ircle of respectable farmers and
tradesmen in the Corn Market, that young Rowan had come down to the
brewery and made his way into the brewery-house with a ready prepared
plan for ruining him--him, the head of the firm,--he thought that
he was telling the truth. And again, when he spoke with horror of
Rowan's intention of setting up an opposition brewery, his horror was
conscientious. He believed that it would be very wicked in a man to
oppose the Bungall establishment with money left by Bungall,--that
it would be a wickedness than which no commercial rascality could
be more iniquitous. His very soul was struck with awe at the idea.
That anything was due in the matter to the consumer of beer, never
occurred to him. And it may also be said in Tappitt's favour that
his opinion,--as a general opinion,--was backed by those around him.
His neighbours could not be made to hate Rowan as he hated him. They
would not declare the young man to be the very Mischief, as he did.
But that idea of a rival brewery was distasteful to them all. Most of
them knew that the beer was almost too bad to be swallowed; but they
thought that Tappitt had a vested interest in the manufacture of bad
beer;--that as a manufacturer of bad beer he was a fairly honest and
useful man;--and they looked upon any change as the work, or rather
the suggestion, of a charlatan.

"This isn't Staffordshire," they said. "If you want beer like that
you can buy it in bottles at Griggs'."

"He'll soon find where he'll be if he tries to undersell me," said
young Griggs. "All the same, I hope he'll come back, because he has
left a little bill at our place."

And then to other evil reports was added that special evil
report,--that Rowan had gone away without paying his debts. I am
inclined to think that Mr. Tappitt can be almost justified in his
evil thoughts and his evil words.

I cannot make out quite so good a case for Mrs. Tappitt and her two
elder daughters;--for even Martha, Martha the just, shook her head
in these days when Rowan's name was mentioned;--but something may
be said even for them. It must not be supposed that Mrs. Tappitt's
single grievance was her disappointment as regarded Augusta. Had
there been no Augusta on whose behalf a hope had been possible, the
predilection of the young moneyed stranger for such a girl as Rachel
Ray would have been a grievance to such a woman as Mrs. Tappitt. Had
she not been looking down on Rachel Ray and despising her f