“And you’ve signed too,” he cried in a louder voice, turning fiercely upon Betty.
“Ay, fayther, I have,” said Betty, quietly.
“Well, now,” said Johnson, clenching his teeth, “you just mind me, I’ll have nothing of the sort in my house. I hate your nasty, mean, sneaking teetottallers—we’ll have none of that sort here. D’ye hear?” he shouted.
Neither Samuel nor Betty spoke.
“Hush, hush, Tom,” broke in his wife; “you mustn’t scold the childer so. I’m no fonder nor you of the teetottallers, but childer will not be driven. Come, Sammul—come, Betty, you mustn’t be obstinate; you know fayther means what he says.”
“Ay that I do,” said her husband. “And now, you listen: I’d sooner see you both in your graves, nor have you sticking up your pledge cards about the house, and turning up the whites of your eyes at your own fayther and mother, as if we were not good enough for the likes of you. Me and mine have ever loved our pipe and our pot, the whole brood of us, and we ne’er said ‘no’ to a chap when he asked for a drop of drink—it shall never be said of me or mine, ‘They give ’em nothing in yon house but tea and cold water!’”
“Ay, ay; you’re light, Thomas,” said his wife; “I’m not for seeing our bairns beginning of such newfangled ways. Come, childer, just clap the foolish bits of papper behind the fire, and sit ye down to your supper.”
“Mother,” said Betty, in a sad but decided voice, “we have seen enough in this house to make us rue that ever a drop of the drink crossed our door-step. We’ve toiled hard early and late for you and fayther, but the drink has taken it all. You may scold us if you will, but Sammul and I must keep our pledge, and keep it gradely too.”
“And I say,” cried her father, striking his hand violently on the table, “I’ll make you both break afore ye’re a day older; ye’ve pleased yourselves long enough, but ye shall please me now. I never said nothing afore, though mother nor me didn’t like to see ye scowling at the drink as if it were poison; a drop now and then would have done ye no harm, but ye were like to please yourselves—but it’s different now. We’ll have none of your pledges here, ye may make yourselves sure of that.”
“You can’t help yourself fayther,” said Samuel doggedly: “pledged we are, and pledged we’re bound to be, but—”