The Armor of Light: A Novel

Arabella tends to her beloved rose garden. Elsie watches, nursing her baby, Stephen, named after his grandfather the bishop. The strike called by the hands’ union means that many of the children in Kingsbridge are hungry. Elsie appreciates this opportunity to expand the remit of her Sunday School, she explains to her mother, as they now feed the children of many of the striking parents. This also gives them an opportunity to offer education to the children and young people who would otherwise be working in the mills. Elsie also tells her mother that she is expecting another child. She is pleased with her marriage to Kenelm, but on the Saturdays when she and her husband routinely spend their only night in the same bed, she thinks of Amos. At the school, she discusses the strike with Amos. Hornbeam will not negotiate, Amos says, as he believes that he can outlast the hands. Later that afternoon, Elsie has tea with her parents. They discuss Spade’s unmarried sister, and Elsie wonders whether her father has heard the “absurd rumors” (340) about his wife spending time with Spade. After, Elsie is called into a meeting between her father, Hornbeam, and Will Riddick, who looks “a bit drunk” (340). Hornbeam tries to pressure Elsie into closing down her school, as she is “supporting the strike” (341). Elsie rejects his demand, refusing to cease her efforts to feed and educate children. Elsie also convinces her father not to drop support for the school. Hornbeam leaves, but Elsie notes that he does not seem as “defeated as he should have” (343). Later, Kenelm urges her to appease the powerful Hornbeam and suggests that she does not understand the situation because she is a woman.

Kit plays football with the other local boys. Walking home, he passes a row of empty houses built by Hornbeam. Kit is intrigued and explores an empty house, only to be chased away by a security guard. The guard is distracted by the arrival of several wagons carrying Irish families. Kit introduces himself to one of the Irishmen, Colin Hennessy, and sees the families enter the empty houses. He goes home and tells his mother what he has seen. Jarge and Sal realize that Hornbeam has brought these Irish families to England as “scabs” (350) to work in his mills while the hands are on strike.

Amos speaks to Jane about the army reforms, which could result in a great deal of business for the textile industry in uniform production. He tells Jane about Will Riddick asking him for a bribe. He suggests that she speak to her husband, who could place someone else in charge of requisitioning. He hopes that Henry will appoint a Methodist, allowing him to bid for the contracts without having to pay a bribe. When the Irish begin working in Hornbeam’s mills, Jarge and the other hands are enraged. Spade cautions them to wait before starting a fight. Jarge has begun to drink more while on strike and, to her horror, Sal realizes that he has pawned her family Bible for drinking money. In a drunken rage, he hits Kit, and Sal loses her patience. She confronts him with a knife, warning him that—though she loves him—she will not forgive him twice.

At the end of the week, Hornbeam is pleased with his plan. The Irish workers have settled in. However, when he witnesses the Irish workers fighting with the local people, he fears that this will discredit the  strikebreakers and himself. He tells Will to arrest Jarge and the other strikers so he can blame them for starting the fight. The strikers, however, have followed Spade’s advice. They are together in a different pub, away from the trouble, and cannot be accused of instigating the brawl. When an emergency meeting is called, Hornbeam accuses the strikers of being “very sly” (365). Spade organizes a compromise between the mill owners and the strikers, so that the “union achieves official recognition” (367). Later, Arabella tells Spade about her plan: When the bishop was very drunk, she spent the night in his bed, and because they woke up beside each other, she will convince him that they had sex and that the child is his. A week later, a meeting is convened. The union outlines their demands to Hornbeam, who reluctantly reaches an agreement. As he leaves, however, he reveals that trade unions will soon be made “completely illegal” (371).

Spade investigates Hornbeam’s claim and learns that the upcoming Workmen’s Combination Bill will criminalize workmen who organize to demand higher wages. The bill has been rushed through Parliament in response to the recent wave of strikes. Spade speaks to the Member of Parliament for Kingsbridge, Viscount Northwood, who dislikes the bill because he hates “bullies” (374). Northwood plans with Spade to launch a campaign and a petition against the quick ratification of the bill. A lawyer and skilled debater named Clement Keithley comes to Kingsbridge to speak against the bill. When Hornbeam interjects from the rear of the room, Keithley skewers Hornbeam’s arguments and wins much support. Many people sign the petition Keithley will present before Parliament. Keithley also advises Spade how to launch a friendly society to handle the money raised by the trade union to protect the funds in case the bill passes. Spade then travels to London with Keithley to watch Parliament debate the bill. While visiting one of his London customers, he mentions the name Hornbeam and is told of an orphan of the same name—Joey Hornbeam—who was “some kind of swindler” (383) in his youth. Spade wants to learn more about Hornbeam’s mysterious and possibly criminal past. Spade follows the debate in Parliament, and to his horror, the bill is passed.

At breakfast with her parents, Elsie suspects that her mother is bothered by something. She is shocked when Arabella announces that she is pregnant. The bishop is “stunned” (388), but Arabella reminds him of the time they woke up in the same bed some months previous. Elsie detects a note of anxiety in his mother’s voice and wonders whether her father doubts the provenance of the child. Elsie also remembers the town gossip, Belinda Goodnight, mentioning that her mother had become “awfully friendly with Spade” (389). She had dismissed the rumor but now she is less sure.

Sal is pleased. The friendly society is set up to replace the trade union, and the Irish workers have settled into the community, with Colin Hennesey representing them at the friendly society meetings. News comes that Hornbeam has bought a new scribbling machine, thus breaking the agreement by not consulting the hands before doing so. Spade suggests that he and Sal visit Hornbeam, who delays his response until the following day. Sal is suspicious. That night, she has a sexual dream about Colin, but she is woken up by the arrival of Sheriff Doye at her door. He has been sent by Hornbeam to arrest her for “combination”—that is, violating the new law against labor organizing. Sal and Colin are taken to Will Riddick’s family home, which smells “of tobacco ash and spilled wine” (394). After a long wait, Hornbeam leads a sham trial to convict them. Will sentences Sal to two months’ hard labor.

Spade’s brother-in-law, Freddie, writes to him from a military post in the Netherlands. He writes about Britain’s military failures but hopes to return to Kingsbridge soon. Hornbeam installs his new scribbling engine. He does not want the war to end, as he makes a lot of money from the contracts he secured through Will Riddick. However, Will comes to him to announce that he has been assigned to a new post. In Will’s place, Northwood has appointed a Methodist named Archie Donaldson to handle purchasing. Hornbeam immediately plans to “butter him up” (402) to safeguard his military contacts.

Sal is in prison doing hard labor. Elsie visits her house with a food hamper. Jarge is taking care of Sue and Kit. Spade recalls what he heard in London, that Hornbeam came from a very poor background. He suspects that “no amount of money will ever be enough to make [Hornbeam] feel safe” (404). Soon after Elsie returns home, her mother gives birth to a son. Amos struggles to comprehend foreign affairs. He does not pretend to understand the finer details of the war and is more interested in Jane’s marriage to Northwood, which he has heard is not a happy one. Since Will has been replaced by Donaldson, however, Amos has a chance to secure a military contract honestly. He visits Donaldson and submits his bid, though Donaldson makes clear that he will not favor fellow Methodists. Arabella’s baby is christened. She suggests the name David (Spade’s name), but the bishop names the boy Absalom, “one of the sons of David” (410). Elsie believes that the name is a curse from her vengeful father, who suspects that Arabella had an affair.

Hornbeam’s grandson, Little Joe, reminds him unpleasantly of “his long-dead mother” (411). Hornbeam visits Donaldson to submit a bid on the military contracts. In a blunt way, he tries to bribe Donaldson. The offer is rejected; Donaldson has awarded half the contract to Amos (a Methodist) and half to Mrs. Bagshaw (an Anglican). Hornbeam worries that he will lose money, especially with his new mill recently opened. He is furious, and for once, he has no fallback plan. Elsie reads about the contracts in the newspaper. She also learns that Spade will supply the more expensive material for the officers’ uniforms. As she reads the story aloud, she mentions Spade’s full name: David Shoveller. The mention of the name riles the bishop, and Elsie suspects that he believes the rumors that Spade fathered Arabella’s child. After he storms out, Arabella tearfully confesses the truth to her daughter. Elsie comforts her mother, then visits Sal’s home.

This is the day when Sal will be released from prison. When she returns home, she is “not all right” (417). Elsie notes the physical degradation and suffering caused by the hard labor. She understands Sal’s terrible implication that the prison guards sexually assaulted the female prisoners. Elsie knows to keep this “secret of the prison rape” (418) from Jarge, who would kill the guards without a moment of hesitation. When Elsie returns home, her mother is weeping. Elsie sees that her father has ordered the servants to tear up Arabella’s beloved rose garden. Elsie confronts her father, who threatens to cut the funding for her Sunday School if she interferes. Arabella, he claims, has taken what he values most: his “dignity” (419). Arabella takes the baby to Spade, seeking comfort.