In Dubious Battle Page #3

we were saying yesterday?

I think what you said

makes sense.

Making trouble

never got me anywhere.

Well, if you don't make trouble,

then nothing's gonna change.

- Yeah.

- Easy for you to say.

I got a family to feed.

Yeah, a buddy back east

got his skull cracked

when they tried to organize.

All right!

Get to picking them apples.

All right, let's go.

Time to go

pick them apples.

Let's move.

Let's do it.

Come on!

London?

Yep.

Where you going

once the apples get picked?

East, cotton fields.

Well, you know for damn sure

that if they cut you here,

they're gonna cut even deeper

in the cotton field.

Mm. Maybe he's right.

Yeah, you know he's right.

Jim here is an expert

on agricultural economics.

Honest to god, he knows

more than anyone I know

about the way

the farm business goes.

Mm.

I just think that we need

to talk about this

a little bit more.

All right.

London, they are gonna

cut and cut

until we do something about it.

Mm.

Hey, Mac.

I ain't know nothing about

agriculture economics.

I thought you did.

- Morning, Dan.

- Hey, how you doing, kid?

I'm all right. How you doing?

Good.

Did you get here early today?

Yeah, I got here real early.

Yeah, good for you. Yeah.

Oh, sh*t.

Hey, Dan, what is it, your leg?

Is your leg broke?

- Son of a b*tch.

- Which leg is it?

- Damn!

- What leg is it?

- Busted ladder, look!

- Jesus Christ!

Move, out of the way, move.

Move!

Bullshit! Help me up!

There ain't nothing to see here.

It was a broken ladder.

It's all his goddamn fault.

You listen, boy.

No, you listen.

Get him!

Get him!

Come on! Hey, break it up!

Hey, get off him!

You're gonna kill him,

for Christ's sake.

You're gonna kill him!

You on their side or something?

No, I'm not on their side,

goddamn it.

All right?

This isn't gonna help.

Make way!

Make way, back up.

Come on, frank.

Get up.

Get up, boy.

You're done.

Not now. Uh-uh.

Back to work!

Y'all back to work!

Tell you one thing's for sure,

I ain't working

for these bastards.

Not one more second!

You goddamn right we're not.

London, London.

It's starting now.

Just what sort of nonsense

you been putting

in my father's head?

He don't need your trouble.

Ma'am, I understand

your concern.

Don't you "ma'am" me.

Come on, dad, ask him.

It is now or never.

London.

We've all met guys

that have done good deeds

for other people.

We never met someone that didn't

want something in return.

We just need to know

what your angle is.

My old man worked these fields.

Years ago.

He went to the city

when he couldn't take

being jerked around any more.

He worked the factories

up until the day they shot him

with a load of buckshot

right in the chest.

You wanna know why

they killed him?

Because he had the nerve

to stand up and say

they weren't treating him right.

And for that,

they shot him like a dog.

And that's how it's always been

for guys like you and me.

So who are we?

We're the guys

who are gonna change all that.

And we're gonna do it

one goddamn apple field

at a time if we have to.

All right,

now if we're gonna do this,

we're gonna do this right,

which means we gotta

get organized quick

before Bolton can run in scabs.

But we still need somebody

to run this thing.

So who wants

to nominate somebody?

I nominate London.

Okay.

- Anyone second that?

- London!

All right, do we have

any other nominations?

No.

All right, I guess

we have our leader.

Okay, then, I guess

I'm thinking the same thing

you all are thinking, probably.

So we live here now.

If this thing happens,

where are we gonna go?

You're right.

We'll all need a place to stay.

You leave that to us.

What the hell was that about?

Sorry, I used

your old man's story.

It's a good story.

I think it's what London

and all them...

They had to hear at that point.

If you got no money,

you can have a cup of

coffee on the house,

but don't go ordering

food you can't pay for,

think you can

run out on the bill.

You'd be the third pickers

this week to try that.

We were sent here

from the city on business.

We heard you been good

to our people in the past,

and we don't forget

things like that.

I knew you fellas

had a look about you.

I bet you haven't eaten all day.

Can I put something on for you?

That sounds...

Great.

Yeah.

Okay.

I'll be right back.

So I hear your pops

has a farm of his own.

Yeah, my old man's got some land

and a bit of an orchard.

Well, we'd like to talk to him.

I can take you over there

but I gotta warn you,

he is a tough old git.

He's got no sympathy for causes.

Hey, pops, these fellas

want to talk to you.

Ain't seen pointers like

that in a long time.

Likely you ain't seen

pointers like this ever.

Yeah.

You bird them?

Every season.

Yeah.

Lots of fools use a setter.

Setter's a net dog.

Pointer's a gun dog.

Is that right?

You know dogs?

I do.

I like this one.

I like the look of her.

Yeah, that's Mary.

She's hell-bent

for leather in the field.

Never seen a dog

cover ground like her.

I believe it.

My name's McLeod.

Anderson.

Mcleod.

You selling something?

Not selling anything.

Now what can I do

for you, McLeod?

I'm going to lay it out

for you straight.

A couple of hundred apple

pickers will be on strike

by this time tomorrow.

As soon as they strike,

the owners are gonna kick them

off their land for trespassing.

Well, for a man

telling it straight,

you sure take a long time

to get to the point.

Okay.

Al here says you have

five acres of plowing land.

That's private property you

that can do with as you please.

Let us make camp on your land.

We'll pick your apples for free.

Yours'll be the only crop

in the entire county at market.

You'll make a killing.

I gotta get along

with my neighbors.

They'd give me hell,

I did a thing like that.

You own this land?

I do.

Is it clear?

Well, hell, no, it's not clear.

I got a mortgage.

With whom?

Torgas finance.

And who owns Torgas finance?

I'll tell you,

Martin, hunter, Bolton.

Same three bastards own

90 percent of the farming land

in this valley.

They been squeezing you?

How long till

they squeeze you out?

A year?

Now, suppose you sell

your whole crop

in a rising market.

A crop you paid nothing

to have picked.

It might get you

out of that mortgage.

And then they

couldn't touch you.

Well, I'm not sure

I can trust a couple of reds.

You tried trusting

Torgas finance.

How'd that work out for you?

Consider it this way.

When else are you gonna

get a chance

to stick it to Chris Bolton?

I like him.

He's a grumpy old bastard

but I like him.

Don't you go liking people, Jim.

We can't afford to waste time

liking people.

I know you think that's cold

but I'm just being practical.

All right, I get it.

So speaking practically,

how do you always know

what to say to guys like that?

It's not hard.

You just tell them

what they want to hear.

Sure, but how do you know

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