Oh, mother, only think! I might have been in the Ladies Gallery, in the House. I might have heard Mr. Macaulays answer to the Lords denial, with his grand question to the Commons, Ought we to abandon the Reform Bill because the Lords have rejected it? No! We must respect the lawful privileges of their House, but we ought also to assert our own. No wonder the Commons cheered, and cheered, and cheered him. Oh, how gladly I would have helped them!
You are going too far and too fast, Katherine.
Father ought to have been in the House on the third of February and it is now the seventh of March: Is that right?
A great many landed men will not go to this session. The Reform Bill, re-written by Lord Russell, is to come up again and father does not want to vote either for, or against it.
Why?
He hes his reasons. I doant know that his reasons are any business of thine.
Harry Bradley was explaining things to me this morning, and I am for the Reform Bill. I am sure the people are right.
I wouldnt say as much on thy opinion. Wisdom wasnt born wi thee and I doant expect she will die wi thee. I think if thou went to London this spring thou would make more enemies than thou could manage. Father is following my advice in staying home, and London isnt a fit place for a young girl like thee and the way there is full of rioters. Thy father is a landed man and he doesnt believe in giving every weaver and hedger and ditcher a voice in the government of England.
Harry Bradley says, some of their leaders and speakers are very clever eloquent men.
I wouldnt talk nonsense after Harry Bradley. Whos Harry Bradley?
He is my friend, mother. We have been friends nearly twenty years.
Not you! It is not yet eighteen years since thou showed thy face in this world.
I was speaking generally, mother.
Eh, but theres something wrong in that way! A lot o bother can come out of it. I wouldnt mind anything Harry Bradley says, thy father wont hev any nonsense about him. I can tell thee that!
Father is so set in his own way. No one suits him lately. We met Captain Chandos last Monday, and he would hardly notice him.
Well, then, there are plenty of folk no one can suit, and varry often they cant suit themselves.
Oh, I dont care about Chandos, mother; but I feel angry when Harry is slighted. You see, mother, I might come to marry Harry Bradley.
I do hope thou wont be so far left to thysen, as that would mean.
Then you would be wise to let me go to London. A girl must have a lover, or she feels out in the cold, and Harry is the best specimen of a man round about Annis.
All right. Let me tell thee that I hev noticed that the girls who never throw a line into the sea of marriage, do a deal better than them that are allays fishing.
Perhaps so, but then there is the pleasure of throwing the line.
And perhaps the pleasure of being caught by some varry undesireable fisherman for tha neednt think that women are the only fishers. The men go reglar about that business and they will soon find out that thou hes a bit o money o thy awn and are well worth catching. See if they doant.
Mother, I want to go to London and see the passing of the great Reform Bill. I am in love with those brave men Earl Grey and Lord Russell and Mr. Macaulay, who dared to speak up for the poor, before all England.
I rather think they are all married men, Katherine, and marrying for love is an unwise and generally an unprofitable bit of business.
Business and Love have nothing to do with each other.
Eh, but they hev!
I shall marry for love.
Well, then, marry for love, but love wisely.
Money is only one thing, mother.
To be sure, but it is a rayther important thing.
You might persuade father that he had better take me to London out of Harrys way. Dear mammy, do this for your little girl, wont you? You can always get round father in some way or other.
I will ask thy father again but I shall take no roundabout way. Straightforrard is the best. And I am above a bit astonished at thee, a Yorkshire lass, thinking of any crooked road to what thou wants! If tha cant get thy way openly and fairly make up thy mind any other way isnt worth while, for it will be full of ups and downs, and lonely bits, and stony bits, and all sorts and kinds of botherations. Keep these words in thy mind.
I will.
Then Ill ask thy father again, to take thee with him to London if he goes himsen if he does not go at all, then
I must find out some other way, and really the most straightforward way would be to marry Harry Bradley, and go to London with him as a wedding trip.
Thou must stop talking nonsense or else it will stop my talking one word for thy wish.
I was just joking, mother.
Always keep everything straight between thysen and thy mother. The first deception between me and thee opens the gates of Danger.
I will never forget that, mother. And if I should go away I ask you to take my place with Faith Foster, who is making clothing for the poor in the village.
Well, Katherine, what with one thing and what with another, I doant know what tha wants. Does tha know thysen?
Well, I think it would look better if the Hall should trouble itself a little about the suffering in the village. Faith Foster is the only person doing anything. I was helping her, but
I should think thou would have told thysen that it was varry forrard in a young person putting herself in my place without even a word to me on the matter. She ought to hev come and told me what was needed and offered her help to me. Thy father is Lord of the Manor of Annis, and it is his business to see the naked clothed. I wonder at thee letting any one take my place and then asking me to help and do service for them. That is a bit beyond civility, I think.
It was very thoughtless. I am sorry I did it. I was so touched by Faiths description of the hunger and nakedness in Abram Oddys family, that I thought of nothing but how to relieve it.
Well, well! It is all right, someway or other. I see father coming towards the house. I wonder what he is wanting.
And he is walking so rapidly and looks so happy, something must have pleased him. I will go away, mother. This may be a good hour for our request.
Why our?
Katherine had disappeared. She left the room by one door as the squire entered by the other. Madam rose to meet him but before she could speak the squire had kissed her and was saying in glad eager tones, I hev hurried a bit, my Joy, to tell thee that both thysen and Katherine can go wi me to London. I had a lump of good fortune this afternoon. Mark Clitheroe sent me the thousand pounds he owed, when he broke up five years ago. He told me he wouldnt die till he had paid it; and I believed him. The money came to-day and it came with a letter that does us both credit.
However has Clitheroe made a thousand pounds to spare since his smash-up? Thou said, it wer a varry complete ruin.
It was all of that, yet he tells me, he will be able to pay the last farthing he owes to anyone, during this year some time.
It caps me! How hes he made the money?
Why, Annie, his father built a factory for him and filled it with the finest power-looms and he says he hes been doing a grand business. Old Clitheroe hed allays told him he was wasting time and good brass in hand weaving but Mark would hev his awn way, and somehow his awn way took him to ruin in three years. I was his main creditor. Well, well! I am both astonished and pleased, I am that! Now get thysen and Katherine ready for London.
I doant really want to go, Antony.
But I cannot do without thee. Thou wilt hev to go, and there is Katherine, too! Ten to one, she will need a bit of looking after.
When art thou going to start?
Not for a month. I must see to the sowing of the land the land feeds us. I thought, though, it would be right to give thee the bit o change and pleasure to think about and talk about.
Where does thou intend to stay while in London?
I am thinking of the Clarendon Hotel for thee and mysen. I suppose Katherine can be comfortable and welcome at her sisters.
Certainly she can. Jane isnt anything but kind at heart. It is just her you-shallness that makes her one-sided to live with. But Katherine can hold her own side, without help, she can that! And if thou art bound for London, then London is the place where my heart will be and we will go together.
Thou art a good wife to me, Annie.
Well, then, I promised thee to be a good wife, and Im Yorkshire enough to keep a promise good or bad. I am glad thou art going to the Clarendon. It is a pleasant house but thy sister Josepha is a bit overbearing, isnt she, Antony?
She does not overbear me. I am her eldest brother. I make her remember that. Howiver, I shall hev to listen to such a lot o strong language in the House that I must hev only thee about me when I can get away from committees, and divisions, taking of votes, and the like.
By this time the squire had filled his pipe, and seated himself in his favorite corner on that side of the hearth, that had no draughts whichever way the wind blew. Then Madam said: Ill leave thee a few minutes, Antony. I am going to tell Katherine that thou art going to take her to London.
Varry well. Ill give thee five minutes, then thou must come back here, for I hev something important to tell thee.
Katherine will want to come back here with me. She will be impatient to thank thee for thy goodness and to coax some sovereigns in advance for a new dress and the few traveling things women need when they are on the road.
Then thou hed better advise her to wait until supper time. When the days work is all done I can stand a bit of cuddling and petting and I doant mind waring a few sovereigns for things necessary. Of course, I know the little wench will be happy and full o what she is going to see, and to do, and to hear. Yet, Annie, I hev some important thoughts in my mind now and I want thy help in coming to their settlement.
Antony Annis! I am astonished at thee, I am that! When did thou ever need or take advice about thy awn business? Thou hes sense for all that can be put up against thy opinion, without asking advice from man or woman specially woman.
That may be so, Annie, perhaps it is so, but thou art different. Thou art like mysen and its only prudent and kind to talk changes over together. For thou hes to share the good or the bad o them, so it is only right thou should hev time to prepare for whatever they promise. Sit thee down beside me. Now, then, this is what happened just as soon as I hed gotten my money and I can assure thee, that a thousand pounds in a mans pocket is a big set up I felt all my six feet four inches and a bit more, too well, as I was going past the Green to hev a talk wi Jonathan Hartley, I saw Mr. Foster come to his door and stand there. As he was bare-headed, I knew he was waiting to speak to me. I hev liked the mans face and ways iver since he came to the village, and when he offered his hand and asked me to come in I couldnt resist the kindness and goodness of it.
Thou went into the preachers house?
I surely did, and I am glad of it. I think a deal o good may come from the visit.
Did thou see his daughter?
I did and I tell thee she is summat to see.
Then she is really beautiful?
Yes, and more than that. She was sitting sewing in a plain, small parlor but she seemed to be sitting in a circle of wonderful peace. All round her the air looked clearer than in the rest of the room and something sweet and still and heavenly happy came into my soul. Then she told me all about the misery in the cottages and said it had now got beyond individual help and she was sure if thou knew it, and the curate knew it, some proper general relief could be carried out. She had began, she said, with the chapel people, but even they were now beyond her care; and she hoped thou would organize some society and guide all with thy long and intimate knowledge of the people.
What did thou say to this?
I said I knew thou would do iverything that it was possible to do. And I promised that thou would send her word when to come and talk the ways and means over with thee and a few others.
That was right.
I knew it would be right wi thee.
Katherine says that our Dick is in love wi the preachers daughter.
I wouldnt wonder, and if a man hednt already got the only perfect woman in the world for his awn you could not blame him. No, you could not blame him!
Thou must hev stayed awhile there for it is swinging close to five oclock.
Ay, but I wasnt at the preachers long. I went from his house to Jonathan Hartleys, and I smoked a pipe with him, and we hed a long talk on the situation of our weavers. Many o them are speaking of giving-in, and going to Bradleys factory, and I felt badly, and I said to Jonathan, I suppose thou is thinking of t same thing. And he looked at me, Annie, and I was hot wi shame, and I was going to tell him so, but he looked at me again, and said:
Nay, nay, squire, thou didnt mean them words, and well say nothing about them; so we nodded to each other, and I wouldnt be sure whether or not we wer not both nearer tears than wed show. Anyway, he went on as if nothing had happened, telling me about the failing spirit of the workers and saying a deal to excuse them. Ezra Dixons eldest and youngest child died yesterday and they are gathering a bit of money among the chapel folk to bury them. Then I said: Wait a minute, Jonathan, and I took out of my purse a five pound note and made him go with it to the mother and so put her heart at ease on that score. You know our poor think a parish funeral a pitiful disgrace.
Well, Antony, if that was what kept thee, thou wert well kept. Faith Foster is right. I ought to be told of such sorrow.
To be sure we both ought to know, but tha sees, Annie, my dearie, we hev been so much better off than the rest of weaving villages that the workers hev not suffered as long and as much as others. But whats the use of making excuses? I am going to a big meeting of weavers on Saturday night. It is to be held in t Methodist Chapel.
Antony! Whatever art thou saying? What will the curate say? What will all thy old friends say?
Annie, I hev got to a place where I dont care a button what they say. I hev some privileges, I hope, and taking my awn way is one o them. The curate hes been asked to lend his sanction to the meeting, and the men are betting as to whether hell do so or not. If I was a betting man I would say No!
Why?
His bishop. The bishops to a man were against the Reform Bill. Only one is said to have signed for it. That is not sure.
Then do you blame him?
Nay, Im sorry for any man, that hesnt the gumption to please his awn conscience, and take his awn way. However, his career is in the bishops hand, and hes varry much in love with Lucy Landborde.