To begin with, the weather was kind to them, but then the rain came, and with it the first real cold of the winter. The tent gave them some protection from the wind and the rain, but Joe couldn’t hide away in it for too long. To make the protest effective he knew he had to be out there where he could be seen. He had to be waving back at his supporters as they passed by. There were days when the weather was really foul, when Joe knew the cold and the wet were just too much for Paddywack. Then he would ask Mrs Bellamy if Paddywack could spend most of the day inside Fairlawns. But despite the warmth of the fire, and all the adoring attention of the old people, Paddywack would escape whenever he could and run down to the grass verge to be with Joe again. Joe loved him for that. The two would snuggle together under Joe’s waterproof cape, with just their faces showing.

To pass the time Joe counted the number of cars and lorries, and bicycles too, that hooted and honked and tinkled as they passed. Counting lifted his spirits, because more and more of them were doing just that. Support was growing. Every day, whatever the weather, more passers-by stopped to talk and pet Paddywack, and every day more journalists or radio interviewers or television crews would come by. And through it all Mrs Bellamy saw to it that Joe and Paddywack were well supplied with food from the kitchen in Fairlawns, so that Joe only had to use his stove for brewing up hot, sweet tea, which he did on the hour, every hour. That routine helped, because it was something to look forward to, something to warm him through, and he needed that badly. However hard he tried, Joe found it difficult to keep warm. The more the cold crept into his bones, the more he began to feel it was hopeless, despite all the support and attention the protest was getting. At times he would have given way completely to despair, had not Paddywack been there beside him, had not the old people kept coming down to be with them.

Despite all Mrs Bellamy’s best efforts to keep them inside, there would always be one of the old people from Fairlawns to keep Joe company through his vigil, to wave back at the cars and to talk to the press. There was a rota now, which they kept to diligently. Each one would stay for about half an hour, and then be replaced by another, no matter how hard the icy wind blew. It became a point of honour now for them never to let Joe and Paddywack be alone out there. This was all Miss Carter’s idea, which is why Mrs Bellamy had to go along with it, despite all her concerns for the health of the old people. No one argued with Miss Carter – Miss Carter had been a headmistress for forty years. But the truth was of course that Mrs Bellamy didn’t want to argue with any of them. She felt too much solidarity with them, too much admiration for them. She was simply worried for their health. She made absolutely sure there was always one of the staff with them, and that they were always swathed in blankets and clutching hot water bottles.