On the Friday morning there was a solemn conference at the brewery¹ between Mrs Tappitt and Mrs Rowan. Mrs Rowan found herself to be in some difficulty as to the line of action which she ought to take, and the alliances which she ought to form. She was passionately² attached to her son, and for Mrs Tappitt she had no strong liking³. But then she was very averse⁴ to this proposed marriage with Rachel Ray, and was willing for a while to make a treaty with Mrs Tappitt, offensive and defensive⁵, as against her own son, if by doing so she could put a stop to so outrageous⁶ a proceeding⁷ on his part. He had seen her before he started for London, and had told her both the occurrences of the day. He had described to her how Tappitt had turned him out of the brewery, poker⁸ in hand, and how, in consequence of Tappitt’s “pigheaded obstinacy”, it was now necessary that their joint⁹ affairs should be set right by the hand of the law. He had then told her also that there was no longer any room for doubt or argument between them as regarding Rachel. He had gone out to Bragg’s End that morning, had made his offer, and had been accepted. His mother therefore would see — so he surmised¹⁰ — that, as any opposition¹¹ on her part must now be futile¹², she might as well take Rachel to her heart at once. He went so far as to propose to her that she should go over to Rachel in his absence —“it would be very gracious if you could do it tomorrow, mother,” he said — and go through that little process of taking her future daughter-in-law to her heart. But in answer to this Mrs Rowan said very little. She said very little, but she looked much. “My dear, I cannot move so quick as you do; I am older. I am afraid, however, that you have been rash.” He said something, as on such occasions young men do, as to his privilege of choosing for himself, as to his knowing what wife would suit him, as to his contempt for money, and as to the fact —“the undoubted fact”, as he declared it — and in that declaration I am prepared to go hand-in-hand with him — that Rachel Ray was a lady. But he was clear-headed enough to perceive that his mother did not intend to agree with him. “When we are married she will come round,” he said to himself, and then he took himself off by the night mail train to London.

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