Mary Barton | Page 3

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This etext was prepared by Les Bowler, St. Ives, Dorset. Additional proof reading by Joseph E. Loewenstein, M.D.

MARY BARTON
by Elizabeth Gaskell

CONTENTS
I. A mysterious disappearance. II. A Manchester tea-party. III. John Barton's great trouble. IV. Old Alice's history. V. The mill on fire--Jem Wilson to the rescue. VI. Poverty and death. VII. Jem Wilson's repulse. VIII. Margaret's debut as a public singer. IX. Barton's London experiences. X. Return of the prodigal. XI. Mr. Carson's intentions revealed. XII. Old Alice's bairn. XIII. A traveller's tales. XIV. Jem's interview with poor Esther. XV. A violent meeting between the rivals. XVI. Meeting between masters and workmen. XVII. Barton's night errand. XVIII. Murder. XIX. Jem Wilson arrested on suspicion. XX. Mary's dream--and the awakening. XXI. Esther's motive in seeking Mary. XXII. Mary's efforts to prove an alibi. XXIII. The sub-poena. XXIV. With the dying. XXV. Mrs. Wilson's determination. XXVI. The journey to Liverpool. XXVII. In the Liverpool docks. XXVIII. "John Cropper," ahoy! XXIX. A true bill against Jem. XXX. Job Legh's deception. XXXI. How Mary passed the night. XXXII. The trial and verdict--"Not guilty!" XXXIII. Requiescat in pace. XXXIV. The return home. XXXV. "Forgive us our trespasses." XXXVI. Jem's interview with Mr. Duncombe. XXXVII. Details connected with the murder. XXXVIII. Conclusion.

I. A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
"Oh! 't is hard, 't is hard to be working The whole of the live-long day, When all the neighbours about one Are off to their jaunts and play.
"There's Richard he carries his baby, And Mary takes little Jane, And lovingly they'll be wandering Through fields and briery lane." --MANCHESTER SONG.
There are some fields near Manchester, well known to the inhabitants as "Green Heys Fields," through which runs a public footpath to a little village about two miles distant. In spite of these fields being flat, and low, nay, in spite of the want of wood (the great and usual recommendation of level tracts of land), there is a charm about them which strikes even the inhabitant of a mountainous district, who sees and feels the effect of contrast in these commonplace but thoroughly rural fields, with the busy, bustling manufacturing town he left but half-an-hour ago. Here and there an old black and white farmhouse, with its rambling outbuildings, speaks of other times and other occupations than those which now absorb the population of the neighbourhood. Here in their seasons may be seen the country business of haymaking, ploughing, etc., which are such pleasant mysteries for townspeople to watch: and here the artisan, deafened with noise of tongues and engines, may come to listen awhile to the delicious sounds of rural life: the lowing of cattle, the milkmaid's call, the clatter and cackle of poultry in the farmyards. You cannot wonder, then, that these fields are popular places of resort at every holiday time; and you would not wonder, if you could see, or I properly describe, the charm of one particular stile, that it should be, on such occasions, a crowded halting place. Close by it is a deep, clear pond, reflecting in its dark green depths the shadowy trees that bend over it to exclude the sun. The only place where its banks are shelving is on the side