Nordenholt’s Million · Chapters

Chapters explained

Chapter companions for Nordenholt’s Million by J. J. Connington.

Read with companions Book page

Each chapter has a companion in the reader — open a free preview to see notes beside the text.

Chapter 1
Dedication
A brief dedication to J. N. C.
Chapter 2
Nordenholt's Million
The narrator describes the sudden appearance of a mysterious blight that destroys crops worldwide, leading to global panic and societal collapse. Amidst the chaos, the industrialist Nordenholt reveals a plan to save a select group of people by isolating the Clyde Valley and creating a self-sufficient community. The chapter sets the stage for the central conflict between survival and authoritarian control.
Chapter 3
I: Genesis
The narrator, a successful businessman and engineer named Flint, recounts his background and his acquaintance with Wotherspoon, a popular but scientifically mediocre lecturer. During a thunderstorm, Wotherspoon explains the role of nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria in the food supply, warning that a shift in their balance could cause catastrophe. A ball of lightning enters the room and lands on Wotherspoon's bacterial cultures, setting the stage for disaster.
Chapter 4
II: The Coming of "The Blight"
The chapter describes the initial appearance and rapid spread of a mysterious blight affecting vegetation in London's parks, beginning in Regent's Park and quickly extending to other parks and the Home Counties. The narrator investigates the phenomenon, finding no obvious cause, and notes the public's initial skepticism turning to alarm as the blight spreads. The chapter also includes the narrator's reflections on the fireball incident and the marvels of modern air travel, contrasting technological progress with the emerging natural catastrophe.
Chapter 5
III: B. Diazotans
The chapter describes the end of a dry spell with heavy thunderstorms, after which the Blight spreads rapidly, devastating crops across Britain and beyond. The narrator reflects on the financial and social repercussions, the initial lack of panic, and the eventual discovery by bacteriologist Johnston of a new denitrifying bacterium, Bacterium diazotans, which destroys nitrogen in the soil, causing plants to wither and soil to degenerate into sand. The narrator speculates that the bacterium originated from the fireball incident in Wotherspoon's laboratory.

Free preview

18 more chapter companions sit beside the text in BetterReads — open a free preview to unlock the rest.

18 more companions → free preview

Dedication

Nordenholt's Million

I: Genesis

II: The Coming of "The Blight"

III: B. Diazotans