Haworth's/Chapter XXVII
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE BEGINNING.
For some time there had hung over the conduct of Mr. Briarley an air of deep mystery. The boon of his society had been granted to his family even less frequently than ever. His habit of sudden and apparently unaccountable disappearance from the home circle after or even in the midst of an argument had become more than usually pronounced. He went out every night and invariably returned under the influence of malt liquor.
"Wheer he gets th' brass bangs me," said Mrs. Briarley. "He does na tak' it out o' his wage, that's certain, fur he has na been a ha'penny short fur three week, an' he does na get it o' tick, that I know. Bannett at th' 'Public' is na a foo'. Wheer does he get th' brass fro'?"
But this was not easily explained. On being catechised Mr. Briarley either shed tears of penitence or shook his head with deep solemnity of meaning. At times when he began to shake it—if the hour was late and his condition specially foggy he was with difficulty induced to stop shaking it, but frequently continued to do so with protracted fervor and significance gradually decreasing until he fell asleep. When he was sober he was timorous and abstracted. He started at the sound of the opening door, and apparently existed in a state of secret expectation and alarm.
"I conna tell thee, Sararann," he would say. "At least," with some tremor, "I wunnot tell thee just yet. Thou'lt know i' toime."
He did not patronize the "Who'd ha' Thowt it" as much as formerly, in these days, Janey discovered. He evidently got the beer elsewhere, and at somebody's expense. His explanation of this was a brilliant and happy one, but it was only offered once, in consequence of the mode of its reception by his hearers. He presented it suddenly one night after some moments of silence and mental research.
"Theer's a gentlemon as is a friend o' moine," he said, "as has had uncommon luck. His heirs has deed an' left him a forchin, an' he's come into it, an' he's very mich tuk wi' me. I dunnot know as I ivver seed ony one as mich tuk wi' me, Sararann—an' his heirs deein' an' leavin' him a forchin—that theer's how it is, Sararann,—that theer's how it is."
"Tha brazant leer!" cried Mrs. Briarley, aghast. "Tha brazant leer! Get out wi' thee!" in an outburst of indignation. "Thee an' thy forchins an' heirs deein'—as if it wur na bad enow at th' start. A noice chap tha art to set thysen up to know gentlefolks wi' heirs to dee an' leave 'em brass. Eh! Bless us! what art tha comin' to?"
The result was not satisfactory, as Mr. Briarley felt keenly.
"Tha hast gotten no confydence i' me, Sararann," he said in weak protest. "Tha has na no faith—nor yet," following the train of thought with manifest uncertainty,—"nor yet no works."
The situation was so painful, however, that he made no further effort of the imagination to elucidate the matter, and it remained temporarily obscured in mystery.
Only temporarily, however. A few weeks afterward Ffrench came down to the Works in great excitement. He went to Haworth's room, and finding him there, shut the door and almost dropped into a chair.
"What's up?" demanded Haworth, with some impatience. "What's up, man?"
"You haven't heard the report?" Ffrench answered, tremulously. "It hasn't reached you yet?"
"I've heard nowt to upset me. Out with it! What's up?"
He was plainly startled, and lost a shade of color, but he held himself boldly. Ffrench explained himself with trepidation.
"The hands in Marfort and Molton and Plowton are on the strike, and those in Dillup and Burton are plainly about to follow suit. I've just got a Manchester paper, which says the lookout is bad all over the country. Meetings have been going on in secret for some time."
He stopped and sat staring at his partner. Haworth was deathly pale. He seemed, for a moment, to lack breath, and then suddenly the dark color rushed to his face again.
"By " he began, and stopped with the oath upon his lips.
"Don't swear, for pity's sake," broke forth Ffrench, finding courage for protest in his very desperation. "It's not the time for it. Let's look the thing in the face."
"Look it in the face," Haworth repeated. "Aye, let's."
He said the words with a fierce sneer.
"Aye, look it in the face, man," he said again. "That's th' thing to do."
He bent forward, extending his hand across the table.
"Let's see th' paper," he demanded.
Ffrench gave it to him, and he read the paragraphs referred to in silence. When he had finished them, he folded the paper again mechanically.
"They might have done it last year and welcome, blast 'em!" he said.
Ffrench began to tremble.
"You've ventured a good deal of late, Haworth," he said, weakly. "You've done some pretty daring things, you know—and"
Haworth turned on him.
"If I lose all I've made," he said, hoarsely, "shall I lose aught of yours, lad?"
Ffrench did not reply. He sat playing with his watch-chain nervously. He had cause for anxiousness on his own score, and his soul quaked within him.
"What is to be done?" he ventured at last.
"There's only one thing to be done," Haworth answered, pushing his chair back. "Stop it here—at th' start."
"Stop it?" Ffrench echoed, in amazement.
"Aye, stop it."
He got up and took his hat down and put it on.
"I'm going round th' place and about th' yards and into th' town," he said. "There's naught for you to do but keep quiet. Th' quieter you keep th' better for us. Go on as if you'd heard naught. Stay here a bit, and then walk over to th' bank. Look alive, man!"
He went out and left Ffrench alone. In the passage he came upon a couple of men who were talking together in low voices. They started at sight of him and walked away slowly.
He went first to the engine-room. There he found Floxham and Murdoch talking also. The old engineer wore an irritable air, and was plainly in a testy mood. Murdoch looked fagged and pale. Of late he was often so. As Haworth entered he turned toward him, uttering an exclamation.
"He is here now," he said. "That is well enough."
Floxham gave him a glance from under his bent, bushy brows.
"Aye," he answered. "We may as well out wi' it."
He touched his cap clumsily.
"Tell him," he said to Murdoch, "an' ha' it over."
Murdoch spoke in a cool, low voice.
"I have found out," he said, "that there is trouble on foot. I began to suspect it a week ago. Some rough fellows from Manchester and Molton have been holding secret meetings at a low place here. Some of the hands have been attending them. Last night a worse and larger gang came and remained in the town. They are here now. They mean mischief at least, and there are reports afloat that strikes are breaking out on all sides."
Haworth turned abruptly to Floxham.
"Where do you stand?" he asked roughly.
The old fellow laid his grimy hand upon his engine.
"I stand here, my lad," he answered. "That's wheer—an' I'll stick to it, unions or no unions."
"That's the worst side of the trouble," said Murdoch. "Those who would hold themselves aloof from the rest will be afraid of the trades unions. If worst comes to worst, their very lives will be in danger. They know that, and so do we."
"Aye, lad," said Floxham, "an' tha'rt reet theer."
Haworth ground his teeth and swore under his breath. Then he spoke to Murdoch.
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"I STAND HERE, MY LAD," HE ASSURED.
"Badly enough, in a quiet way. You had better go and see for yourself."
He went out, walking from room to room, through the yards and wherever men were at work. Here and there a place was vacant. Where the work went on, it went on dully; he saw dogged faces and subdued ones; those who looked up as he passed wore an almost deprecatory air; those who did not look up at all, bent over their tasks with an expression which was at least negatively defiant. His keen eye discovered favorable symptoms, however; those who were in evil mood were his worst workmen—men who had their off days of drunken stupor and idleness, and the heads of departments were plainly making an effort to stir briskly and ignore the presence of any cloud upon their labor.
By the time he had made the rounds he had grasped the situation fully. The strait was desperate, but not as bad as it might have been.
"I may hold 'em," he said to himself, between his teeth. "And by the Lord Harry I'll try hard for it."
He went over to the bank and found Ffrench in his private room, pale and out of all courage.
"There will be a run on us by this time to-morrow," he said. "I see signs of it already."
"Will there?" said Ha worth. "We'll see about that. Wait a bit, my lad!"
He went into the town and spent an hour or so taking a sharp lookout. Nothing escaped him. There were more idlers than usual about the ale houses, and more than once he passed two or three women talking together with anxious faces and in undertones. As he was passing one such group one of the women saw him and started.
"Theer he is!" she said, and her companion turned with her and they both stopped talking to look after him.
Before returning he went up to his partner's house. He asked for Miss Ffrench and was shown into the room where she sat writing letters. She neither looked pleased nor displeased when she saw him, but rose to greet him at once. She gave him a rather long look.
"What is the matter?" she asked.
Suddenly he felt less bold. The heat of his excitement failed to sustain him. He was all unstrung.
"I've come to tell you not to go out," he said. "There's trouble afoot—in the trade. There's no knowing how it'll turn out. There's a lot of chaps in th' town who are not in th' mood to see aught that'll fret 'em. They're ready for mischief, and have got drink in 'em. Stay you here until we see which way th' thing's going."
"Do you mean," she demanded, "that there are signs of a strike?"
"There's more than signs of it," he answered, sullenly. "Before night the whole place will be astir."
She moved across the room and pulled the bell. A servant answered the summons instantly.
"I want the carriage," she said.
Then she turned to Haworth with a smile of actual triumph.
"Nothing would keep me at home," she said. "I shall drive through the town and back again. Do you think I will let them fancy that I am afraid of them?"
"You're not afraid?" he said, almost in a whisper.
"I afraid?" she answered, "I?"
"Wait here," she added. She left the room, and in less than ten minutes returned. He had never before seen in her the fire he saw then. There was a spark of light in her eyes, a color on her cheek. She had chosen her dress with distinct care for its luxurious richness. His exclamation, as she entered buttoning her long, delicate glove, was a repressed oath. He exulted in her. His fear for her was gone, and only this exultation remained.
"You've made up your mind to that?" he said. He wanted to make her say more.
"I am going to see your mother," she answered. "That will take me outside of the town, then I shall drive back again—slowly. They shall understand me at least."
She let him lead her out to the carriage, which by this time was waiting. After she was seated in it, she bent forward and spoke to him.
"Tell my father where I am going and why," she said.