman, Henry Seton 1862 1903 Scott, Hugh Stowell Merriman, H. Seton (Henry Seton) Dross E-text prepared by Barbara Tozier, Bill Tozier, Sankar Viswanathan, and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team "Dross" by Henry Seton Merriman is a novel set during the late 19th century. The story opens amidst the celebrations in Paris marking the centenary of Napoleon Bonaparte's birth, creating a backdrop of political intrigue, societal change, and personal struggles. The protagonist, Dick Howard, a man with a checkered past and complicated family ties, finds himself drawn to the world of the Vicomte de Clericy and his daughter Lucille, setting the stage for themes of love, deception, and a search for identity. At the start of the novel, Dick Howard reflects on the spectacle of the commemorative event, mingling with various social classes and feeling out of place in the grandeur surrounding him. After an amusing yet revealing encounter with an old friend, John Turner, and a chance interaction with Monsieur and Mademoiselle de Clericy, he impulsively seeks employment as a secretary for the Vicomte. As Howard navigates his new life, he is introduced to the charming but naïve Lucille, who captivates him. The early chapters effectively establish the interplay between Dick's concealed motives, his growing feelings for Lucille, and the impending societal upheaval, suggesting a narrative rich in both personal and historical tension. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 80.3 (6th grade). Easy to read. en France -- History -- Second Empire, 1852-1870 -- Fiction PR Text Category: Historical Novels Category: Novels 463970 2025-08-08T12:34:09.600602 text/html 473400 2007-01-01T16:04:48 text/html 1546841 2025-08-08T12:34:18.453592 application/epub+zip 1553546 2025-08-08T12:34:12.009588 application/epub+zip 254983 2025-08-08T12:34:10.540591 application/epub+zip 1724989 2025-08-08T12:34:23.237545 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 1672424 2025-08-08T12:34:17.409555 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 356664 2022-09-09T13:36:52.888042 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 411079 2025-08-08T12:34:08.304595 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 410650 2021-01-01T16:45:29 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 410620 2021-01-01T16:45:29 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 20167 2025-08-08T12:34:23.371565 application/rdf+xml 9359 2025-08-08T12:34:11.055577 image/jpeg 2586 2025-08-08T12:34:10.799569 image/jpeg 159081 2021-01-01T16:45:29 application/octet-stream application/zip 1429163 2021-01-01T16:45:29 application/octet-stream application/zip 158898 2021-01-01T16:45:29 application/octet-stream application/zip 1488481 2025-08-08T12:34:09.709609 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia