Jarge put down his tankard. ‘Why, that’s more than a hundred people.’
‘A hundred and twenty,’ Kit said.
Sal said: ‘Did you speak to them?’
‘I said hello to a tall man with black hair. He said they had been three days in a ship.’
‘Foreigners,’ said Jarge.
Sal said: ‘Did you ask where they came from?’
‘It sounded like doubling.’
‘Dublin,’ said Sal. ‘They’re Irish.’
‘He said he was a weaver, but the mill in his village closed.’
Sal said: ‘I didn’t know they had mills in Ireland.’
‘They do,’ said Jarge. ‘The Irish sheep have long, soft fleeces that make a nice warm tweed called Donegal.’
Kit added: ‘They’re all weavers, he said.’
‘By the deuce,’ Jarge said, ‘Hornbeam has brought in scabs.’
‘Scabs?’ said Kit, puzzled. Scabs were what he got on his knees after falling.
‘Strikebreakers,’ Sal explained. ‘Hornbeam will put them to work in his mills.’
‘Yes,’ said Jarge grimly. ‘If they live that long.’
*
On Sundays Jane went to communion in the cathedral. Amos wanted to speak to her, so he skipped the service in the Methodist Hall and waited outside the cathedral until the Anglican congregation emerged.
Jane was dressed in a coat of sombre navy blue and a plain hat, suitable for church. She looked rather solemn, but brightened whenshe saw Amos. Viscount Northwood was not far behind her, but he was deep in conversation with Alderman Drinkwater.
Amos said to Jane: ‘It said inThe Timesa few days ago that the duke of York is planning radical reforms of the British army.’
‘My, my,’ said Jane. ‘You do know how to sweet-talk a girl, don’t you?’
Amos laughed at himself. ‘Sorry,’ he said. ‘How are you? I love your hat. That dark navy really suits you. Now, have you heard about the army reforms?’
‘All right. I know you in your dog-with-a-bone mood. Yes, I know about the army reforms – Henry talks about little else at the moment. The duke wants every enlisted man to have a greatcoat. It sounds very sensible to me. How can they fight if they’re freezing cold?’
‘The duke also thinks the army pays too much for its supplies. The militia is being robbed, he thinks, and he’s right. Those greatcoats will cost three or four times what they should.’
‘I hope you’re not going to become as boring as my husband.’
‘This is not boring. Who’s responsible for purchasing on behalf of the Shiring Militia?’
‘Major Will Riddick. Oh, I think I see what you’re getting at.’
‘From whom does Riddick buy all the cloth for uniforms?’
‘From his father-in-law, Alderman Hornbeam.’
‘Six years ago, before Riddick married into the Hornbeam family, I bid for an army contract. Will agreed my price then asked me for a bribe of ten per cent.’
