Book 3: Chapter 7 Summary

Mr. Tulliver is improving; Mr. Deane has brought Lucy home so she can comfort Maggie, and he has found Tom a job in the warehouse. There is bad news, though. Mr. Tulliver is, in fact, bankrupt, which means that he is unable to pay his creditors. This shame is the most difficult thing for Tom and the family to bear.

Mrs. Tulliver, who has already been pictured as not being overly bright, decides to help by going to Wakem to try to persuade him not to buy the mill but to let Mr. Deane's company, Guest & Co., buy it and allow Mr. Tulliver run it. She feels that if she reminds him that they knew each other when they were young and that if she uses the influence of her family name, he will help out in this way. In fact...