Page 154 of The Armor of Light
Northwood raised an eyebrow but decided not to take offence. ‘I’ll write today,’ he said. ‘My man in London will send me the details.’
Spade persisted. ‘I can’t help wondering how long the committee will take to report back.’
‘Given the government’s evident hurry, it will probably be just a few days.’
‘Is there anything we can do to persuade Parliament to reconsider?’
‘As workmen can’t vote, the usual way for them to try to influence Parliament is to present a petition.’
‘I’ll start work on that today.’
The following Friday, Northwood got a reply to his letter. It came in the form of a short, round, bald man called Clement Keithley. He explained to Spade, sitting in Northwood’s office opposite the cathedral, that he was a lawyer working as an assistant to Benjamin Hobhouse, MP. Hobhouse knew Kingsbridge because his father had been a Bristol merchant.
Keithley, who had been at Bristol Grammar School with Hobhouse, said with pride that Mr Hobhouse had spoken vehemently against the Combination Bill, but his opposition had not been enough to kill the bill, which would now be considered by the upper chamber, the House of Lords.
‘Mr Pitt’s government is in a terrific rush about this, aren’t they?’ said Northwood.
‘Indeed they are, my lord, and there has been no time for their opponents to organize petitions.’
Spade said: ‘We have a petition with several hundred signatures already.’
‘Then we must get some more, and present it to the House of Lords.’ Keithley turned to Northwood. ‘My lord, would you be kind enough to call a public meeting for this matter to be explained to your constituents?’
‘A very good idea. When?’
‘Today or tomorrow. We cannot delay.’
‘Well, I’m sure it could be arranged for tomorrow.’
Spade said: ‘Let me go now and make sure the Assembly Rooms are available.’
‘If you would,’ said Northwood.
‘And perhaps Mr Keithley would like to come with me, and look at the place where he will be speaking.’
‘Yes, I would,’ said Keithley.
They left. Outside the building, Keithley paused to take in the cathedral. It always looked its best in sunshine, Spade thought. ‘I remember this,’ Keithley said. ‘I must have come here as a boy. Magnificent. And all made without machines.’
Spade said: ‘I’m not against machines, as such. Anyway, they can’t be stopped. But we can ease the pain.’
‘Exactly.’
They walked up Main Street to the Assembly Rooms at the crossroads. The door was open. Inside, a handful of people were doing cleaning and maintenance. Spade led Keithley to the manager’s office. Yes, the main hall was free on Saturday evening, and of course the manager would be delighted to host Viscount Northwood for a political meeting.
They paused in the ballroom. Sunlight through the windows gilded the dust thrown into the air by the cleaners. Spade said: ‘Plenty of space, as you can see. There are about two hundred voters in Kingsbridge, but I assume we will let the hands attend as well.’
‘Oh, definitely. Your MP must witness the strength of feeling when working people learn what is being plotted against them. How many hands are there in Kingsbridge?’
‘In the woollen mills, about a thousand.’
‘Encourage them to come.’
‘I’ll spread the word.’
‘Splendid. I suggest you collect signatures for your petition immediately after the meeting, and I’ll take the lot up to London on Sunday.’
‘In your honest opinion,’ Spade said, ‘what chance do we have of stopping the bill?’
