- Benjamin Disraeli
"An author who speaks about their own books is almost as bad as a mother who speaks about her own children."
- Benjamin Disraeli
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Margaret is too strong a person to give way to her grief for very long. She finds solace in focussing on the misfortunes of others, and takes her father to visit the Higgins. Nicholas is still unemployed because the mills are demanding that, to be rehired, the strikers promise not to pay union dues from their salaries so that there will be no money to fund another strike. Nicholas refuses, so can't get a job. This leads to a continuation of their earlier discussion of the pros and cons of the union. Nicholas rails about Boucher's weakness- during and after the strike- and how it harmed their cause. During their previous discussion, Nicholas described how reluctant workers like Boucher were forced into the union: they were shunned and ill-treated by the other workers until they couldn't stand it any longer. Repelled by this, Margaret had accused the union of being every bit as tyrannical as the masters they were fighting against. Margaret recalls this, asking why they bothered to force Boucher into the union when he was obviously no asset to it. Nicholas is uncomfortable with the topic, yet not angry as he would have been before, and makes as much of an explanation as he can. It is, he says, necessary for the union to force people into it for their own good. Since the union can take care of a man's interests collectively better than he could himself, this justifies using harsh methods to compel the unwilling to join. Margaret points out that forcing Boucher into the union against his will has made him into the pathetic wretch he has become. As they are having this discussion, there is a disturbance in the street. Boucher's body has been found in the river, where he drowned himself. His wife and six kids must be told but Nicholas, consumed by guilt, can't bring himself to do it. Mr. Hale, former vicar, also shrinks from the task, leaving Margaret to break the newsand, with the help of a neighbour, deal with the ensuing grief and hysteria. Over the next few days, attempting to aid the hapless widow and her children provides distraction for Margaret. Her mind can't help turning to Mr. Thornton however, especially when Mr. Hale wonders audibly why he hasn't come by for a lesson lately. Margaret is torn between dread of seeing him again and a desire to get it over with. At this time, Nicholas Higgins comes to see them, a surprise because he has been avoiding everyone since Boucher's death and since any visiting has always been done by them, to him. He has come for a specific purpose, however: his guilt over Boucher's death has led him to take over the care of the dead man's family. Having seven extra mouths to feed makes it impossible for Higgins to remain unemployed. He swallows his pride and returns to the mills to ask for work only to find that, as a known strike leader, no one is willing to hire him. He has come to ask the Hales to recommend some place in the south for him to look for work instead. Showing how completely her mindset has changed, Margaret argues against this plan. She points out that labourers in the south earn much less, and that he and his family will be impoverished. Worse still, she believes, would be the impoverishment of thought which would result. Margaret says that the morning to night, day after day, unending toil leaves little time and less energy for thought, education, or self-improvement. She asks Higgins if he went to Marlborough Mills (Thornton's). He says he did, and the overseer tossed him out. Margaret asks him to go back and this time speak to Mr. Thornton personally. Higgins reluctantly agrees, though he doesn't think it will get him anywhere; he's rather admiring of Thornton's immovable personality. Mr. Hale offers to speak on his behalf but Higgins refuses: his pride won't allow another to ask favours for him. After he leaves, Mr. Hale teases Margaret that she's finally thinking well of Mr. Thornton, unknowingly causing her pain as she regrets anew the loss of his good opinion. Meanwhile, Mr. Thornton is torn between jealousy of the man he saw with Margaret and a desire to believe that the situation was an innocent one, in substance if not appearance. He has kept knowledge of the incident to himself, but his mother finds out about it anyway because their maid Betsy had been engaged to Leonards. Unaware that he already knows, Mrs. Thornton tells her son about it, hoping to destroy his good opinion of Margaret. Thornton refuses to criticize Margaret's behaviour, but asks his mother to speak to her, concerned that she may be in trouble and need a woman's guidance. Remembering her promise to Mrs. Hale, Mrs. Thornton agrees, but her attitude is hardly one of helpful concern. At first, Margaret welcomes Mrs. Thornton's visit with some gratitude, but this is short lived as Mrs. Thornton proceeds to eviscerate her behaviour, motives, and character. Margaret is well aware that she has done wrong- though not in the way Mrs. Thornton assumes- but her pride will not allow her to sit meekly while she is verbally abused. She refuses to give Mrs. Thornton any explanation for her actions and they part angrily. (To Be Continued...)
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