get all high and mighty like Ralph,’ said Joan.
‘He’s not high and mighty.’
‘He should stand up to his father,’ said Win.
‘His dad was lucky to get him work at the paper-mill,’ said Ellen wearily. ‘It’ll give him security for life.’
‘So why did you go to all that trouble to let him stay at the grammar school?’
‘You know why. Don’t go on, Win.’
‘To give him a better chance.’ She rattled the newspaper with relish as if scoring a point. ‘Of course, if John had been around he’d have stopped you, wouldn’t he? The green-eyed monster, that’s what it is.’
Harry stared at her as if she was mad. ‘There ain’t no greeneyed monsters ’ere. What you on about, Auntie Win?’
‘Jealousy!’ she said dramatically. ‘That’s what I’m on about.’
‘That’s enough, Win.’
Ellen put the iron back on the range and hung the trousers on a piece of string stretched across a wall above a makeshift bed in the corner.
Outside, the yard door gave a loud slam.
‘It can’t be that late, surely,’ exclaimed Ellen. Busily she removed the sheet and blanket from the end of the table. ‘For goodness’ sake, Elsie,’ she said urgently, picking up a small pair of spectacles. ‘Put these in your room, quick. If they get broken the school won’t lend you another pair.’
‘And you don’t want her dad to see them,’ said Win. She raised her newspaper to hide her face.
There was a resounding crash from the back door. ‘They’ve had another row,’ commented Harry.
‘I can’t hear voices,’ said Elsie. ‘I expect they’re still not talking.’
The door of the scullery was flung open and a blast of cold air swept into the kitchen. Standing in the doorway like a bull about to charge, stood a square-built man in his thirties with thick black hair and a red face.
He glanced round the room. ‘Where is he?’ he yelled. ‘Where is the little tyke?’
‘Who?’ said Ellen nervously.
‘Who do you think? Ralph!’
‘You’ve not had another misunderstanding, have you?’ Ellen began.
‘Misunderstanding!’ he roared. ‘Is he upstairs? I’ll tan his ruddy hide.’
‘Didn’t you meet him after work?’
‘If I had I wouldn’t be looking for him, would I?’
‘Well, he’s not here. He must be still at the mill.’
‘Oh no. He’s not at the mill. That’s one thing I know. That fancy education you wanted for him has got him the sack.’
‘No!’ said Ellen in disbelief.
‘I told him to keep his trap shut till he could lose that hoity-toity accent of his. If he’d just knuckled under . . .’
‘But Ralph’s a worker. Even in his school holidays he did farm work.’
‘Oh, he worked all right but he didn’t mix, did he?’
Winifred lowered her newspaper. ‘If he wasn’t supposed to open his mouth, how was he supposed to talk to them? In dumb-show?’
‘You keep out of this. It’s none of your business.’
‘Oh, yes it is. I’m family.’
‘And I don’t want her ending up with her nose in the air,’ he said, suddenly pointing at Elsie. ‘One sign of it and I’m having her out.’
Elsie jumped nervously. There was a sudden snap from under the table where her hands were hidden. She flushed and looked hurriedly at her mother.
‘Oh, no, Elsie,’ her mother whispered.
‘What’s that?’ her father said sharply.
‘Dad,’ said Harry quickly, ‘if Ralph’s got the sack, his apprenticeship will be going, won’t it?’
‘So?’
‘I could take it.’
‘You’ve got to stay at school until you’re fourteen,’ said Ellen.
‘I know but maybe Dad could persuade them to let me leave a couple of terms early, eh?’
‘After today I’ll be lucky to keep my job.’
‘But I don’t understand,’ said Ellen. ‘Why did they sack him?’
‘In a nutshell, backchat, being over-qualified and reading.’ He slumped down in the chair. ‘I told him not to let on about that ruddy School Certificate.’
‘How’d they find out?’
‘He took a book with him to read in his dinner break, I ask you. Worse than that it was one of those ruddy theatre books. French Without Beer or something.’
‘Tears,’ said Elsie quietly.
‘What?’
‘French Without Tears. It’s called a play.’
‘Don’t tell me what it’s called, young lady.’
‘She was only trying to help, love.’
‘Anyway, the other boys was teasing him, but instead of shoving the book out of sight, he starts answering them back. So, one of the men snaps at him and says he can’t read it. So your Ralph says, that’s because bits are in French and he starts telling them what it means in English!’
‘What’s wrong with that?’ asked Ellen bewildered.
‘It was the ruddy foreman who was looking at the book. Ralph showed him up, didn’t he? In front of the other apprentices, who then started calling Ralph a pansy.’
Ellen glanced quickly at Elsie and Harry. ‘So what did he do?’
‘Instead of socking them one, he turns to the foreman and says, “You don’t seem to be able to keep your charges in order.” In that posh voice of his.’
‘I told you he was hoity-toity,’ said Joan.
‘That’s what the foreman said. Anyway, they starts to take the piss out of the way he was talking. So Ralph apparently asks him what accent would be acceptable, and you know what he does?’
‘He didn’t hit him, did he?’
‘Oh
