GROWTH UNDER STORMY SKIES. 181 



the Union outside St. Faith's would agree to impose a volun- 

 tary levy upon themselves. This they agreed to do. But 

 Mr. George Nicholls, M.P., the president, and Sir Richard 

 Winfrey, M.P., the treasurer, with other members of the 

 Executive, were convinced that the struggle was hopeless, 

 especially in view of the fact that it had already cost 

 the Union 1,300, and funds were getting extremely 

 low. 



The strike was declared closed on January 9, 1911. 



A sectional strike at the best of times is always highly 

 speculative, and St. Faith's was not only surrounded, but 

 permeated by non-unionists. The farmers had every- 

 thing in their favour. It was the dead time of the year, and 

 the supply of non-union labour seemed unlimited. It 

 was a bitter blow to the men to go back to the old wage of 

 135. ; and, although promises had been made by farmers to 

 take back their own workmen, victimisation followed. 



Mr. G. E. Hewitt, the local leader, was made to feel the 

 full force of the farmers' anger. Work was denied him, 

 and he was faced with the prospect of leaving the village in 

 which he and his father and grandfather before him had 

 been born. Fortunately he was successful in obtaining a 

 small holding, and after an uphill fight he managed to 

 make a living. 



To follow the history of this village Hampden, it is 

 interesting to learn that he was eventually elected a 

 member of the Executive of his Union, a member of 

 the War Agricultural Committee of his county, a mem- 

 ber of the central Agricultural Wages Board, and that he 

 defeated with honours a local magnate at a County Council 

 Election in 1919. Mr. Hewitt is a splendid type of the 

 Norfolk peasant who has with great courage and single- 

 mindedness fought without reward the battles of his fellow- 

 workers. 



At a conference of the Union in 1911 a vote of censure 

 was passed on the Executive by the members for closing 

 the strike, which led to the resignation of the President and 

 Treasurer. Councillor W. R. Smith, of Norwich, 1 who had 



1 Now M.P. for Wellingborough. 



