At the Hall Farm
- Jump forward to "the first autumnal afternoon sunshine of 1801" (49.1). It's a fine day on the Hall Farm. Mrs. Poyser is milking the cows, Totty is playing with her baby doll, and Dinah is back to lend a hand.
- Not for long, though. Dinah is once again thinking of leaving Hayslope. Her aunt already has plenty of help around the house and Dinah feels "called back to those amongst whom my lot was first cast" (49.7). The poor and the needy, that is.
- Does Mrs. Poyser settle for this? Oh no! Dinah is better than any of the other "help" and she's Mrs. Poyser's flesh and blood. Dinah, under pressure, promises to come back if Mrs. Poyser gets sick. We have a funny feeling that this concession didn't please anyone.
- Then Adam appears at the door, carrying Totty. And if any of you still have doubts about the "Dinah's got a crush on Adam" setup, consider this description of our lovebirds: "A faint blush died away from her pale cheek as she put her hand in his and looked up at him timidly" (49.20). Ooh, la la.
- Mrs. Poyser, though, sees a potential ally. As she points out, Lisbeth Bede could use someone like Dinah to help her out. And indeed she could. That's the very reason why Adam is at the Hall Farm, because his mother has "a touch of her old complaint, and she wants Dinah to go and stay with her a bit" (49.27).
- Now everyone piles on. Mr. Poyser shows up and voices his hope that "Dinah was settled among us for life" (49.35). Adam says he "should ha' been thankful for her to stay among us" (49.42). All this drives Dinah to tears.
- Dinah, Dinah, why are you crying? Perhaps she really doesn't want to leave. Perhaps the whole "love Adam from a distance" setup is getting to be too much. In any case, after some small talk with Mr. Poyser about his business prospects, Adam collects Dinah and heads home to Mom.