Trip opened the door wider. ‘Come in. Yes, we were just reading the papers.’
He ushered them into the front room and poured a drink for each of them.
‘I presume it might affect Trippets’, but what about you, Emily?’ George said. ‘Perhaps the smaller businesses, such as your buffing workshops, can survive.’
‘I really don’t know yet. The only thing that seems to be happening so far is that we’re getting more work, not less.’
‘I think,’ Trip said, as he handed round the drinks, ‘as firms find it harder and harder to keep men in full employment, they’ll lay them off and then, if work does come in, they’ll farm it out to little mesters or buffing businesses like Emily’s. Do you think it will affect the hotel?’
‘Most of our clientele are in the wealthier class, but of course, if they lose a lot of money on the stock exchange, we might start to suffer.’
‘How is Josh doing?’ Emily asked.
Constance smiled. ‘Wonderfully. He’s taken to it as if he was born to the trade. And your mother and Grace work very well under Mrs Froggatt’s direction.’
‘Mam doesn’t try to interfere with Josh, does she?’
Constance shook her head. ‘Not at all and, I have to admit, Emily, I am quite surprised.’
Emily laughed. ‘So am I! What about Amy?’
‘She helps out when she can, but, of course, she’s busy with the little ones and there’s your father and her own to care for too, but what she does in the home releases both Josh and Martha to work at Riversdale.’
‘And does Mr Clark work for you too, Mother?’ Trip asked.
‘Only part-time. His smithing business is picking up a little, I think.’ Her eyes twinkled as she added, ‘Some of the farmers tried to save money by doing their own repairs, but found it wasn’t as easy as they had thought, so they’re drifting back to patronize the village blacksmith again.’
‘So, all’s well in the countryside, is it?’
‘For the moment, but we’re not complacent. This latest disturbing news will eventually affect everyone.’
Twenty-Eight
The news about the state of the economy was gloomier each day and by the beginning of the following year, 1930, it was feared that there would be a world-wide slump. Trip’s worst forebodings were coming true.
‘I don’t know if we’re going to survive,’ he said anxiously as he scoured the newspaper’s headlines one morning in late February. ‘I’m having to lay off employees now. One or two might set up on their own account, like Steve, but not all of them can.’
‘How’s Steve coping?’ Emily asked.
‘Quite well, I think. How’re things with you?’
‘Not too bad. I think it’s because we’re relatively small that we’re surviving. For the moment, anyway. I’m looking to take on another one or two more workers. Preferably a man, who can do the jobs that traditionally buffer girls don’t do.’
Trip sighed. ‘Sadly, the men I’m laying off don’t fit the bill. Pity.’
‘Let me know if you hear of anyone. Nell learned a lot of the different processes during the war when the men were away. Without her skills, I don’t think I’d ever have got Ryan’s off the ground.’
Trip smiled and put his arm around her. ‘But you did. You’re doing well and there’re not many that can say that these days.’
Emily chuckled. ‘My mam always had a saying, “It’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good.”’
‘She’s right. Even in hard times – and we are facing tough times now – there’re always folks who can survive – even prosper.’ He laughed and hugged her to him. ‘Thank goodness I’m married to one.’
At that moment, a piping voice called from upstairs, ‘Mamma.’
‘That’s his lordship wanting his breakfast. I’ll get him dressed and take him to Mrs Dugdale’s.’
‘I tell you what, Mrs Trippet, ask her if she can have Lewis tonight. Let’s forget our worries just for one night. I’m taking you out. Be ready for six o’clock.’
‘Oh, I love it when you’re masterful, Trip,’ she teased, but she did not argue with his plans. Evenings out with her husband were a rare treat.
Over their breakfast that same morning, Constance looked across the table at George. ‘What is it, my dear? Something’s troubling you. Is it the news?’
George lowered his newspaper and sighed heavily. ‘Yes and no. Things are getting very difficult at work. Thomas probably won’t tell you it all, but he’s had to lay off three more employees. The only good thing about it is that it releases another workshop and I think one or two of the men concerned are going to rent it at a modest amount and set up as little mesters.’
‘I see.’ Constance bit her lip, unsure whether or not she should voice what was in her mind. She composed the wording before she said, ‘Is there still plenty of work for you to do there?’
‘Nothing that Richard couldn’t manage perfectly well on his own. Factory office workers – necessary though they are in any organization – don’t actually produce anything saleable. If clerical staff can be cut, it will mean a considerable saving for the company that is already beginning to struggle.’ George chuckled, his mood lightened. ‘You know, my love, I can see right through you. You’ll be suggesting next that you need my help with the hotel.’
Constance raised her eyebrow quizzically. ‘As a matter of fact, I do. I think I need more staff, but I’m not sure.’
‘Haven’t you noticed a downturn in bookings over these last few months?’
Constance shook her head. ‘Surprisingly, no. We were fully booked at Christmas and even now – in February – the hotel is half full.’ She chuckled. ‘I think people like to see Derbyshire in the snow.’
‘So, what have you got lined up for me to do? Hall porter? Carry your bags, m’lady?’ He pretended to doff his cap.
‘It’d be fun, wouldn’t it? And with me as a chambermaid? No, seriously, I didn’t realize there’d be so much paperwork – there’s more and more – and no one there is expert at that.’
‘Mm.’ George was thoughtful. ‘I could help out with that, of course, and now I’ve got my little car, I could easily travel to Ashford, even if you didn’t need to go.’
Constance leaned forward. ‘But it would be so nice to run it together, my love.’
‘I thought Josh was Manager?’
‘I don’t mean the day-to-day running of it, but the administrative side; we could do that, couldn’t we?’
‘You’d like that?’
‘Yes, I would. I really would.’
‘Then I’ll talk to Thomas and Richard.’
‘Here’s my little man,’ Bess said, reaching to take the little boy’s hand as Emily and Lewis arrived at her home.
‘Do you think he could stay the night, Mrs Dugdale? I’ve brought his suitcase.’
Bess’s smile widened. ‘Of course he can. Any time, Emily, you know that. But can you come in for a moment? There’s someone I want you to see.’
Emily felt her heart give a leap in her chest. Surely, Mick hadn’t come back? But when she entered Bess’s kitchen it was to see Ruth Nicholson, Billy’s mother, sitting by the fire in the range, her hands outstretched towards its warmth.
When the Ryan family had first arrived in the city and moved into the court off Garden Street, Ruth had lived there too. She still did, as far as Emily knew. Ruth’s story was a sad one. She had lost her husband and two sons to the war and now there was only her son Billy left. He’d been too young to be conscripted. Ruth had been the buffer missus at Waterfall’s in charge of twenty or so buffer girls. Then she’d been plump and round-faced, yet her smile had never reached her eyes, which held a deep sorrow. It had been Ruth Nicholson who’d given Emily her first job in the cutlery industry as an errand lass. As Emily sat down opposite Ruth, she realized just how much she owed this woman. But for her giving Emily the opportunity, she might still be employed in some menial job. Emily knew that she owed her present goo
d fortune to Ruth and she was shocked to see the change in her. Now she was thin and gaunt. She walked over to Ruth and knelt by her chair, taking her hands in her own.
‘What is it, missus?’ Emily still called her by the name all the girls had used, even though she was one herself now and had her own business, which Ruth had never had. Beneath Emily’s touch, Ruth’s hands trembled and tears welled in her eyes. ‘I’ve lost me job and so has Billy.’
Emily gasped. ‘No! Has – has Waterfall’s closed?’ If it had, she was surprised that neither she nor Trip had heard, but Ruth was shaking her head.
‘No, but they’re cutting down and laying folks off. They think they can manage without a buffer missus. They seem to regard my job as non-productive and therefore not actually making them any money.’
Emily snorted derisively. ‘I think they’ll soon find that production will drop if there’s no one in charge of twenty or so girls. For one thing, I bet there’ll soon be arguments about who’s doing what.’
Ruth smiled wanly and nodded. ‘I tried to argue that very point, but they weren’t listening – or didn’t want to. Besides, they’ve laid off nearly half the girls too. There’re only about twelve left.’
‘And what about Billy? He works as a male buffer, doesn’t he?’
‘Yes, they’ve laid him off because they can train the women to do his job and pay them less.’
‘Ah, I see.’
Emily’s legs were getting cramped with kneeling, so she gave Ruth’s hands a pat and sat back in the other chair. For several minutes, she was thoughtful, gazing unseeingly out of the window on to the street. She watched one or two passers-by, all of them looking as if they had the weight of the world’s problems on their shoulders. They probably felt as if they had; this Depression was affecting everyone.
‘Right,’ Emily said, coming to a decision. She wished she could talk it over with Trip first and maybe with Nell too, but she couldn’t leave the missus looking like she did. Although Emily had a shrewd business head and was quite capable of making tough decisions when necessary, she had a gentler side to her nature and seeing Ruth like this tore at her heartstrings. ‘We need another buffer, possibly two. If Billy would be willing to come and work for me and do all the processes that men do, we could take on some work that, at the moment, I’m having to turn away. Nell’s very good, but she just can’t cope with the volume of work I could have if I had a male worker. And if Billy would train the other girls to do some of the processes that they can’t do yet – even better.’
‘Oh Emily.’ Tears now flowed down Ruth’s cheeks. ‘Do you mean it?’
Before she could answer, Bess, who had been eavesdropping on the conversation, stepped closer. ‘I’ll tell you summat, Ruth luv, me an’ this lass have had our ups and downs in the past – mostly because of that son of mine, I have to say – but she’s been the saving of me and my Lizzie. And she’ll not say owt she doesn’t mean.’
Ruth leaned across and now it was she who grasped Emily’s hands. ‘Thank you, thank you.’
‘We’d better ask Billy, though, hadn’t we?’ Emily laughed. ‘He might not want to be the only man in a workshop of women.’
Again, it was Bess who spoke up. ‘He’ll leap at the chance if he’s any sense. What man wouldn’t? Besides, he’ll be working alongside Lizzie, won’t he?’
‘Are they still walking out together? Lizzie doesn’t say much.’
‘Oh yes, have been for a while. Billy’s loved her since he was a young lad,’ Ruth said quietly.
‘Aye, well, Lizzie’s come to her senses now,’ Bess put in. No more was said, but they were all remembering Lizzie’s infatuation with Josh and the trouble it had caused.
‘Now, what about you, missus?’ Emily said. She wasn’t done yet.
‘Me? You don’t want a buffer missus any more than Waterfall’s.’ She paused and stared at Emily before adding tentatively, ‘Do you?’
‘Not as such,’ Emily said slowly. ‘Nell is in charge of the workshop in Rockingham Street and I oversee the one in Broad Lane, leaving Dorothy Frith in charge if I’m out. That’s where I’d like Billy to work, if he’s agreeable. There’s another workshop there on the first floor that I haven’t used yet. But, if Billy would come, we could open it up. But I was just wondering . . .’
Ruth took the words from her mouth, ‘If I would go back to being a buffer girl? I would, Emily; it’s not pride, but I’m so out of touch with the work. It’s years since I—’
But Emily was shaking her head. ‘No, not that.’ She laughed. ‘To be honest, I didn’t know you’d ever been a buffer girl, but I suppose it stands to reason that you were once. No, I have something else in mind.’ She paused for a moment, marshalling her thoughts before she spoke again. The other two women waited patiently, whilst Lewis wriggled on Bess’s lap. He wanted to play on the floor with his toys. The talk amongst the three women was boring and he didn’t like it when no one was paying attention to him. He was growing more like his father every day, with dark hair and brown eyes and a cheeky grin that melted hearts.
‘I think you could help me fetching and delivering work. That would release me to keep up with the paperwork, which seems to increase by the day and will increase even more if I expand. Maybe I shouldn’t even be thinking of taking on more staff in the current economic climate, but I believe we have to keep trying. I don’t suppose you can drive, can you?’
Ruth shook her head. ‘No, I can’t. At least . . .’ She hesitated and bit her lip. She glanced at Bess, who nodded, ‘You can tell Emily, Ruth. She probably knows anyway from when she lived in the court.’
Ruth took a deep breath. ‘We don’t make a song and dance about it, but Eddie Crossland and me have been keeping company for several years. He was friends with all of us in the court, wasn’t he, Bess? But I was heartbroken when I lost my hubby and then my two boys too. I – I don’t know what I’d’ve done if it hadn’t been for Eddie’s friendship keeping me sane. I had to keep going for Billy’s sake, but it was hard. We were just friends at first, but as time went on . . .’ Her voice trailed away and Emily filled in the rest in her mind.
‘You don’t need to justify yourself to me, missus. I can only guess what you must have gone through. It was bad enough what happened to my poor dad in the war, but at least he came back.’
Ruth nodded. ‘I remember seeing him in the court. Poor man.’ She paused a moment and then went on more strongly. ‘What I was going to say was that perhaps Eddie would teach me. I know he can drive, but he doesn’t own a car. But I don’t understand. Why do you want me to be able to drive?’
‘Because’, Bess interrupted in her excitement, ‘you can take out the work and fetch it in in Emily’s little car. Is that right, Emily?’
‘Exactly right.’
Ruth was thoughtful for a moment. ‘Do – do you think I could do it?’
Emily chuckled. ‘I wouldn’t have asked you if I didn’t.’
‘There is something else, Emily, that I might be able to help you with.’
‘What’s that?’
‘I know an awful lot of Waterfall’s customers. They’ve known me over the years and they trust me. I don’t want to sound conceited, but I think some of them – perhaps several of them – would – er – follow me.’
Emily stared at her for a moment before she began to laugh, leaning back helplessly in the chair. ‘Now, wouldn’t that just serve Waterfall’s right for having sacked you and Billy? There’s just one thing, though,’ she said, as she sat up again and wiped her eyes. ‘We don’t want it to rebound on Mr Crossland. He still works for them, doesn’t he?’
‘I don’t think it would affect him. He’s in charge of the manufacturing side. Besides, they’d be idiots if they got rid of Eddie. He virtually runs the place and whilst they’ve been laying a few men off, old man Waterfall won’t want to get his hands dirty and as for that son of his, he’s less than useless. What’ll happen to the business when the old man goes, I don’t know.’
<
br /> The two women stared across the hearth at each other whilst Bess, impatient as ever, said, ‘So, Ruth, what d’you say?’
Softly Ruth said, ‘I say, God bless you, Emily Trippet, and when can we start?’
Over their meal that evening in a fancy restaurant, Emily told Trip what had happened that day.
‘That’s a great idea, darling.’ Emily was relieved to hear that he approved, but he had a cautionary note to add. ‘So long as you’ve the work still coming in to support two more workers and opening up another workshop.’
‘I have at the moment and Ruth will bring more. I’m sure of it. Like I told her, I’ve had to turn some work away that Nell couldn’t cope with.’
‘Good, but now . . .’ Trip grinned as he stood up and held out his hand to her, ‘I have a surprise for you. We’re going to the pictures.’
It wasn’t until they were seated in the Cinema House and were watching the opening titles to a film called Climbing the Golden Stairs that Emily understood Trip’s excitement.
‘Oh my!’ she exclaimed, as a gasp of surprise rippled through the whole audience. ‘They’re talking. The actors are talking!’
‘It’s the first talkie to come to this cinema,’ Trip whispered. ‘I thought you’d like it.’
They watched the whole film, entranced by the new invention that brought not only moving pictures but sound too.
‘That was amazing,’ Emily said, as they left the cinema and heard the animated chatter around them. ‘We must invite Harry to come and stay with us in the school holidays. He’d love that.’
Twenty-Nine
A feeling of despondency pervaded the city, as indeed it did the whole country. By 1930, the city was rumoured to have 43,000 people out of work. And yet there were pockets of hope and one was the name of Emily Trippet and her business, Ryan’s. In a few weeks, Eddie had taught Ruth to drive and it was now she who drove Emily’s little car around the city picking up work and delivering the finished articles. And, as Ruth had predicted, several of the manufacturers who’d known and respected her for years now brought their business to Ryan’s.
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