Chapter 43 Having admired Hyde Park...
After enjoying the beautiful scenery of Hyde Park, Mary and William prepared to return to Portsmouth the next day.
On the morning of the departure, before the general's wife had gotten up, Anne reminded her again while having breakfast: "Dear Mary, please don't stay at home for too long. I can already imagine how bored I will be without you. You can only stay in Portsmouth for a week at most. I can't stand any longer."
The general then instructed his goddaughter to send a message as soon as she was ready to return after the festival. This time, he sent a carriage to take his goddaughter and William back to Portsmouth, and he would also send a servant to fetch her back.
With the general's carriage, this journey was easier than any Mary had ever taken before. Her mood brightened even more when she thought of the steady stream of dividends from the sewing machine, and the more than three thousand pounds she had bought in bonds (originally £1,700, sold for £500 to invest in the sewing machine, and the sewing machine company's first dividend of £2,000).
The goal she had set was now within reach. Mary thought that in a few years she could consider buying a small house in London and hiring three servants like Richard. If conditions allowed, she could also rent a villa in a scenic county and spend every summer in the countryside.
When four thousand pounds was no longer a problem for Mary, the life she had imagined with an annual income of two hundred pounds was no longer enough for her. However, now she was more entitled than anyone else to live a luxurious life that was not originally hers. Apart from her siblings and General Maxwell, no one would have guessed that the biggest contributor and shareholder of the "Butterfly Sewing Machine Company" was not Richard, but her.
The brother and sister returned home amidst laughter and joy. When they arrived in Portsmouth, everything was still the same as before.
Since Mary's covert control was removed, Mr. Price has become increasingly drunk, and now, apart from his eldest son's promotion, which has given him some energy, he has lost interest in everything else.
After Kate left, Lily became the housekeeper, and Mrs. Price hired another handywoman. This girl wasn't as diligent as Lily had been, so Mrs. Price and Lily had to do many things themselves. Doing these chores made Mrs. Price become slovenly again, and at first glance, Mary thought the family was going bankrupt again.
Sam, who had been at sea for over a year, had become tanned and grown much taller. Mary wasn't home the last few times he returned, unlike William, whom she had seen once in Mansfield. When they met again, Mary almost didn't recognize her younger brother.
Tom and Charles also matured and became more stable. Freed from the control of their two older sisters, they missed them. When Mary returned this time, Tom kept asking her if she could stay at home.
Upon her return, Mary brought her family a gift: a sewing machine from their company. The machine's fame had already spread to Portsmouth, but the Price couple had no idea what connection the "Butterfly" sewing machine had to them.
When William told his parents that Richard was busy with his sewing machine business in London and wouldn't be able to come back, Mrs. Price, who was carefully figuring out how to use the machine her daughter had brought back, widened her eyes.
“What? You mean Richard is selling this sewing machine? How much money must he be making? I heard that a sewing machine sells for a hundred pounds! I heard that Mrs. Johnson has one.”
“Those are sold to nobles and the wealthy. They’re plated with gold and inlaid with enamel. A regular sewing machine only costs twenty-four pounds,” Mary explained as she demonstrated how to operate it to her mother.
"It's amazing! With this machine, we'll never have to worry about sewing again. I think we won't even need to go to a tailor anymore!" Mrs. Price said curiously as she fiddled with the machine. Sewing was one of the most arduous chores for her at the moment.
Mr. Price didn't offer any opinion on his son's business ventures; he continued reading his newspaper. Sam was busy fiddling with William's new uniform, while Tom and Charles curiously gathered around, showing great interest in how the machine worked. Mary patiently explained it to her brothers.
The evening passed just like that, with William becoming a lieutenant and Richard selling sewing machines occupying the whole family's attention. The mother asked Mary one more question and learned that Mary got along well with the general's wife and Anne, so she was relieved about her daughter's life at General Maxwell's house.
Mary was used to this familiar family atmosphere, and for Mrs. Price, that extra question was already a rare expression of love for her daughter.
Having grown accustomed to the spacious rooms of General Maxwell's mansion, returning to the cramped little house at Price's house felt somewhat strange. Had she felt the same way when she returned from Mansfield last time? It seemed not. Humans are truly creatures that spoil themselves once they realize they deserve a better life!
The next day was Christmas, but the tradition of Christmas trees had not yet been brought to England from Coburg, Germany by Prince Albert. Mr. and Mrs. Price had dressed themselves impeccably, looking no different from when Mary left Portsmouth.
After Christmas, Mary couldn't wait to see Charlotte. When she arrived at the Brown family home, which she hadn't visited in a long time, the house was devoid of the festive atmosphere that had just been celebrated the day before. The servants were flustered and the master was anxious and impatient.
The Browns' house was originally much better than the Price's, but after several renovations, even though the servants didn't clean as diligently as when Mary was home, it still looked much better than the Browns'. The decorative paintings in the house had all been taken down, perhaps because the owners were moving and took them with them; the living room seemed to have lost its vibrant colors, just like its owners.
Mrs. Brown received her guest somewhat awkwardly, and when the elegantly dressed Mary sat down in the living room, she felt the room was simply unworthy of such a beauty. A maid somewhat clumsily came to serve tea and water; this maid was not a familiar face to Mary.
“Mary, you’re here.” Charlotte ran downstairs quickly, hugged her friend tightly, and pulled her into her room to talk privately.
“What’s wrong, Charlotte? You said in your letter that you might be leaving in January. Why are you in such a hurry to move to Manchester? What are you going to do with your house in Portsmouth?” Mary asked impatiently as soon as she entered the room.
"David messed everything up. Without Dad's knowledge, he was tricked into signing a contract he shouldn't have. He thought he could get something for nothing, but it turned out to be a complete scam that ruined the Brown family's shop. Three of the servants in the house have already been dismissed, leaving only a new handywoman. As for our house, it will be sold to someone else, probably in the next day or two."
Charlotte didn't shed a single tear as she said these words. She even smiled at Mary's worried eyes: "Do you remember what I told you before? There's no need to fight anymore. David has no shops to inherit, and my dowry was almost entirely used to pay off debts. We won't have money for moving until the house is sold. I was worried about entering society at sixteen, but Mom doesn't mention it anymore. She's worried that without a dowry, I won't find a good family."
"My Charlotte, how are you? Where are you staying in Manchester? You should have written to me sooner."
“It’s nothing, the worst is over. Luckily, my father bought a small house in Manchester for convenience when he was buying goods there, and his friend invited him to manage the factory. Although the income is only a little over a hundred pounds, it’s still better than renting a house in Portsmouth.”
At this point, Charlotte took out her trunk, counted out about a hundred pounds, and handed it to Mary: "Luckily, the money I saved from my business business survived. Here, this is your dividend for this year. However, I have to return the hat business you entrusted to me to you."
“My dear friend, I can’t accept this money. I’ve hardly paid any attention to the hat business this year, especially since I came back from Bath. My energy has been focused on other things, and I’ll have even less time for it in the future.” Mary didn’t take the money. Instead, she suggested, “Why don’t you take this money and ask Aunt Taylor if she would like to go to Manchester with you?”
"How is that possible?"
“She doesn’t necessarily have to come with you! Our hats have become a brand. Although I don’t plan to continue running it, I can’t just give up the business for nothing. I’ll tell Aunt Taylor that you two can pay for my share. That way, either Aunt Taylor will give us some money and the business will belong to her completely; or you will give her some money, but she can no longer sell the hats I designed; or she can go to Manchester with you to start over, since she’s renting a place here anyway.”
“I understand. Although there are three possibilities, no matter what Aunt Taylor chooses, it won’t be a loss for me.” Charlotte understood Mary’s purpose, which was simply to help her indirectly, since she currently held a 25% share.
“In that case, you should definitely accept this money. I have over a hundred pounds in savings, so I don’t need you to take special care of me.” Charlotte’s eyes were resolute. “Mary, if you really want to help me, why don’t you give me some pointers on what kind of business would suit me once we get to Manchester?”
Looking at Charlotte, who was trying to find a way out, Mary seemed to see herself from a few years ago. She remembered an idea she had forgotten for more than a year: "Have you ever heard of a sewing machine?"
"The butterfly sewing machine that's all the rage lately? I've heard of it..."
“One sewing machine is equivalent to the work of at least twenty tailors. Because of this machine, I think it's no longer meaningful for Aunt Taylor to continue running the tailor shop; she might as well transform it into a hat shop. As for you, you can invest in sewing machines and hire workers to make corsets. You know, it takes a long time to have a craftsman take your time to tailor a corset. With sewing machines, you can achieve large-scale production and reduce costs. Manchester has so many cotton mills, and Mr. Brown is very familiar with the price of cotton fabric…”
"Is this feasible? How can we produce corsets without having a craftsman take close-up measurements of the waist?" Charlotte couldn't understand.
“Of course, the products produced in the factory cannot fit everyone’s body perfectly. We can make sizes based on the body data of most people, with each size having a range. This way, we can achieve mass production,” Mary pointed out. “Therefore, unlike hats, these shapewear must initially follow the strategy of low profit and high volume, using low prices to capture the market.”
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