The Borough Treasurer · Chapter
I: Blackmail explained
In the first chapter, the reader is introduced to the prosperous building firm of Mallalieu and Cotherstone in Highmarket.
What happens
In the first chapter, the reader is introduced to the prosperous building firm of Mallalieu and Cotherstone in Highmarket. The two partners are inspecting new carts when a visitor, Mr. Kitely, arrives. Kitely, an ex-detective, reveals that he recognizes Cotherstone and Mallalieu as former convicts who defrauded a Building Society thirty years ago. He threatens to expose their secret, including to Cotherstone's daughter, unless they pay him an annuity. Cotherstone, realizing he is being blackmailed, demands a price, but Kitely insists on involving Mallalieu first.
Themes in this chapter
Secrecy and Blackmail
Kitely's threat to expose the partners' criminal past unless they pay him an annuity drives the central conflict of the chapter.
Respectability and Hypocrisy
Mallalieu and Cotherstone are outwardly respected figures—Mayor and Borough Treasurer—but hide a past conviction for fraud.
Greed and Materialism
Kitely's demand for an annuity and the partners' fear of losing their prosperous position underscore the material stakes involved.
Characters to notice
- Mr. Cotherstone
The junior partner in the building firm, nervous and anxious, who is being blackmailed by Kitely over a past crime.
- Mr. Mallalieu
The senior partner and Mayor of Highmarket, who is also implicated in the past fraud and is the target of Kitely's blackmail.
- Mr. Kitely
An ex-detective who recognizes the partners as ex-convicts and demands an annuity in exchange for silence.
- Lettie Cotherstone
Cotherstone's daughter, whose upcoming marriage to a promising young man is threatened by the revelation of her father's past.
- Bert Stoner
A clerk who announces Kitely's arrival and leads him to the private office.
Key passages
“Name nothing, till you’ve told Mallalieu. There’s no hurry. You two can’t, and I shan’t, run away. Time enough—I’ve the whip hand. Tell your partner, the Mayor, all I’ve told you—then you can put your heads together, and see what you’re inclined to do. An annuity, now?—that would suit me.”
Kitely refuses to name a price until Cotherstone informs Mallalieu, suggesting they consider an annuity as payment.
This quote establishes the blackmail demand and Kitely's control over the situation.
“I suppose you’d carefully planted some of that money you—got hold of? Must have done, of course—you’d want money to start this business. Well, you’ve done all this on the straight, anyhow. And you’ve done well, too.”
Kitely speculates that the partners used hidden funds from their fraud to establish their legitimate business.
This reveals the origin of their capital and the irony of their success built on crime.
“Your daughter’s just about to marry the most promising young man in the place. A young fellow with a career before him. Do you think he’d marry her if he knew that her father—even if it is thirty years ago—had been convicted of—”
Kitely threatens to expose Cotherstone's past to his daughter's fiancé, which would ruin her marriage prospects.
This highlights the personal stakes for Cotherstone and the theme of family and reputation.