packaging the products and fulfilling the orders ready for despatch.
Harold gabbled to a finish, his ears burning. There was a silence.
‘Excellent, Harold! I’m sure everyone agrees that Stonewylde. com is a credit to your hard work and business prowess; you’ve demonstrated superb profits. I know you’ve prepared detailed plans for next year and some new lines you’d like to try out. Would you prefer me to tell the Council about this?’
Harold nodded gratefully and looked a little shyly at the circle of faces around him. He’d grown up a Villager, just like Yul, and was immensely proud of his work for Stonewylde. He glowed with pride at Yul’s praise and relaxed a little now his ordeal was over.
‘Harold’s been researching various different markets, to determine what we could sell and what profit we would make. So firstly, we’re going to launch a Stonewylde range of luxury organic toiletries using wild herbs and flowers, and that’s work women can do. We need our men for the heavier farming and production work, so enterprises that’ll employ women are especially welcome. Even the children can get involved, gathering flowers and herbs, and older members of the community can weave the tiny baskets we’ll need. There’s a lot of money in the cosmetic and toiletry market.’
There was a buzz of interest at this. Stonewylde had always made its own soaps and lotions, so this seemed a logical progression. Yul held his hand up for silence and continued.
‘We’re also looking into selling venison on a large scale to one of the quality supermarket chains who’re very keen to take our meat, thanks to Harold’s negotiations. We’re overrun with deer in the Wildwoods, and it’d be the perfect solution to that problem. Wild venison fetches a very good price. The same with our geese, ducks and game birds – we have a guaranteed market for all these. We heard earlier from Robin how well the dairies are doing, with a great demand for Stonewylde cheese. We sell a lot of it and we need to increase milk production to cope with demand. Rosie’s goat herd is doing splendidly as we know, and she’ll be expanding goats’ milk, yoghurt and cheese outputs this coming year when she increases the herd. We’re looking also at breeding a herd of llama for their wool. There are plenty of other excellent ideas, and I’ll make the list available for everyone here. Stonewylde.com is really becoming a—’
Clip sighed loudly and Yul stopped abruptly.
‘Did you want to add anything, Clip?’
‘No, not really,’ the older man replied wearily. ‘I know Harold has worked very hard and is doing his job well. It’s just that … I wonder about the ethics of the whole enterprise.’
‘The ethics? There’s nothing unethical about Stonewylde.com! Our quality control is second to none and customers return again and again—’
‘I meant the ethics of selling Stonewylde produce in this way for such profits. And the ethics of using our people to work in what amounts to a factory warehouse. Surely it goes against all the principles that Stonewylde stands for.’
Yul’s face darkened and he sat up very straight. Sylvie watched with a sinking heart as his eyes flashed; she knew the signs of Yul’s anger and wished that Clip had kept quiet. And yet she also knew that her father was right.
‘You stick to chanting and trances, Clip, and we’ll deal with harsh reality,’ Yul said coldly. ‘We might seem self-sufficient but we most certainly are not. You’ve heard about the extensive repairs needed to maintain the Hall and the Village, and the acute shortage of housing for all our young people. We have to make money somehow and there’s nothing unethical about using our abundant resources.’
Yul continued to glare at the older man, who bowed his head and shrugged. Many of the Council members looked uncomfortable.
‘I realise that,’ said Clip. ‘I only meant—’
‘What my father meant,’ said Sylvie coolly, surprising even herself, ‘is that whilst it’s fine to sell off our surplus produce and use the money for those things we can’t grow or make ourselves, Stonewylde.com has gone beyond that. We’re now actually looking for money-making ideas rather than selling what we don’t need. You’re suggesting that we grow and manufacture things specifically for the Outside market and not for Stonewylde at all, like this llama herd and toiletries all packaged up prettily. Do we really want to slaughter our wild deer and put them on supermarket shelves? Do we really want the folk to become what amounts