"Oh. And aren't you living now! Which of you has been hungry in Anderby or ill-clothed or ill-fed?" Mary had quite taken her husband's place now, and John, glad to relinquish it, stood back among the shadows of the passage. "Hearing you weren't satisfied with what we offered we—all the farmers—talked together and are giving you what we can afford."
"Ay," broke in Parker. "An' if ye can't afford more than that we'll go to others who can. Farmers is tyrants, an' you as much as any on 'ere, and we'll have our rights in spite of you."
"Tyrants, are we?"
The men hung back a little ill at ease. Parker was going too far. What passed for sporting candour in the Flying Fox was little to their taste when confronting Mrs. Robson at six o'clock on a Monday morning.
"We've got to live," growled Parker, unable for the moment to think of a more biting retort.
"Oh, you've got to live, have you? I am surprised and you prefer to live on strike pay that doesn't amount to more than two or three week's subscription rather than work for your wages, do you? What's come over you all? I've lived at Anderby for twenty-eight years and my father lived here before me, and there's hardly been a wrong word between us and one of you. But now because a glib tongued townsman comes down from Manchester, we're tyrants, are we? Why didn't you speak before, eh? You needn't have come back at Martinmas unless you liked. There were plenty of other places where you could go. Well, if you want to work for us, you can work on our terms or not at all. We'll be masters of our own land, my husband and I, or we'll go somewhere else."
From the passage came John's beseeching whisper:
"Stop now, honey. Quiet them down a bit and they'll cave in."
Mary never turned her head. For the first time for several weeks she was thoroughly enjoying herself. A fine glow of righteous indignation replaced the humiliation and uncertainty that had lately assailed her. She felt mistress of the situation at last. Having found an outlet for the pent-up emotions of the summer, she determined to utilize it to the uttermost extent.
"Mr. Hunting says we're being crushed by capitalist tyranny." Parker triumphantly remembered more of his lesson. "And, by God, we'll have our rights!"