Cultural Due Diligence in Hospitality

Ventures: A Methodological Approach

for Joint Ventures of Local
Communities and Companies 1st
Edition Nicole Häusler (Auth.)
Visit to download the full and correct content document:
https://textbookfull.com/product/cultural-due-diligence-in-hospitality-ventures-a-metho
dological-approach-for-joint-ventures-of-local-communities-and-companies-1st-edition
-nicole-hausler-auth/
More products digital (pdf, epub, mobi) instant
download maybe you interests ...

Entrepreneurship successfully launching new ventures

Fifth Edition Barringer

https://textbookfull.com/product/entrepreneurship-successfully-
launching-new-ventures-fifth-edition-barringer/

Small business management launching and growing new

ventures Sixth Canadian Edition Longenecker

https://textbookfull.com/product/small-business-management-
launching-and-growing-new-ventures-sixth-canadian-edition-
longenecker/

Practical Operational Due Diligence on Hedge Funds

Processes Procedures and Case Studies 1st Edition Rajiv
Jaitly

https://textbookfull.com/product/practical-operational-due-
diligence-on-hedge-funds-processes-procedures-and-case-
studies-1st-edition-rajiv-jaitly/

Small Business Management Launching Growing

Entrepreneurial Ventures 18th Edition Justin G.
Longenecker

https://textbookfull.com/product/small-business-management-
launching-growing-entrepreneurial-ventures-18th-edition-justin-g-
longenecker/
Schizoanalytic Ventures at the End of the World: Film,
Video, Art, and Pedagogical Challenges Jan Jagodzinski

https://textbookfull.com/product/schizoanalytic-ventures-at-the-
end-of-the-world-film-video-art-and-pedagogical-challenges-jan-
jagodzinski/

Financing new ventures an entrepreneur s guide to

business angel investment First Edition Gregson

https://textbookfull.com/product/financing-new-ventures-an-
entrepreneur-s-guide-to-business-angel-investment-first-edition-
gregson/

Interventionist Research in Accounting : A

Methodological Approach 1st Edition Vicki C. Baard

https://textbookfull.com/product/interventionist-research-in-
accounting-a-methodological-approach-1st-edition-vicki-c-baard/

The Due Diligence Handbook For Commercial Real Estate A

Proven System To Save Time Money Headaches And Create
Value When Buying Commercial Real Estate Brian
Hennessey
https://textbookfull.com/product/the-due-diligence-handbook-for-
commercial-real-estate-a-proven-system-to-save-time-money-
headaches-and-create-value-when-buying-commercial-real-estate-
brian-hennessey/

Local Anesthesia in Dentistry: A Locoregional Approach

1st Edition Calatayud

https://textbookfull.com/product/local-anesthesia-in-dentistry-a-
locoregional-approach-1st-edition-calatayud/
Tourism, Hospitality & Event Management

Nicole Häusler

Cultural Due
Diligence in
Hospitality Ventures
A Methodological Approach for
Joint Ventures of Local Communities
and Companies
Tourism, Hospitality & Event Management
This book series covers all topics relevant in the tourism, hospitality and event
industries. It includes destination management and related aspects of the travel and
mobility industries as well as effects from developments in the information and
communication technologies. “Tourism, Hospitality & Event Management”
embraces books both for professionals and scholars, and explicitly includes under-
graduate and advanced texts for students. In this setting the book series reflects the
close connection between research, teaching and practice in tourism research and
tourism management and the related fields.

More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/15444

Nicole Häusler

Cultural Due Diligence

in Hospitality Ventures
A Methodological Approach for Joint
Ventures of Local Communities and
Companies
Nicole Häusler
Hochschule für nachhaltige Entwicklung
Eberswalde, Germany
Myanmar Responsible Tourism Institute
Yangon, Myanmar

ISSN 2510-4993 ISSN 2510-5000 (electronic)

Tourism, Hospitality & Event Management
ISBN 978-3-319-51336-2 ISBN 978-3-319-51337-9 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-51337-9

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017930937

© Springer International Publishing AG 2017

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of
the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations,
recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission
or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or
dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt
from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this
book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the
authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained
herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with
regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Printed on acid-free paper

This Springer imprint is published by Springer Nature

The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
Preface

I decided to write this book, which is based on a Ph.D. thesis, after I had worked as a
consultant on sustainable tourism in Asia and Latin America for more than 15 years.
Its purpose is to combine the theoretical discussion of tourism and poverty reduc-
tion with a detailed understanding of the organisational culture of a business (in this
case, a tourism business) and the culture of a local community by applying an
anthropological approach that involved short-term field research. For this purpose,
it was necessary to think outside the box, to question old thought patterns and to
discuss new approaches.
Previous approaches to poverty alleviation have recommended, among countless
concepts and approaches, that two parties, usually a private-sector enterprise and a
local community, ‘do business with each other’, but these approaches ignored the
fact that in most cases the two parties have different ethnic backgrounds and thus
are likely to also have a different cultural understanding of how a business should
be run.
This research contributes to the knowledge about this relationship by designing a
novel, methodological approach to the study of cultural due diligence called
Reflexive Organisational Culture Appraisal (ROCA). The aim of ROCA is to
identify potential areas of cultural conflict and thus to enable parties to achieve a
better cultural fit. This thesis is concerned with the economic effects of tourism.
Joint ventures that address poverty reduction usually involve hospitality ventures
and a local community. These two parties then start business together—for exam-
ple, by co-managing a lodge or by offering cultural trips to the community in order
to achieve financial benefits and thus a win-win situation for both parties.
ROCA is based on a review of an extensive body of literature covering a variety
of techniques and approaches to qualitative research. Within the case study for this
thesis, a review was conducted to provide a cursory analysis of different ways of
assessing organisational and community cultures, in particular for research based
on short-term contracts (32–53 workdays, including preparation, a break during the
fieldwork and subsequent reporting). A preliminary framework was developed,
which was then tested in a village in Northern Thailand that was populated by

v
vi Preface

two ethnic groups (Lisu and Akha) and that had been hosting a lodge owned by a
Thai company for over 15 years.
The case study showed that ROCA can be used to analyse all but a few aspects of
organisational and community cultures. Dimensions identified as particularly
important prior to the research were relationship building, hierarchy, conflict
behaviour and task performance. One technical dimension that had to be added to
the framework after the case study was an understanding of authenticity and culture
change among the local villagers and at the parent company. This dimension can be
included when studying tourism businesses but not necessarily when examining
other practices such as agriculture. The results of the research became increasingly
reflexive when faced with the challenge of interpreting ‘multiple realities’ during
and after the case study. Consequently, a process of self-reflectivity involving three
phases of disentanglement, and including aspects of ‘intuition’, became a major
part of the ROCA framework. ROCA goes beyond conventional toolkit techniques
by acknowledging that researchers in the field must be self-reflexive; it integrates
critical reflective and subjective aspects of qualitative research into its framework
and can be applied not only during short-term tourism research but also by those
working in other economic sectors or development cooperation that support poverty
reduction.
I would like to thank everyone who accompanied and supported me during this
process of research and writing. I’m particularly grateful to my PhD supervisors,
Professor Xavier Font and Professor Harold Goodwin, for their valuable comments
throughout this journey and, of course, to the villagers and the parent company who
made my case study in Thailand possible in the first place. A very big thank you
goes to my husband Martin, who, with his special sense of humour, has given me
endless moral support all these years.
This book is dedicated to all my friends and family, with whom I should have
met much more often in the past years—but, well, sorry, I won’t promise that we’ll
see each other more often in the future either, because there is still so much more
that I have to learn and discover.

Berlin/Yangon Nicole Häusler

March 2017
Contents

1 Analysing Cultural Diversity in Approaches Towards Poverty

Alleviation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Sustainable Development and Corporate Sustainability . . . . . . . . . 3
1.3 Managing Cultural Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.4 The Need to Think outside the Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1.4.1 Target Group and Writing Style . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.5 Research Aim and Scope of Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.6 Organisation of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2 The Unpacking of Culture Within the Framework of Cultural Due
Diligence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.2 Characteristics and Functions of Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
2.2.1 The ‘Difference-oriented Cultural Model’ by Hansen . . . . 18
2.2.2 Functions of Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.3 Same But Different: Ethnic, Indigenous, National and Community
Cultures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
2.4 Characteristics and Functions of Organisational Culture . . . . . . . . 26
2.4.1 How is the Preceding Discussion Related to the
Development of COCA? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
2.5 Managing Cultural Diversity in Organisations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
2.6 Identification of Dimensions and Variables for Analysing
Organisational and Community Cultures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
2.6.1 Comparison of Community and Organisational Cultures . . . 38
2.7 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

vii
viii Contents

3 Organisational Culture and Community Culture in the Hospitality

Sector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3.2 Organisational Culture in the Hospitality Sector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
3.2.1 The Meaning of ‘Hospitality’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
3.2.2 Organisational Culture and Hospitality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
3.2.3 Managing Cultural Diversity in the Hospitality Sector . . . . 49
3.3 The Involvement of Local Communities in the Hospitality Sector
in Developing Countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
3.4 The Role of Community Culture in Tourism Initiatives . . . . . . . . 55
3.4.1 Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
3.4.2 Social Capital . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
3.4.3 Participation Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
3.5 The Role of Organisational and Community Cultures in
Hospitality Ventures of Private Sector and Local Communities . . . 63
3.6 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
4 Methodology: Identifying the Theoretical Framework
of COCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
4.2 The Case for Qualitative Case Study Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
4.3 Qualitative Research on Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
4.4 Qualitative Research in Tourism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
4.5 Qualitative Research on Rural Community Culture, with
a Focus on Rapid Appraisal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
4.5.1 Rapid Appraisal: Origin and Principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
4.5.2 From Rapid Rural Appraisal to Participatory
Rural/Relaxed Appraisal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
4.5.3 Core Principles of RA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
4.5.4 Typology of Participation Within RA and COCA . . . . . . . 85
4.5.5 Qualitative Case Study Analysis of Organisational
Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
4.6 Analysis of Organisational Culture in Hospitality Context . . . . . . 90
4.7 Combining Organisational and Community Culture Research in
Developing Countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
4.8 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
5 Methodology: Designing the Framework for Creative Organisational
Culture Appraisal (COCA): A Tentative Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
5.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
5.2 The Principal Actors of COCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
5.2.1 Community and Private Hospitality Company . . . . . . . . . . 99
5.2.2 Research Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
5.2.3 Recommended Structure for Teams Conducting COCA . . . 101
5.2.4 Willingness to Work and Stay in Remote Areas . . . . . . . . 101
5.2.5 Working in a Small Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Contents ix

5.3 Technical Aspects of COCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

5.3.1 Length of Research in the Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
5.3.2 Structuring the Research Phases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
5.3.3 Interview Topics for the Parent Company, Hospitality
Venture and the Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
5.3.4 ‘Optimal Ignorance’ in Data Gathering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
5.3.5 Selection of Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
5.3.6 Purposive Sampling and Selection of Interviewees . . . . . . 111
5.3.7 Data Extraction and On-the-Spot Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
5.3.8 Feedback Loop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
5.4 Core Principles of COCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
5.4.1 Critical Self-awareness of the Team Members . . . . . . . . . . 118
5.4.2 Creativity and Flexibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
5.4.3 Subjective Interpretation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
5.4.4 Participation, Local Knowledge and Power . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
5.5 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
6 Cultural Context Analysis of Case Study Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
6.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
6.2 Selection of the Case Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
6.3 Ethnic Cultures in Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
6.3.1 A Brief Overview of Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
6.3.2 The Ethnic Groups in Northern Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
6.3.3 ‘Development’ of Ethnic Groups in the Highlands in
Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
6.4 Characteristics of the Thai, Lisu, and Akha Cultures . . . . . . . . . . 138
6.4.1 The Thai Culture: Situating ‘Thai-ness’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
6.4.2 The Lisu Culture: Situating ‘Lisu-ness’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
6.4.3 The Akha Culture: Situating ‘Akha-ness’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
6.4.4 Identifying Potential Areas of Cultural Conflicts . . . . . . . . 157
6.5 Ethnic Tourism in Northern Thailand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
6.6 The Context of the Case Study Lodge and the Neighbouring
Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
6.6.1 The Context of the Neighbouring Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
6.6.2 The Lodge: ‘The Good-Feeling Lodge’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
6.7 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
7 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
7.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
7.2 The Relationship Between Researcher and the Researched . . . . . . 172
7.3 Technical Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
7.4 Step 12 (Reporting): Output of the Research—The ‘Non-good
Feeling’ Lodge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
7.4.1 Organisational Culture of the Parent Company . . . . . . . . . 188
7.4.2 Socio-Cultural Context of the Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
7.4.3 Context and Organisational Culture of the Lodge . . . . . . . 193
x Contents

7.5 Implications on the Findings of the Cursory Analysis . . . . . . . . . . 198

7.6 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
8 Discussion and Modification of the Framework . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
8.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
8.2 A Journey Through Reflexivity: ‘Getting Disentangled’ . . . . . . . . 206
8.2.1 The Meaning of ‘Self-Reflexivity’ and ‘Positionality’ . . . . 207
8.2.2 Disentanglements in the Context of Field Research . . . . . . 210
8.3 Adaptation of Core Principles within ROCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
8.3.1 Journey of Self-Reflexivity and Self-Entanglement by
Team Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
8.3.2 Creativity, Flexibility and Intuition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
8.3.3 Subjective Interpretation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
8.3.4 Participation, Power and Local Knowledge . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
8.4 Principal Actors and Technical Aspects of ROCA . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
8.4.1 Principal Actors Within ROCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
8.4.2 Technical Aspects of ROCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
8.5 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
9 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
9.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
9.2 Theoretical and Methodological Contributions to Knowledge . . . . 239
9.2.1 Rethinking the Involvement of Local Communities in
Approaches Related to Tourism and Poverty
Alleviation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
9.2.2 Rethinking Organisational Culture in Cross Cultural
Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
9.2.3 Rethinking Short-term Qualitative Tourism Research . . . . 242
9.2.4 Rethinking ROCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
9.3 Limitations of the Study and Implications for Future Research . . . 245
9.3.1 Literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
9.3.2 Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
9.3.3 Setting of the Case Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
9.3.4 Data Collection and Data Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
9.4 Final Thoughts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

Appendix A: Report of the World Commission on Environment and

Development, 4 August 1987, Sustainable Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

Appendix B: Reflexive Organisational Culture Appraisal

(ROCA)—Overview of the Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

Appendix C: (a) Information Sheet and (b) Consent Form . . . . . . . . . . 263

Appendix D: Disentanglement Grams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

Contents xi

Appendix E: Codes, Dimensions/Variables and Statements of Interview

Partners Including Comments by Author Based on Field Diary . . . . . . 271

Appendix F: Field Research Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

Appendix G: Simplified Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325

Appendix H: Tentative Agenda for Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327

Appendix I: Example of Mind Mapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
Acronyms and Abbreviations

AR Action Research
CBT Community-based Tourism
CDD Cultural Due Diligence
COCA Creative Organisational Culture Appraisal
HR Human Resource
HRM Human Resource Management
FAO Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations
NGO Non-governmental Organisation
PRA Participatory Rapid Appraisal
PPT Pro-Poor Tourism
QE Quick Ethnography
PA Participatory Appraisal
RA Rapid Appraisal
ROA Rapid Organisational Assessment
ROCA Reflexive Organisational Culture Appraisal
RRA Rapid Rural Appraisal
SD Sustainable Development
TBL Triple Bottom Line
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

xiii
List of Figures

Fig. 1.1 The change management process in a joint venture between a

business and a local community, and the role of ROCA. Source:
Author’s illustration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Fig. 1.2 Structure of publication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Fig. 2.1 Cultural model based on Hansen (2011). Source: Author’s
illustration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Fig. 2.2 Artifacts, espoused values and basic underlying assumptions
based on Schein: Organisational culture and leadership
(1992) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Fig. 2.3 Diversity cycle of organisational culture. Source: based on
Dunphy, Griffiths, and Benn (2003), Kusluvan and Karamustafa
(2003), Martin (1992), Rathje (2004), Schein (2010), Sülzer and
Zimmermann (1996), Wood (1994) . ... .... ... ... .... ... ... ... .... ... 33
Fig. 2.4 Difference between cultural due diligence and COCA. Source:
Author’s illustration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Fig. 3.1 Aspects of analyses of societal complexity in community
development projects. Source: Author’s own illustration based
on Claiborne (2010), Cole (2006a) and Kayat (2002) .. . . . . . . . .. . . 63
Fig. 3.2 Overview of key activities to implement joint cooperation
ventures by a private sector company and a local community.
Overview: Change management process by hospitality venture
and local community. Author’s own illustration based on
literature review of Ashley and Haysom (2006), Ashley et al.
(2005), ESCAP for Asia and Pacific (2003), Jamieson et al.
(2004), McNab (2005), Meyer (2004, 2006), Saville (2001),
Simpson (2008), Spenceley and Seif (2003), Wearing et al.
(2010) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

xv
xvi List of Figures

Fig. 4.1 Different methods that have influenced the development

of COCA. Source: Author’s illustration based on literature
review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Fig. 5.1 Tentative framework of COCA. Source: Author’s own
compilation based on discussion above .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. .. . .. . .. . 98
Fig. 5.2 Framework of COCA—Suggested order of tools to apply during
steps 5, 10, and 11. Source: Author’s own illustration . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Fig. 5.3 Procedure of aggregating and analysing data with COCA.
Source: Webber and Ison (1995) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Fig. 6.1 Lisu employees at Lodge. Credits: N. Häusler .. . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . .. . 145
Fig. 6.2 Lisu man reading chicken bones. Credits: N. Häusler . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Fig. 6.3 Lisu woman selling souvenirs at the front of the lodge. Credits:
N. Häusler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Fig. 6.4 Akha woman, producing Lisu handicraft. Credits: N. Häusler . . . 155
Fig. 6.5 Jewellery made by Lisu silversmith. Credits: N. Häusler . . . . . . . . . 165
Fig. 6.6 Map of Lisu village. Source: Hand-drawn by an Akha female
villager in May 2010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Fig. 7.1 Actors of the case study (author’s own illustration) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Fig. 7.2 Findings of the cursory analysis of the organisational culture
of the parent company and the lodge, and the community culture
of the village (author’s own illustration) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Fig. 7.3 Facing reality: being confronted with staged cultures . . .. . . . . . .. . . 202
Fig. 8.1 Case study research in Thailand: expectation of
actors and outcomes defined by author. Source: Author’s own
illustration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Fig. 8.2 Critical aspects of Pilot Case Study Research: ROCA and its
linked impacts .. . . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . 213
Fig. 8.3 The four ‘entanglements’ of reflexivity. Source: Ateljevic et al.
(2005, p. 15) . . .. . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . 215
Fig. 8.4 Culture-Gram of Chang (2008, p. 98) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Fig. 8.5 Four Self-disentanglement grams of ROCA. Source: Author’s
own compilation based on the work of Ateljevic et al. (2005)
and Chang (2008) . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . 220
Fig. 8.6 Phases of ‘Journey of self-reflexivity’ in ROCA. Source:
Author’s own illustration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
Fig. 8.7 Visual Methaphor of Case Study Research in Thailand. Source:
Author’s own illustration adapted from Metta (2010, p. 287) . . . . 224
Fig. 8.8 Phased approach between different levels of ‘Critical
Interpretation’. Source: Author’s own illustration based on
Alvesson and Sk€oldberg (2000, p. 255) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
Fig. 8.9 Adaption of Fig. 4.1; influences of different methods on ROCA.
Source: Author’s illustration based on literature review and
experience during case study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
List of Figures xvii

Fig. 8.10 Framework of ROCA (compare with that

of COCA in Fig. 5.2). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
Fig. 9.1 Linking ROCA with academic discussion, ROCA—tool
for change management and research. Illustration is based on
Checkland (1991) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
List of Tables

Table 2.1 Characteristics of culture, as defined by four different

publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Table 2.2 Overview of material and non-material characteristics
of culture . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 18
Table 2.3 Functions of culture by Hansen (2011) and Sülzer and
Zimmermann (1996) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Table 2.4 Similarities of organisational culture and ethnic culture . . . . . . . . . 38
Table 2.5 Selection of dimensions used to analyse organisational
culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Table 3.1 Identified challenges for Pro-Poor Approaches related
to socio-cultural and institutional issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Table 3.2 A typology of participation: how people participate in
development programs and projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Table 4.1 Examples of qualitative, rapid ethnographic case study
research on culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Table 4.2 Selection of rapid qualitative methods and tools for
the analysis of the impacts or social capital of tourism
development in local communities in developing countries . . . . . 77
Table 4.3 Brief description of livelihood analysis, action research and
farming system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Table 4.4 Comparison of RRA and PRA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Table 4.5 Examples of rapid qualitative case study research on local
communities in developing countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Table 4.6 Examples of rapid qualitative case study research for the
analysis of organisational culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Table 4.7 Selection of rapid qualitative methods and tools for the
analysis of organisational performance in the tourism
and leisure industry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

xix
xx List of Tables

Table 4.8 Linking case study research on organisational and community

culture in developing countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Table 4.9 Core aspects of RA and similar approaches which can be
integrated into the framework of COCA based on the
identified rapid methods above . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Table 5.1 Overview of phases, steps and working days within COCA
steps and working days . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Table 5.2 Checklist of interview topics for employees of the parent
company and the hospitality venture (if there is one yet) and
community members based on the four dimensions identified
and further variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Table 5.3 Core activities of COCA based on 20 paid workdays . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Table 5.4 Overview of potential interview partners, focus groups and
minimum of interview partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Table 5.5 Tentative core principles of COCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Table 6.1 Dimensions for analysing organisational culture at the lodge,
based on Thai, Lisu and Akha Cultures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Table 6.2 Potential core areas of conflict within the multi-ethnic working
environment of the lodge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Table 7.1 Role of researcher as seen by myself and other actors . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Table 7.2 Proposed timetable, persons to be interviewed, duration, location
and tools of the planned field research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Table 7.3 Persons interviewed during the field research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Table 7.4 Focus group meetings . . .. . .. . .. . .. .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. .. . .. . .. . 183
Table 7.5 Applied tools and results based on the experience during the field
research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Table 8.1 Criteria of self-reflection/positionality in research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Table 8.2 Core principles and command statements for ROCA team . . . . . . 230
Chapter 1
Analysing Cultural Diversity in Approaches
Towards Poverty Alleviation

Research credo:
Speaking only as one individual, I feel strongly that I should
not go into research unless it promises results that would
advance the aims of the people affected and unless I am
prepared to take all practicable steps to help translate the
results into action (Hall, 2004, p. 152, quoting White, 1972).

1.1 Introduction

When reading the above research credo, the reader will realise that this thesis
attempts to create a bridge between “grey . . . theory”, as Mephistopheles calls it
in Goethe’s Faust, Part I, and real-life practice. Having worked as a development
practitioner in Asia and South America for over 15 years, I have become aware of a
number of challenges in implementing development initiatives to reduce poverty
that are beneficial for both the private tourism sector and the local communities.
Amongst the many challenges faced, the one I consider is the management of
cultural diversity in such business partnerships, given that the two parties involved
may use different approaches to doing business because they have different ethnic
backgrounds and thus, different cultural understandings of how a business should
be run. Also, communities are based on complex social systems with existing
livelihood strategies that may even sometimes be totally incompatible with the
organisational structure of the cooperating enterprise.
Up until now, no research has been undertaken, either in the academic world or
by professional tourism consultants, on the significance of ‘community cultures’
and ‘organisational cultures’ in terms of their effect on cooperative ventures
between communities and private sector involvement. My research interest was
stimulated by the desire to contribute to finding solutions that would help fill this
knowledge gap by developing a qualitative methodological framework for a cul-
tural due diligence (CDD) on the distinctive features. Therefore, this thesis is the
first study aimed at developing a new and unique, qualitative methodology to
examine organisational culture (and ethnic culture) in cross-cultural contexts. As
Kusluvan and Karamustafa (2003, p. 469) stated, “Assessing the organisational

© Springer International Publishing AG 2017 1

N. Häusler, Cultural Due Diligence in Hospitality Ventures, Tourism, Hospitality &
Event Management, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-51337-9_1
2 1 Analysing Cultural Diversity in Approaches Towards Poverty Alleviation

culture is a very difficult and delicate task as it contains visible and invisible
elements.” I am aware of this “delicate task” but hope that this book offers a
high-level, practical, easy to understand and easy to implement, framework that
will help stakeholders to improve their understanding of the relevant organisation
and community cultures for any given venture. The focus of this publication and of
the case study it includes is on the tourism and hospitality sector for two reasons.
The first is that the travel and tourism industry is one of the world’s largest
economies, with a global economic contribution of nearly US$7.6 trillion in 2014
and steady growth in almost every year (Statistica, 2016). The second reason is that
the author is a development expert in the field of responsible tourism. Therefore the
framework has been tested in a lodge located for more than one decade in a village
in Northern Thailand. At the time of my research, the private sector company that
owned the lodge was a Thai Tour Operator and the villagers, who belonged to two
different ethnic groups (Lisu and Akha), were owners of the land and worked as
staff and supervisors at the lodge.
Given the above, the outcomes of this thesis will not be based on an ivory tower
approach to research, disconnected from practical needs or consulting work that
generates intellectually appealing strategies that can never be implemented because
they are neither connected to theory nor linked to ‘real life situations’ (Robson,
1993, p. 2; Senge & Scharmer, 2001, p. 3). This thesis will try to link theory,
method and practical know-how, by integrating the research techniques and
approaches that are usually associated with academic research with those of applied
organisational study in a business context of cultural diversity.
This thesis is also directly linked to my (professional) biography. According to
Pearce and Moscardo, there is often a personal element involved when researchers
develop their research topics. Usually, their research interest is based on observa-
tion, personal experience and “a long held fascination with a topic” (1999, p. 33).
Unfortunately, with few exceptions, “researchers rarely speak directly about the
values that influence their choice of topics and the research methods they employ”
(Belsky, 2004, p. 273).
In the process of researching for, and writing, this thesis my personal back-
ground, which inherently includes my values, unexpectedly became a highly
important aspect. In particular, it was the analysis of the field research (which
originally resulted in messy data) that led me, through a painful process, to a mind-
changing understanding that my own values, influenced by my biography, were
having an enormous influence on the outcomes of the field research. It was rather
surprising for me to see that the influences of my biography, and the process of
entanglements described in Chap. 8, over time, became core elements of this thesis.
Therefore I decided to write this thesis in the first person instead of in the
depersonalised third person; a decision supported by Hall, who, in his article on
‘Reflexivity and tourism research’, uses ‘I’ a number of times with the following
justification:
Yet think of how few times such an expression of the first person is included in academic
writing as expressed in the majority of tourism journals and texts. Indeed, academic writing
1.2 Sustainable Development and Corporate Sustainability 3

in the third person conveys an impression of objectivity and scientific rationality which is
almost the antithesis of the realisations of reflexive modernity (2004, p. 142).

The use of the first person is discussed in more detail in Chap. 8. In this
introductory chapter, the aims of my research and the scope of this publication
are defined. Both are based on the concept of pro-poor tourism (PPT), which
encourages business partnerships between the tourism sector and communities in
developing countries, especially in the accommodation sector, in order to reduce
poverty. PPT and similar approaches are discussed in more detail in Chap. 3.
In the following sections, I provide a brief explanation of how I arrived at the
research aims. I start by outlining my understanding of the concepts of sustainable
development (SD) and corporate sustainability (including the need to manage
cultural diversity in this globalised world) because these concepts provide the
foundation for approaches such as PPT. This is followed by a brief discussion of
the need to ‘think out of the box’ when doing research in this context. I then explain
why there is a need to analyse cultural diversity when considering the benefits of
alternative approaches to tourism and poverty reduction, and why practitioners,
academics and tourism consultants must work together more effectively on this
issue. This discussion leads to the definition of the aims and scope of the study. The
chapter concludes with an overview of the structure of this book to tell the reader
what to expect in each of the chapters that follow.

1.2 Sustainable Development and Corporate Sustainability

The degraded state of the earth’s ecosystems and resources appears to be widely
accepted. Authors such as Scharmer (2009) and Dunphy, Griffiths, and Benn (2003)
note that our current global system works in general for a materially wealthy
society, while in many parts of the world this system does not work at all for the
majority of the population. Billions of people are born and raised in conditions that
will never, ever give them a chance to participate in our global socioeconomic
system in a significant and fair way (Farrell & Twining-Ward, 2004).
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
(FAO), about 842 million people (approximately 12% of the global population)
were unable to meet their dietary energy requirements in 2011–2013. Thus, about
one in eight people in the world are likely to have suffered from chronic hunger
during that period, which means that they did not have enough food for an active
and healthy life. The vast majority of these hungry people live in developing
countries, where the malnutrition rate is about 14.3% (FAO, 2013, p. 2). Poverty
is the principal cause of hunger and dysfunctional economic systems are the
principal cause of poverty. Essentially, control over resources and income is
based on economic, political and military power, which is often in the hands of a
minority. In response to a rapid depletion of our natural resources in the past five
decades, economic and social development programmes have increasingly focused
4 1 Analysing Cultural Diversity in Approaches Towards Poverty Alleviation

on sustainability. The word ‘sustainability’ is derived from the Latin sustinere (‘to
sustain’). At the UN Earth Summit of 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, it became an issue of
international concern. Agenda 21, the action plan adopted by some 180 countries,
made sustainability a long-term objective. Since then, countless conferences and
think tanks have been discussing and developing possible implementation mecha-
nisms to achieve this objective and there have been countless publications on the
subject. This chapter does not cover the entire discussion in detail because it is not
relevant to this thesis. The subject is introduced at a high level to explain my
understanding of sustainability and thus, to ensure that the reader can follow my
argument.
Interestingly, there is still no universally accepted definition of ‘sustainability’.
The term is understood and translated in various ways. In the debate in Germany,
for instance, the German word for ‘sustainability’, Nachhaltigkeit, has been increas-
ingly used as a synonym for ‘long-term economic stability’. The most widely
quoted definition of ‘sustainability’ and ‘sustainable development’ (SD) is that
provided in Section 27 of the United Nations’ World Commission on Environment
and Development of 4 August 1987, widely known as the ‘Brundlandt Report’, so
named after the Norwegian chairwoman, Gro Harlem Brundlandt:
Humanity has the ability to make development sustainable to ensure that it meets the needs
of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own
needs.1

However, the relevant literature usually only ever quotes this one sentence and in
most cases just a shortened version.2 Within the Brundlandt report, the complete
explanation of the concept of SD consists of four sections (Sections 27–30; see
Appendix A) and nine additional sections on the institutional gap with respect to SD
(Sections 31–39), in which the authors of the report recommend that poverty
reduction be integrated into SD and that SD is a process of change (Section 30)
that must be linked with fundamental institutional changes towards SD at the
macro- and micro-levels. Section 30 states that:
. . .in the end, sustainable development is not a fixed state of harmony, but rather a process
of change in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orienta-
tion of technological development, and institutional change are made consistent with future
as well as present needs. We do not pretend that the process is easy or straightforward.
Painful choices have to be made (World Commission on Environment and Development,
1987).

The report is very clear about the fact that the implementation of SD is a journey
rather than a destination, highly complex and painful because of the unattractive
decisions that have to be made. Due to these critical circumstances, SD can only be

1
The version available to the author is not paginated, but rather is divided into sections.
2
The often misquoted sentence actually reads, “Sustainable development is development that
meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs.” See, for example, Correia (2009) and Pope, Annandale, and Morrison-
Saunders (2004).
1.2 Sustainable Development and Corporate Sustainability 5

successful if institutional changes become part of this journey; this is an important

argument, which will be further discussed later in this chapter.
According to EOLSS (2001), SD is characterised by a complex pattern of
interaction between four fundamental, interconnected dimensions which cover
social, environmental, economic and institutional aspects. In the conceptualisation
provided by Mann (2011), the four dimensions are represented in the form of a
pyramid, with the institutional dimension serving as a facilitator of the process of
sustainability through management interventions. This concept is more dynamic
than Mann’s approach because it also acknowledges that interventions are an
important factor in trying to achieve sustainability.
The above discussion shows that a closer look must be taken at the role, function
and structure of institutions and/or organisations3 to ensure sustainable develop-
ment at the macro- and micro-levels in all economic sectors including tourism.
Section 75 of Sect. 4.2 of the Brundtland Report clearly states that industry is
“perhaps the main instrument of change”. For Dunphy et al. (2003), SD at a
business level requires a firm to be responsible for: (i) its employees by taking
‘social capital’4 into account, (ii) its environment (including its value chain), and
(iii) its own needs for long-term survival.
In order to achieve a higher level of SD at the corporate level, a company needs
to identify as a first step its values and goals related to SD in order to develop or
remould, in a second step, some of its core cultural values so that its people
experience a reflective change in their understanding and purpose and, as a result,
act differently (Dunphy et al., 2003; Scharmer, 2009). Therefore the first step of any
initiative towards improved SD must include an analysis of the organisational
culture of the enterprise (Bebbington, Lewis, Batterbury, Olson, & Shameem
Siddiqie, 2007; Sustainable Project Management, 2011). The purpose of analysing
organisational culture is to pay attention to the strengths and the limitations of the
culture, processes, methods and experiences of the company in the field of corpo-
rate sustainability.
The following section provides a brief discussion of another challenge that
enterprises have to face in this globalised world: the management of cultural
diversity. This is an important challenge to discuss because in most cases, private
tourism-sector companies and local communities have different cultural and/or
ethnic backgrounds. For example, in the case study I undertook in Thailand (see
Chap. 6) the parent company belonged to the majority ethnic group (i.e. the Thai)

3
The difference between ‘institution’ and ‘organisation’ can be interpreted in various ways. Many
social entities can be characterised as both organisations and institutions. For example, generally
speaking, a university is an institution for education, but a particular university, such as Leeds
Beckett University, is an organisation.
4
Over the last 20 years, the concept of social capital has gained popularity in the development
literature and especially in the literature that focuses on community development. According to
Clainborne, “it is a relatively new concept in the field of tourism studies” (2010, p. 3). The concept
of social capital and its role in the context of tourism and poverty reduction is discussed in more
detail in Chap. 3.
6 1 Analysing Cultural Diversity in Approaches Towards Poverty Alleviation

and the local communities often belonged to a minority ethnic group (e.g. they
belonged to the Lisu and the Akha).

1.3 Managing Cultural Diversity

Since the 1950s, when research on intercultural aspects was undertaken for the first
time by scholars from academic disciplines such as anthropology, sociology and
psychology, typical misunderstandings have been identified when two cultures
“bump into each other” (Birk, 2011, pp. 2–3). As a consequence of globalization,
“a process by which nationals, businesses, and people are becoming more
interconnected across the globe” (Wood & Wilberger, 2015, p. 154, as cited in
Ali, 2000), more and more companies operating across borders have to deal with
different cultures (Aretz & Hansen, 2003), which means that they “bump into each
other” more often. The recognition of the existence of different forms of national
and ethnic cultural diversity in business and the analysis of their impact on daily
business operations are important aspects of this challenge (Hofstede, 1991;
Hofstede & Hofstede, 2005; Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 1997; Wood &
Wilberger, 2015). Understanding this area has become increasingly important for
long-term sustainable cooperation (Warner, 2003) because people all over the
world face common challenges, but have different ideas of how to meet these
challenges, amongst other reasons due to their different national and/or ethnic
cultural5 backgrounds:
The world is full of confrontation between people, groups, and nations who think, feel, and
act differently. These people, groups, and nations are exposed to common problems which
demand cooperation for their solution . . . When companies go international, their planning
and control systems continue to be strongly influenced by their national culture (Hofstede,
1991, p. 3).

National culture, by definition a shorthanded construct itself (as discussed in

Chap. 2), has been identified as a critically important factor in shaping management
styles. In their article on human resource management in Thailand, Lawler and
Atmiyanandana (2003) state that understanding Thai culture is critical to under-
standing Thai management. There has been growing awareness that a ‘culture
clash’, in the sense of a confrontation between two enterprises with different
cultures, can present a serious danger to joint ventures if it is not addressed with
the attention and diligence it deserves (Zimmer, 2001, p. 1). Organisational culture

5
In social anthropology, ‘culture’ is a catchword for any pattern of thinking, feeling and acting
within the social environments in which one grew up and collected one’s life experiences. Culture
is learned, not inherited, and is therefore subject to transformation (Hofstede, 1991a; Pheysey,
1993). ‘Ethnic culture’ denotes the culture of a group of people who share the same ancestry, tribal
heritage, and collective consciousness. The concept of ‘ethnic group’, as a smaller unit, is usually
contrasted with the concept of ‘the people’ (i.e., national culture) (Hirschberg, 1988). Cf. Chap. 2
for a detailed discussion.
1.4 The Need to Think outside the Box 7

has now been recognised as one of the most critical factors in joint ventures which
can determine the success or failure of the entire transaction. Several studies have
proven that joint ventures usually either do not achieve the expected synergies at all
or they do so only in part, because the neglected cultural differences between the
enterprises involved in the joint venture slowly but steadily erode the values and
synergy potentials (Zimmer, 2001, p. Vorwort). Unfortunately, some managers still
do not understand the important role of culture in daily business activities and
regard it as a “luxury item, a dish on the side” (Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner,
1997, p. 16). In Sect. 2.5 the need to integrate organisational cultural components
into due diligence processes is discussed in more detail.
Interestingly, as we have seen in the above section, organisational culture has
been identified by academics and consultants working in the field of intercultural
management as both: (i) an important instrument within change management
processes focused on sustainable development at a business level, and (ii) as a
crucial factor in joint ventures between organisations with different cultural back-
grounds, and yet, these important roles of organisational culture are often not
recognised at management level within these contexts. Following the arguments
above, it is therefore imperative that those who implement business activities with
local communities should be able to investigate key dimensions of organisational
and community culture, ideally linked with research questions on how the finding
can contribute to a better understanding of the dynamics of long-term business
partnerships in the future.
The principal idea is that after the organisational culture and the community
culture have been examined, the potential positive synergy effects can be deter-
mined including risk ranges which include potential negative effects. Based on the
results, plans for managing the culture differences and the process of integration
can be derived. Likewise, analysis can be helpful to already existing partnerships as
a monitoring tool in order to identify which of the challenges they face are caused
by different cultural understanding. However, it must be noted that such analysis is
not easy to undertake. For example, the aspect of contextualisation of fieldwork was
a complexity that became an important element of my own research and therefore
of this thesis. This point is discussed in the next section, which focuses on the need
to think outside the box in order to develop non-linear, interdisciplinary research
connections in the specialised field of this thesis—tourism and hospitality—within
a methodological framework for a short-term study. However, the discussion is also
relevant for a wide range of other research areas that can help to understand the
dynamics between business ventures and local communities.

1.4 The Need to Think outside the Box

Lepp (2008) argues that tourism as a system involves closely interconnected

political, socio-cultural, historical, ecological and legal variables at both the
macro-level and the micro-level. Small changes at one level can have unexpected
8 1 Analysing Cultural Diversity in Approaches Towards Poverty Alleviation

impacts on other parts of the system, and it is an important point to recognise this in
approaches to tourism and poverty alleviation by taking these levels into consider-
ation, including the various stakeholders that act at different levels. According to
Farrell and Twining-Ward (2004, p. 277), most tourism researchers do not realise
this complexity and the interconnections because they were educated in traditional
schools which taught “linear, specialized, predictable (. . .) cause-and-effect sci-
ence”, while the study of this complex tourism system with its different levels and
variables should be done primarily in a “nonlinear, integrative, unpredictable,
qualitative” way. For tourism to transition towards greater sustainability, aca-
demics, consultants, managers, and stakeholders need to understand this complex-
ity through an approach of nonlinearity and interdisciplinary bridges; this is
important if we are to explore fully the multiple levels of the tourism system
from the local to the global scale. The argument of nonlinearity and interdisciplin-
arity became an important element of this thesis when I was confronted with the
complexity of the ‘real world’ during the field research.
Clark and Michailova (2004) also stress in this context the importance of
contextualising fieldwork. The context in which fieldwork is conducted is abso-
lutely integral to the research process. Contextual issues may include cultural,
historical, institutional, organisational and intercultural dimensions, as well as
internal social structure, of which researchers, being outsiders, are unaware at
first (Andersen, Karnoe, & Borum, 1995), including expectations of the researcher
and the research environment that represent both opportunities and limitations
(Stevenson, 2007). So far, the tourism literature has failed to provide a comprehen-
sive, detailed discussion of these factors, but such complex research on community
involvement tourism initiatives definitely requires that such factors also be taken
into consideration (Robson, 1993, p. 2). It needs to be embedded as stressed above
not only in a trans- and interdisciplinary approach by ‘thinking out of the box’ and
trying to link theory, method and practical know-how. According to Senge and
Scharmer, ivory-tower academics are disconnected from practical needs while
consultants produce comprehensive reports which in most cases never get
implemented and “develop tools that are often unrelated to theory. Managers
focus exclusively on practical know how and results” (2001, p. 6). It is therefore
necessary for them to create a “cycle of theory creation and its extension into
practical tools and ultimately into a broad base of practical know-how” (Senge &
Scharmer, 2001, p. 8). Senge and Scharmer are realistic enough to recognise that it
may take many years to create theory; nevertheless, the outcomes of this thesis are
an attempt to contribute to such a new cycle of theory-practice.
The time factor is another challenge researchers often face when conducting
studies in the field of tourism or other fields related to poverty reduction within
complex contexts. Few case studies on the impacts of tourism on destinations in
developing countries have provided in-depth knowledge about such different topics
as tourism, power and socio-cultural change, villagers’ perceptions of tourism, and
conflicts among stakeholders arising from tourism (among them Cole, 2008;
Neudorfer, 2007; Rieländer, 2002). The method used in these case studies tends
to be ethnographic research conducted by PhD researchers, which involves
1.4 The Need to Think outside the Box 9

spending at least 6 months in the field, or possible longer (Finn, Elliott-White, &
Walton, 2000).6 Unfortunately, neither the private sector nor development agencies
have the financial resources, the willingness or the interest to support such long-
term research into the implementation or monitoring of cooperation between local
communities. Consequently, most consultants and short-term researchers are forced
to try to manage such complex research within a time frame of anything from only a
few days to 4 weeks (Greenwood & Levin, 2007).
Due to these circumstances in the real world, which I experienced myself, I have
identified a strong need to develop a robust framework (including methods and
tools) to analyse organisational culture and community culture for potential busi-
ness cooperation of the hospitality sector with local communities that does not
require the intensive outlay of time that ethnographic research requires (Jobbins,
2004), but still produces significant data for cultural due diligence of joint ventures
between private tourism sector and local communities in ‘developing countries’.
Based on the discussion above, I would like to define the potential readers of this
thesis as it is not targeted exclusively at the academic world.

1.4.1 Target Group and Writing Style

According to Cooper, the linkages between academic research and the tourism
business sector are still underdeveloped:
Tourism has failed to recognize the importance of knowledge as a resource and embrace the
knowledge economy. In many sectors of the economy, such as primary industries, knowl-
edge transfers efficiently because the gearing between researcher and business is tight and
formalized. However, in the case of tourism this is not the case and educators and
researchers seldom influence the real world of tourism (2012, pp. 207–208).

Meyer (2012, p. 133) supports this argument, noting that there is a lack of
collaboration between academics (who have to publish conceptual and theoretical
articles to receive more funding and to climb the career ladder) and practitioners,
who are judged by the results they achieve in the field. This is particularly true of
the field of tourism and poverty reduction. It is necessary to communicate research
findings “in a way that planners and tourism managers can understand” (Pearce &
Moscardo, 1999, p. 42), especially when it comes to research on community pro-
jects. Spenceley and Meyer (2012, p. 311) argue that it will be essential in the future
to establish higher-level collaboration and cooperation between academics, actors
involved in development cooperation and practitioners. The argument is supported
by Meyer: “[It] requires assistants from PPT practitioners and academics as the
industry cannot do it alone” (2012, p. 136).

6
Burns criticise in his publication on ‘An Introduction to Tourism & Anthropology’ (1999a) that
“too much work on the anthropology lacks empirical (i.e. research) grounding, and may reflect the
white, middle class views of the authors. . .”
10 1 Analysing Cultural Diversity in Approaches Towards Poverty Alleviation

Following these, and Senge & Scharmer’s arguments, we might say that the
target group of this thesis are ‘pracademics’, that is, professionals who take both an
academic and a practitioner approach to their subject area. Depending on the
professional background and the research project, these two approaches (academic
and practical) should be balanced but may not always be so in reality. Because this
work is embedded in a PhD thesis, my academic position as a social anthropologist
is, of course, of greater importance in this thesis than my consultancy background.
Nevertheless, I hope that the audience for this thesis includes not only my super-
visors and academic colleagues but also consultants, development companies,
owners, staff of businesses in developing countries and, ideally, readers at the
community level. I have written this thesis especially for the last three groups.7
Therefore, I decided to adopt a writing style that, hopefully, practitioners will find
easy to read. The language I have used in this thesis, especially in Chaps. 7 and 8,
belongs to what Denzin calls
[a] new language, poststructural to the core, [which] will be personal, emotional, biograph-
ically specific, and minimalist in its use of theoretical terms . . . This new language will
express the personal struggles of each writer as he or she breaks free of the bonds that
connect to the past. This language will always be interactive as it moves back and forth
between lived experience and the cultural texts that shape and write that experience (1997,
p. 27).

Before I explain the research aim and the scope of the study in Sect. 1.5 below, I
would like first to summarise the key arguments of this chapter so far.
In order to resolve all the challenges of today and the near future, experts on
organisational learning and change management in particular stress that the busi-
ness sector, as an important contributor to the problems the world is facing, has to
become part of the solution by implementing a transformation process from tradi-
tional organisational values and norms towards a more sustainable future. This
argument is valid in the case of tourism being one of the largest industries. In
particular, approaches toward tourism and poverty development must be supported
by an intense exchange between tourism consultants, practitioners and academics.
Particularly where initiatives are jointly implemented by the hospitality sector and
local communities, it is necessary to promote a deeper understanding of the
organisational culture of the tourism enterprise and the local community culture
to avoid intercultural conflicts and to define the appropriate benefits of tourism for
the community. This aim is linked not only to the tourism and hospitality sector in
particular but also to other sectors that are related to poverty reduction.
From the researcher’s point of view, it is therefore imperative that those who
implement activities between the private sector and local communities are able to
investigate key dimensions of organisational and community culture in joint-
business cooperation, ideally linked with research questions on how the findings

7
I am not naı̈ve. I understand very well that representatives of local communities might not be
favourably disposed to read such a thesis. Still, we must think about how they might be meaning-
fully involved into such a discussion.
1.5 Research Aim and Scope of Study 11

can contribute to a better understanding of the dynamics of long-term business

partnerships between communities and the private sector in the future.
For this reason, there is a need to develop a robust framework for short-time
research, including methods and tools to analyse organisational culture and com-
munity culture, which can produce significant data for initiatives and approaches
between local communities and private sector.

1.5 Research Aim and Scope of Study

It is the core aim of this publication to develop a qualitative methodology for

Cultural Due Diligence, which can be used to explore the organisational culture of
joint business cooperation in a short term context. The name given to this qualita-
tive methodology initially was ‘Creative Organisational Culture Appraisal’, in short
COCA. To enable researchers to ‘think out of the box’, i.e. to be creative when
adopting this methodology, I wanted to develop the framework for the methodology
based on the premise that it should include a variety of tools and interdisciplinary
approaches for the researcher to choose from. After doing my field research the
name was changed to ‘Reflexive Organisational Culture Appraisal’, in short
ROCA; the reasons for the change are explained in Chap. 8. Until Chap. 7 the
term COCA will be used in order to demonstrate to the reader the evolution, and
redefinition, of the name. Chapter 4 provides an explanation for the choice of the
term ‘appraisal’ instead of ‘assessment’, despite both terms being used nearly
concurrently in the literature.
After both the organisational and community cultures have been assessed and
compared with the assistance of COCA/ROCA, the areas of potential risks and
potential positive synergy effects can be identified. All actors involved should
receive an overview about the main differences and similarities within the cultures.
Based on the COCA/ROCA outcomes it is possible to start, within a change
management process, an adaptation approach aimed at achieving a ‘cultural fit’
(Zimmer, 2001, p. 103) between the entities. COCA/ROCA can be used as a useful
tool at various stages of project and joint venture lifecycles, such as during
preparatory or planning stages, or in follow-up phases as a monitoring tool to
identify which challenges in the day-to-day operations are due to different cultural
understandings (see Fig. 1.1).
Given the above, this publication has two aims:
1. To bring together the literature on tourism and poverty reduction, and the
discussion on the role and importance of organisational and community cultures,
because the combination of these two factors is a perspective that has been
largely ignored by the advocates of pro-poor tourism and similar approaches.
2. To develop and validate an instrument to diagnose organisational and commu-
nity culture based on business cooperation with local communities. To this end,
a methodology will be developed called ‘Reflexive Organisational Culture
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
"Yes, ma'am, indeed it is very lonely sometimes," Salome acknowledged, "but I don't mind
that much. I have plenty to do, keeping the cottage clean and tidy, and preparing father's
meals, mending his clothes, and seeing to the flowers in the garden."

"How busy you must be. And you have lost your mother, poor child."

Salome pointed to a green mound at a little distance, whilst her brown eyes filled with
tears.

"She was such a good mother," she said softly, "oh, such a very good mother! And I was
such a fretful, tiresome child. I used to grieve her so often, and I can't bear to think of it
now."

She paused, but, encouraged by the sympathy on her companion's face, she continued,
"She used to be so patient with me when I was naughty and grumbled because I was not
able to run about and play like other children. And, until she lay dying, I never thought
how sorry I must have made her, and what a selfish girl I'd been. Then, I would have given
anything if I'd been different, but it was too late." And the repentant tears streamed down
Salome's cheeks.

"Don't grieve," said Mrs. Fowler, a little huskily, for she was much touched at the other's
evident remorse.

"I am sure Miss Margaret never treated you, ma'am, as I used to treat my mother!"
Salome exclaimed.

Mrs. Fowler was silent as she acknowledged to herself that Margaret had always been
patient and considerate when she had been an exacting invalid.

"I suppose your father is out in his fishing boat?" she asked by way of changing the
conversation.

"No, ma'am," Salome replied, the look of grief deepening on her face.

"Let us go into the church and hear Miss Conway play," Mrs. Fowler said, rising as she
spoke. "I hear Margaret's lesson is at an end. Ah, here comes the Vicar. How do you do,
Mr. Amyatt?"

"I am glad to see you are better, Mrs. Fowler," the Vicar exclaimed. "What, you here,
Salome? Don't go away; I want Mrs. Fowler to hear you sing."

Salome smiled, and blushed. She followed the others into the church and seated herself in
a pew near the door, whilst the Vicar pointed out beauties in the architecture of the
building to his companion, which she had failed to notice. Miss Conway was at the organ,
playing "The Heavens are telling," and when the last notes died away the Vicar beckoned
to Salome, who swung herself up the aisle on her crutches, and, at his request, consented
to sing.

"I will play the accompaniment," Miss Conway said, smiling encouragingly at the lame girl,
who felt a little shy at being called upon to sing alone. "What shall it be?" she inquired.

"Whatever you please, miss," Salome answered.

"Oh, no! You must choose," the Vicar declared decidedly.

"Then I will sing 'Abide with Me.'"

Mrs. Fowler and Margaret considerately withdrew to a side seat so that the sight of them
should not embarrass the singer, and Mr. Amyatt followed them. Salome stood a little
behind Miss Conway, who softly played the accompaniment of the hymn:

"Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;

The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide;
When other helpers fail, and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me."

Salome's fresh, sweet voice rang clearly through the dim church, and its tender tones
touched the hearts of her audience. She was very fond of "Abide with Me," for it had been
her mother's favourite hymn, and to-night she sang her best.

"Heaven's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee;

In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me."

The beautiful voice died lingeringly away, and for a few minutes there was a complete
silence. Then Mrs. Fowler rose, and coming eagerly forward, took Salome by the hand,
whilst she thanked her for giving her such a "rare treat" as she called it.

Margaret was delighted to see what a favourable impression her lame friend had evidently
made upon her mother, and great was her surprise when, on their all adjourning to the
churchyard, Mrs. Fowler asked Salome to come and see them at Greystone.

"I think you would be able to get as far as that, don't you?" she said with a winning smile.
"I should like you to come and sing to me. Will you, one evening?"

"Oh, yes," Salome replied. She had never been inside the doors of Greystone in her life,
though she had often desired to see what the house was like, having been told it was a
fine place.

"Then that is settled. I shall expect you."

Mrs. Fowler nodded and turned away, followed by Miss Conway, and Margaret who looked
back to wave her hand in farewell as she disappeared through the churchyard gate. The
Vicar accompanied them thus far, then turned back to speak a few words to Salome. The
village lad who had been employed to blow the organ had taken a short cut homewards
over the low wall.

"You sang remarkably well to-night," Mr. Amyatt said, "I felt quite proud of my pupil. You
showed excellent taste, too, in the hymn you chose. It was most suitable for the occasion.
I wonder if you know the circumstances under which that hymn came to be written?"

"No," Salome rejoined, shaking her head, "I don't know, sir."

"Then I will tell you. It was composed more than fifty years ago by a sick clergyman of the
name of Lyte, at a little fishing town called Brixham, in South Devon. He had become so
seriously ill that the doctors had ordered him abroad for his health's sake, and, after
service on the Sunday evening, prior to his leaving England, he went down to the sea-
shore, sad at heart, for he was convinced that he had spoken to his parishioners, who
were very dear to him, for the last time. He was sorrowful and low-spirited, but, by-and-
by, the remembrance that his Saviour was ever near to help and sustain him brought him
consolation. After watching the sunset, he went home, and immediately wrote the
beautiful hymn you sang to-night."

Salome had listened with deep interest, and she exclaimed earnestly: "Oh, Mr. Amyatt, I
am glad you have told me this. I shall love 'Abide with Me' better than ever now."

The Vicar smiled, then pointed towards the sea, over which a soft summer mist was
creeping.

"It is time for you to go home," he reminded her. "Where is your father this evening?"

"At the 'Crab and Cockle,' sir."

He shook his head sadly, but refrained from questioning her further. He saw she was
thinner than she had been a few months previously, and wondered if she was sufficiently
well fed, or if Josiah Petherick expended the money he should have spent on his home, on
the friends he met at the inn. As he watched the little girl swinging herself slowly down the
hill by the aid of her crutches, he felt very grieved and troubled on her account.

"What a curse this drink is!" he thought. "And it's a curse that creeps in everywhere, too."

In the village that afternoon, he had been told that Mr. Fowler had summarily dismissed a
groom who had been discovered with a bottle of beer in the stable, and he had listened to
various comments upon the strict notions of the master of Greystone. Most of the villagers
were inclined to think that the man's fault in disobeying his master's rule that no
intoxicating liquor should be brought on the premises might have been overlooked, as it
was his first offence, whilst some few argued that Mr. Fowler had acted rightly.

As Salome passed the "Crab and Cockle" on her way home, she heard sounds of hilarity
within, and recognised her father's voice singing a rollicking sea song. She sighed,
remembering how, during his wife's lifetime, Josiah had been a member of the church
choir; it appeared unseemly to her that a voice which once had been raised to the praise
and glory of God should lend itself to the entertainment of a set of half-drunken men in the
bar of a public-house. As she paused, involuntarily listening, a whiff of foul air, laden with
the mingled odour of smoke and beer, was wafted before her nostrils from the open
doorway, and she moved on with a sickening sense of shame and disgust, her heart heavy
as lead, her eyes smarting with tears. Oh, hers was a hard life, she thought bitterly.

Arrived at home, she laid a frugal supper of bread and cheese, and soon afterwards her
father reeled up the garden path and into the kitchen. Sitting down at the table, he helped
himself to bread and cheese in silence, and commenced eating, whilst his little daughter
took her accustomed place opposite to him.

"Where've you been?" he questioned. "I saw you pass the inn."

She told him how she had spent the evening, explaining that she had sung at the Vicar's
request, and that Mrs. Fowler had invited her to Greystone.

"I won't let you go there!" he cried. "I hate those new people! What did Mr. Fowler do
yesterday, but dismiss as honest a chap as ever lived, at a moment's notice, just because
he'd got a bottle o' beer in the stable! An' the man wasn't drunk either! No, you shan't go
nigh folks as treats their servants like that."

"Oh, father!" Salome exclaimed, disappointedly. She was wise enough, however, not to
pursue the subject. After a brief silence, she asked, with some timidity, "Father, have you
any money? Because, when Silas Moyle left the bread this afternoon, he said he couldn't
supply us with any more unless you paid him what you owe."

Silas Moyle was the one baker of the place, and the owner of the village shop, in which his
wife served. Josiah Petherick had formerly paid ready money for everything, but latterly he
had been spending at the "Crab and Cockle" what should have gone into Silas Moyle's
pocket. This was an additional trouble to Salome, but her father did not appear to care. He
was enraged, though, when he heard what the baker had said, and, as his creditor was not
present to bear the brunt of his indignation, Salome had to stand it instead. She turned
white when he swore at her, and sat perfectly still whilst he abused her roundly, but when
he called her extravagant she began to protest.

"Father, that's not fair of you! I'm as careful as ever I can be. We're obliged to have bread!
Won't you see Silas yourself? Perhaps he'll continue to supply us, if you can arrange to pay
him part of what we owe. Of course, he wants his money."

"He's another of your teetotal humbugs!" sneered the angry man.

"He isn't a humbug at all!" Salome retorted hotly, her indignation and sense of justice
overcoming her fear of her father; "but he did say he wasn't minded to wait for his money
when it was being squandered with that drunken crew at the 'Crab and Cockle.' Oh, father,
it was terrible for me to hear that, and I couldn't contradict him!"

With a fierce oath, Josiah pushed back his chair and rose from the table, declaring things
had come to a pretty pass when his own daughter, a mere child, thought fit to discuss him
with outsiders.

Salome broke into passionate weeping at this, whereupon he flung himself out of the
kitchen, and the next minute she heard his footsteps in the garden.

"He's gone to the 'Crab and Cockle' again," thought the unhappy little girl. "Oh, how could
he swear at me like that? Oh, how shall I bear it!" Presently she arose, put away the
supper things and then sat down by the open window to wait, as she knew she would have
to do, until the inn door was closed for the night, and her father would return. By-and-by,
the soft lap, lap of the sea had a soothing effect upon her troubled spirit, the peacefulness
of the summer night stole into her soul, and she murmured to herself the words of
consolation she had sung an hour or so before in the dim, old church:

"When other helpers fail, and comforts flee,

Help of the helpless, O abide with me."

CHAPTER V.
Salome's Humiliation.

JOSIAH PETHERICK sat on the beach mending his fishing nets in the shade of a tall rock. It
was intensely hot, and there was scarcely a ripple on the glassy sea, whilst the sky was a
broad canopy of blue. Josiah was thinking deeply. That morning, consequent on the
information his daughter had given him on the previous evening, he had been to interview
Silas Moyle, and had induced the baker to allow him further credit. Never in his life before
had Josiah found himself in such a humiliating position, and he felt it all the more because
it was entirely his own fault. He had always prided himself on being able to pay his way,
and now he was not in the position to do so.

Glancing up from his work presently, the fisherman saw three figures come down to the
beach—a lady, a gentleman, and a small boy clad in a sailor's suit and broad-brimmed
straw hat. He knew them to be Mr. and Mrs. Fowler and their little son. He had often held
lengthy conversations with Gerald, who was always delighted to talk with anyone who
could tell him about the manifold wonders of the sea, but he had never spoken to either of
the boy's parents. Despite his disapproval of the strict teetotal principles of the master of
Greystone, he regarded that gentleman with considerable interest, and when Mr. Fowler
strolled up to him, and inquired from whom a boat might be hired, he answered him civilly,
"You can have a boat from me, if you like, sir; but there's no wind for sailing to-day."

"Perhaps you would row us around those high rocks yonder. My wife has a fancy to see
what lies beyond that point."

Josiah assented willingly, seeing an opportunity of earning a few shillings; and so it came
to pass that he spent a very pleasant and lucrative morning, returning home to dinner in
the best of spirits.

"The new folks at Greystone have a liking for boating," he informed Salome; "and see
here," tossing a half-crown as he spoke upon the table, "give that to Silas Moyle when he
calls with the bread this afternoon."

The lame girl's face brightened as she took up the coin, and looked at her father
questioningly.

"I saw Mr. and Mrs. Fowler and Master Gerald pass here on their way to the beach," she
said. "Did you take them out in your boat, father?"

"Yes. They treated me very fairly, I must admit that, an' Mrs. Fowler—she seems a nice
lady—spoke of you."

"Did she?"

"She said you had a lovely voice, an' that she was looking forward to hear you sing again.
I say, Salome, I shouldn't like to disappoint her, so if she really wants you to go and see
her, you may—" and Josiah, mindful of all he had said on the preceding night, avoided
meeting his little daughter's eyes as he made this concession.

"Oh, thank you, dear father," she cried. "I should like to go to Greystone so much."

"That little Master Gerald is a tiresome monkey," Josiah remarked. "He wouldn't sit still in
the boat at first, though his mother kept on with him. At last his father spoke, an' after
that, there was no need to tell him to be quiet again. Mr. Fowler looks a man as would
have his own way."

"Master Gerald is very disobedient, I know," Salome said, "and sometimes his governess
has great trouble with him. Miss Margaret says her mother spoils him."

"Then, 'tis a good job he's got a father who doesn't."

After dinner, Josiah went on with his interrupted work of mending his fishing nets, whilst
Salome tidied up the cottage and waited for Silas Moyle.

The baker looked gratified as he took the half-crown the lame girl tendered him, for he had
not expected to be paid even a small part of his account.

"That's right," he said, as he pocketed the money; "it appears I did some good by
speaking yesterday. Look here, my dear, you must try to keep that father of yours up to
the mark. Can't you make him stay at home of an evening?"

The little girl shook her head, and looked distressed as she replied, "I'm afraid not, Mr.
Moyle."

"He's not at the 'Crab and Cockle' now, I s'pose?"

"No, he's on the beach mending his nets; and this morning he took Mr. and Mrs. Fowler
and their little boy for a row in his boat."

"It's a pity Mr. Fowler can't get your father to his way of thinking—about drink, I mean. I
say the new folks at Greystone set an example that many in Yelton might follow with
advantage. Theirs is a teetotal household, I'm told."

"So I've heard," Salome responded.

Silas Moyle nodded kindly, and took himself off, whilst Salome locked up the cottage and
joined her father on the beach. She told him the baker had been pleased to receive the
half-crown, and then tactfully changed the subject. Josiah and his daughter were always
excellent friends when the former had not been drinking.

"Look!" Salome exclaimed suddenly, "There's Master Gerald. Why, he seems to be alone.
He sees us."

The child came running towards them, laughing as he stumbled over the rough shingles,
his face aglow with excitement, his broad-brimmed sailor's hat at the back of his head,
revealing the fair curls which clustered thickly around his brow.

"I've run away," he cried merrily. "I wanted Miss Conway to bring me down to the beach,
but she would not—the disagreeable thing! She said it was too hot, and I must stay in the
garden. So I came by myself."

"Doesn't Miss Conway know where you are?" Salome inquired.

"No one knows," he replied proudly. "I can take care of myself."

"I'm not so sure of that, young gentleman," Josiah remarked, with a chuckle of
amusement at Gerald's air of importance.

"It was naughty of you to run away," Salome told him in a tone of reproof.

The child made a grimace at her, and ran off towards some rocks which the receding tide
had left uncovered.

"He's a pretty handful," Josiah exclaimed, shaking his head.

"I expect someone will be here looking for him soon," said Salome. "I hope so, for his
mother will be anxious if she does not know where he is, and she is not strong."
But nobody came in search of Gerald, who at last disappeared from sight beyond the
rocks. In spite of her father's assurance that the boy could come to no harm, the little girl
grew uneasy about him; and, by-and-by, rose and went to make certain he was safe. She
found him lying flat on the wet beach, gazing into a pool between two rocks at some
beautiful anemones; and tried to induce him to retrace his footsteps, but all to no purpose.
In vain she told him that his mother would be worried about him, and that his father would
be angry. The wayward child would pay no attention to her.

"What's it to do with you?" he demanded rudely. "Mind your own business, if you please."

As he absolutely refused to return, Salome left him with the intention of persuading her
father to interfere; but, to her dismay, she found Josiah had deserted his nets, and as the
key of the cottage door was in her pocket, she knew he had not gone home. In all
probability he had betaken himself to the "Crab and Cockle" to obtain a drink. Whilst she
was hesitating how to act, much to her surprise, Gerald appeared around the rocks and
joined her. He was tired of the beach, he declared, and wanted to see her flowers, so she
allowed him to accompany her home. And thus it was that the young tyrant was
discovered in Salome's garden half-an-hour later by his much-tried governess.

Poor Miss Conway! She almost wept with joy on finding Gerald in safety, and insisted on
his return to Greystone immediately. She led him away in triumph, paying no attention to
his request that he might be allowed to remain a little longer.

Josiah did not return for his tea, so after waiting some time, Salome had hers, and then
seated herself under the porch with her knitting. There Margaret Fowler found her as the
evening was drawing in.

"Mother has sent me to thank you for taking such good care of Gerald this afternoon,"
Margaret said as she complied with the lame girl's invitation to sit down opposite to her.
"He is a very tiresome, disobedient boy, for father had told him never to go down on the
beach by himself. He is not to be trusted. Father has punished him for his naughtiness by
ordering him to bed. It was quite a shock to poor Miss Conway when she found Gerald was
nowhere on the premises."

"I noticed she looked pale," Salome said. "I am afraid Master Gerald is very troublesome."

"Troublesome! I should think he is. It was kind of you to look after him, Salome. I have a
message from my mother to know if you can come to see us to-morrow. Do try to come."

"Oh, I should like to!" Salome cried, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"Then, will you manage to be at Greystone by five o'clock?"

"Yes, miss, if all's well. Oh, please thank Mrs. Fowler for asking me!"

"Mother wants to hear you sing again. She has taken quite a fancy to you, and I am so
glad."

"I think your mother is the prettiest, sweetest lady I ever saw," the lame girl said
earnestly. "How dearly you must love her, Miss Margaret."

"Yes," Margaret answered soberly, "but I do not think she cares for me much. Gerald is her
favourite, you know. Oh, I'm not jealous of him, but I can't help seeing that though he
teases and worries her, and I do all I can to please her, she loves him much better than
she has ever loved me."
Salome was surprised, and pained by the look of sadness on her companion's face.

"Perhaps your mother shows her affection more to Master Gerald because he's so much
younger than you," she suggested. "I cannot believe she loves him better really."

Margaret made no reply to this, but by-and-by she said, "We have had several fusses at
home these last few days. Did you hear that father dismissed one of the men-servants for
bringing beer into the stable?"

"Yes, I heard about it. I think Mr. Fowler was quite right," Salome declared decidedly.

"Do you? I'm glad to hear you say that. Father always means to do right, I am sure. He is
a teetotaler himself, you know, and so are we all, for that matter."

At this point in the conversation the garden gate clicked, and Josiah strode up the path
and hurried past the little girls into the cottage. His bronzed face was crimson; and he
walked somewhat unsteadily; but he was sufficiently sober to realise that his wisest plan
was to take no notice of his little daughter's visitor.

Pitying Salome from the depths of her heart, Margaret rose, saying it was time for her to
go home. The lame girl followed her silently to the garden gate, where they stood for a few
minutes talking.

"You'll be sure to come to-morrow, won't you?" Margaret said earnestly.

"Yes, miss," was the grave reply, "if I possibly can; I hope nothing will prevent it, but—you
see how it is with him sometimes," and she pointed towards the cottage.

"Yes," Margaret admitted. "Oh, I'm so sorry! He must be a terrible trial for you. May God
help you, Salome."

"He does help me," the lame girl replied, "I couldn't bear it alone. Oh, how I wish my
father was a teetotaler like yours."

"I wish so, too."

"I had hoped you would never find out about my poor father being a drinker, but I might
have known that sooner or later you would learn the truth. Oh, miss, don't, please don't
think, he's altogether a bad man. He isn't! When he's sober, there's not a kinder or better
man in the world. But when the drink gets hold of him, he isn't himself at all." And Salome
laid her head on the top rail of the gate and sobbed heartbrokenly.

"Oh, don't cry so!" Margaret said imploringly, her own eyes full of tears. "Oh, perhaps he'll
give up the drink some day."

"I don't know, miss, I'm afraid he won't. He gets worse instead of better. The Vicar has
spoken to him, but that's done no good. He has only come home for supper now;
afterwards he'll go back to the 'Crab and Cockle.' But there, I mustn't cry any more, or
he'll notice it!"
 SALOME LAID HER HEAD ON THE TOP RAIL OF THE GATE
AND SOBBED HEART-BROKENLY.

"Good-bye, Salome! Mind you come to-morrow."

"Oh, yes! I hope I shall. Oh, miss, I feel so ashamed that you should have seen my father
to-night!"

"There's nothing for you to be ashamed about. I think you're the pluckiest girl I know.
Good night!" And Margaret ran off with a nod and a smile.

She slackened her speed soon, however; and as she went up the hill beyond the church
towards her home, paused now and again to look back the way she had come, and admire
the beautiful view. At the entrance to the grounds of Greystone she met her father, and
together they walked towards the house, whilst she told him of Josiah Petherick's condition
that evening.

"Oh, father, you are right to be a teetotaler!" she cried. "Drink is an awful thing!"

"It is indeed, my dear," he replied with a deep sigh. "I found Petherick a well-informed,
civil-spoken man, in fact I was favourably impressed with him this morning, and he talked
of his little daughter as though he really loved her. Drink can slay affection, though," he
concluded sorrowfully.

"It's dreadful it should, father!"

"When drink once gets hold of people, it makes them slaves, and kills their finest feelings.
I am very sorry for that poor Salome!"

"So am I. She is so brave, too, and sticks up for her father all she can. Oh, I think he
ought to give up the drink for her sake. I wonder—I wonder if it would be any good for you
to speak to him!" And Margaret looked wistfully and pleadingly into her father's face.

"I will consider the matter," he rejoined thoughtfully.

"Oh, father!" she cried, picturing afresh Salome's grief and humiliation, "What should I do,
if I had such a trouble as that poor lame girl has to bear?"

Mr. Fowler started, and a look of intense pain and trouble momentarily crossed his
countenance, but he answered quietly, "In that case, I hope you would ask God to support
and comfort you."

"As Salome does. I could not be patient like she is, though."

"I trust you would, my dear child."

"Well, I am not likely to be tried," and Margaret regarded her father with a look of
affectionate pride. She wondered at the sadness of the smile with which he returned her
glance; and his answer, gravely spoken, puzzled her not a little.

"We cannot tell how much our patience and our love may be tried," he said, "nor what
trials the future may hold for us. We can only pray that God will help and strengthen us in
our time of need."

CHAPTER VI.
Perfectly Happy.

"OH, I do hope she will come! It's nearly five o'clock, and she's not in sight yet. I wish I
had thought of watching from my bedroom window, I could have seen then when she left
the cottage."

The speaker, Margaret Fowler, started up from her seat beneath the lilac tree, and ran
across the lawn in the direction of the gate which led from the grounds of Greystone into
the road. Beneath the lilac tree sat Mrs. Fowler in a comfortably padded wicker chair, with
a small table laden with papers and magazines at her side. She glanced after her little
daughter with a slightly amused smile, then remonstrated with Gerald, who was playing
near by, for making a noise.

"You will give me a headache, if you keep on doing that," she said, as he cannoned two
croquet balls against each other. "Pray, be quiet!"

Gerald chose not to obey. He continued his game, utterly regardless of his mother's
command.

"Do stop, Gerald!" she exclaimed. "I really cannot bear that noise any longer. Oh, where is
Miss Conway? Why isn't she here to look after you? Gerald, to oblige me, find some other
amusement, there's a dear boy!"

"Why do you not obey your mother, sir?" demanded a stern voice. And suddenly the little
boy dropped the croquet-mallet from his hand, and turned to face his father.
"That's right, Gerald!" Mrs. Fowler said hastily. "He hasn't been doing anything wrong,
Henry," she continued, glancing apprehensively at her husband, "only—you know how
absurdly nervous I am—I can't bear any sharp, sudden noise. It's foolish of me, I know."

Gerald now ran after his sister, and Mr. Fowler stood with his hand on the back of his wife's
chair, looking, down at her with grave attention.

"You should make the boy obey you, my dear," he said. "Has not your visitor arrived yet?"

"No. Margaret has gone to the gate to see if she is coming. I thought we would have tea
out here, for it is cooler and pleasanter in the garden than in the house, and it will be more
informal. I should like you to hear this lame girl sing, Henry! I think I never heard a voice
which touched me so deeply as hers. But you are not listening—"

"I beg your pardon, my dear. I confess my thoughts were wandering. The fact is, to-
morrow I shall have to go up to town for a few days, and I would far rather remain at
home. But I am obliged to go."

"You can leave with an easy mind," his wife told him reassuringly. "I am really quite strong
now, and capable of managing the household, I believe I shall be better for something to
do. By the way, you cannot think how much I enjoyed my drive this morning to N—"
mentioning the nearest town. "I wanted some trifles from a draper's, and the shops were
much better than I expected. Oh! Here come the children. They are bringing Salome with
them."

Mrs. Fowler rose and greeted the lame girl very cordially, placing her in a chair next to her
own. Salome was looking her best, neatly attired in a clean cotton frock. There was a flush
born of excitement on her cheeks, and her brown eyes shone with a happy light as she
gave herself up to the enjoyment of the present hour.

Tea was served beneath the lilac tree, such a luxuriant tea as Salome had never partaken
of before, and everyone appeared determined that she should make a good meal—Gerald
pointing out to her the most delectable of the dainties which he pressed her to eat, for in
the depths of his selfish little heart, there was a warm spot for the lame girl who had so
often given him flowers from her garden when he had certainly not deserved them.

Salome was inclined to be a trifle shy at first of Mr. Fowler. From what she had heard of
him she had imagined he must be an exceedingly stern, strict sort of man, but he talked to
her so kindly and pleasantly that she soon grew at ease with him, and answered all the
questions he put to her unreservedly. She told him she had only been a member of the
choir during the last six months, and explained that she had not known she possessed a
really good voice until the Vicar had informed her that such was the fact.

"I always loved singing, even when I was a tiny thing," she said, "but I never thought of
joining the choir till one day when Mr. Amyatt suggested it. He was passing our cottage,
and heard me singing, and he came right in and said he would like me to come up to the
Vicarage and let him try my voice. Father said I might go, so I did, and the next Sunday, I
sang with the choir in church for the first time."

"You must not sing too much," Mr. Fowler remarked, "for you are very young, and might
permanently injure your voice if you strained it now. You must nurse it a bit."

"That's what Mr. Amyatt says," Salome replied with a smile, "and I'm very careful."

"It is a great gift to have a beautiful voice." Mr. Fowler looked with kindly interest at his
little guest as he spoke; then his eyes wandered to the crutches which she had placed on
the ground beside her chair, and she caught the swift glance of sympathy which crossed
his face, and from that moment, he stood high in her estimation.

"God is very merciful," he added softly, as though speaking to himself; "we are too apt to
forget that He never sends a cross without its compensation."

Salome was perfectly happy sitting there under the lilac tree, though she felt all the while
as though she must be in a wonderful dream. Mrs. Fowler, in her light summer dress, with
her fair hair and her lovely blue eyes, looked like a queen, she thought. Salome was more
and more impressed with her grace and charm on every fresh occasion on which she saw
her. How proud Miss Margaret must be of her mother! And how happy Miss Margaret must
be in such a beautiful home, with kind parents, and everything that heart could desire!
And yet, what was the meaning of that wistful look on her face; and why was Mr. Fowler's
countenance so grave, and almost stern in expression at times? Salome's eyes were
remarkably shrewd. She noticed how attentive Mr. Fowler was to his wife, almost seeming
to anticipate her wishes and read her thoughts; and she was surprised when he was called
away for a few minutes to see that Mrs. Fowler talked with greater freedom in his absence,
as though his presence put a restraint upon her.

As soon as all had finished tea, Margaret took Salome around the gardens, and afterwards
led the way into the house. She showed Salome her own room, the walls of which were
crowded with pictures and knickknacks. The lame girl had never seen such a pretty
bedroom before as this one, with its little white-curtained bed, and white-enamelled
furniture. Then Margaret opened a velvet-lined jewel case, and took out a small, gold
brooch in the shape of a shell, which she insisted upon fastening into the neck of her
visitor's gown.

"It is for you," she said, "I bought it with my own money, so you need not mind taking it. I
told mother I was going to give it to you. I want you to wear it for my sake, Salome."

"Oh, Miss Margaret, how kind of you! Thank you so much. But ought I to take it? Are you
sure Mrs. Fowler—"

"Oh, yes!" Margaret interposed eagerly. "Mother would like you to have it. She said she
thought it would be a very suitable gift for you. It is pretty, isn't it?"

"It is lovely!" was the enthusiastic reply. "I shall value it always, Miss Margaret, for your
sake," and there were tears of pleasure and gratitude in Salome's brown eyes as she
spoke.

"I am so very glad you like it," Margaret said earnestly; "but now, come downstairs to the
drawing-room."

Greystone appeared quite a palatial residence to the simple village girl, accustomed to her
cottage home. She noticed how soft and thick were the carpets, how handsome was the
furniture; and how everything in connection with the house had been done with a view to
comfort. A sense of awe crept over her, as she cast one swift glance around the spacious
drawing-room. Miss Conway was at the piano, but she ceased playing as the little girls
entered; and Mrs. Fowler, who was standing by the open window conversing with her
husband, turned towards them immediately and requested Salome to sing.

So Salome stood, leaning upon her crutches, in the centre of the room, and lilted, without
accompaniment, a simple little song she had often heard from her dead mother's lips. It
was a lullaby, and she sang it so sweetly and unaffectedly that her listeners were
delighted, and Mr. Fowler was surprised at the beauty of the voice which had had so little
training. She gave them several other quaint west-country ballads; and then, at Mrs.
Fowler's request, sang, "Abide with Me."

"I like that best," Margaret said, as she drew Salome down on a sofa by her side. "Why,
how you're trembling! And your hands are quite cold!"

"Poor child! We have made her nervous, I fear," Mr. Fowler remarked. "Used your mother
to sing, my dear?"

"Yes, sir, sometimes, and father used to sing in the choir, but he doesn't now. If you
please," she proceeded, glancing from one to the other hesitatingly, "I think I ought to go
home. Father promised to meet me outside the gate at seven o'clock, and it must be that
now."

"It is a little after seven," Mr. Fowler replied, glancing at his watch.

"Then I think I must go, sir."

"You must come again soon," Mrs. Fowler said eagerly. "Thank you so much, my dear, for
singing to us. You have given us very great pleasure."

"I am very glad," Salome rejoined simply and earnestly, "and I should like to tell you how
much I have enjoyed myself; and thank you for all your kindness to me."

True to his promise, Josiah Petherick was waiting for his little daughter in the road outside
the entrance to Greystone. He was perfectly sober, and as Salome caught sight of his
stalwart figure, her face lit up with pleasure.

"Well, have you had an enjoyable time?" he inquired, smilingly.

"Oh, yes," she answered, and proceeded to give him a detailed account of all she had
seen, and heard, and done. He admired Margaret's gift, and was secretly much gratified at
the attention and kindness his little girl had received from the new-comers. Much to her
relief, he accompanied her past the "Crab and Cockle," though it must be admitted, he cast
a longing glance in the direction of the open doorway through which the stale odour of
tobacco and beer was stealing forth as usual. And when they reached home, he followed
her into the cottage, and continued the conversation whilst she set about getting supper.
She feared he would take himself to the inn as soon as the meal was over, but, instead, he
sat down under the porch and gazed thoughtfully out to sea.

"That Mr. Fowler's a rare hand to talk," he remarked presently, when his little daughter
joined him. "That comes of being educated, I s'pose. He can argue a bit, he can."

"Can he?" Salome looked surprised. "How do you know, father?" she inquired.

"'Cause I was foolish enough to try to argue with him, my maid!"

"Oh! When was that?"

"This morning, on the beach."

"Oh!" she cried again, more and more astonished. "What did you argue about, father?"
She ventured to ask.

"Drink!" was the brief reply. And there was that in Josiah's manner which forbade further
questioning.
Salome nestled silently close to her father's side, her head resting against his arm, as she
thought how nice it was to have him there with her, quite himself, and how dearly she
loved him. She listened to the murmur of the sea, and tried to count the stars appearing in
the sky, whilst Josiah recalled the argument he had had with Mr. Fowler, in which, he was
obliged to admit, he had come off worst. At last, a deep sigh from Salome drew his
attention to her, and he asked what was amiss.

"Amiss?" she echoed in astonishment. "Nothing."

"But you sighed, my dear."

"Did I? Then it must have been for joy. I'm perfectly happy, perfectly! And so I should
always be, if there was no such place as the 'Crab and Cockle' in Yelton."

"Well, Salome, I've not been there to-night."

"No, you have not, dear father," she answered affectionately, "and that's why I'm so
perfectly happy. My mind's at rest!"

CHAPTER VII.
An Afternoon's Outing.

MR. FOWLER was obliged to breakfast at seven o'clock, which was an hour-and-a-half
before the usual breakfast hour at Greystone, on the morning following Salome's visit, as
it was his intention to catch the first train to London from N—, and in order to do that he
would have to leave home before eight o'clock, and drive several miles. His journey had
been discussed on the previous night, and he had said good-bye to Miss Conway and the
children then. But, when he entered the breakfast-room as the clock struck seven, he
found his little daughter awaiting him.

"Why, Margaret!" he exclaimed in pleased surprise as he kissed her. "I did not expect to
see you, my dear! You are not generally an early bird."

"I'm afraid I am rather sleepy-headed in the mornings, as a rule," she confessed, "but I
made up my mind last night that I would have my breakfast with you to-day, dear father,
and see you off. Now do try to eat as much as ever you can," she added practically, as the
servant appeared with a tray holding a couple of covered dishes and the coffee-pot.

Mr. Fowler laughed, as he seated himself at the table with Margaret opposite to him, and
said he would take her advice.

"I am sorry I have to go," he remarked, "but I have no choice in the matter, as my lawyer
wants to consult me upon important business. I shall leave your mother in your charge,
Margaret."

"In my charge?" Margaret said inquiringly, looking surprised. "But she is not ill now, father!
See how cheerful and bright she was last night. And she has taken several walks. Oh, she
is heaps better and stronger than she was! I don't think you need worry about her."
"Perhaps not; but, nevertheless, I want you to devote as much of your time as you can to
her during my absence. I have spoken to Miss Conway, and she has consented to give you
a holiday till I return. Had I not seen you this morning, Miss Conway would have explained
my wishes to you. I desire you to accompany your mother when she drives out, and when
she goes into the village, or down to the beach—in short, make yourself her companion,
my dear, until I return. Do you understand?"

"Yes, father, I think so," Margaret replied, impressed by his serious tone. "I expect mother
will be dull when you are gone, so I will do my best to brighten her up!"

"That's a good child!"

"Only, sometimes she much prefers to have Gerald with her to me!"

"I would rather she had you. Remember what I have said, Margaret. I hope I shall not be
away very long, but it will of course depend upon circumstances."

Mr. Fowler made an excellent breakfast, and afterwards went upstairs to say good-bye to
his wife, whilst Margaret waited for him in the hall. He kissed his little girl tenderly on his
return, then, it being quite time for him to leave, entered the carriage which was waiting at
the door, and was driven off. Margaret felt a little depressed as she listened to the sound of
the carriage wheels dying away in the distance, for she was exceedingly attached to her
father, and home did not seem like home without him.

Knowing her mother must be awake, she went upstairs, and knocked at her bedroom door.
On being told to come in, to her surprise, Mrs. Fowler declared her intention of getting up
to breakfast.

"But do you feel well enough?" Margaret asked, for up to the present Mrs. Fowler, having
been an invalid, had always breakfasted in her own room at Greystone.

"Oh, yes!" was the quick response. "I'm tired of being treated like a sick person! What a
beautiful, bright morning it is, and not so hot, is it? Your father will have a fine day for his
journey."

"He did not want to go at all!"

"No. But that was foolish of him!"

"I think he did not like the thought of leaving you, mother. He feared you might be ill
whilst he was away."

"Oh, I am not likely to be ill again," Mrs. Fowler declared sanguinely. "I mean to throw off
my invalid-ish ways now, and surprise your father on his return. Send Ross to me,
Margaret, to help me dress."

"Shall I help you, mother? Do let me. I am sure I can do your hair as well as Ross."

Mrs. Fowler hesitated, but finally decided in favour of Ross; so Margaret went in search of
her. Ross was a well-mannered, good-tempered young woman who waited upon Mrs.
Fowler, and did the mending and sewing of the household. She expressed surprise and
pleasure on hearing that her mistress intended getting up and joining the family breakfast-
table.

"It shows how much stronger she feels, Miss Margaret," she said. "I've often thought if she
would bestir herself more she would be better in health and spirits."
Gerald grumbled loudly when he discovered that he was to do lessons whilst his sister was
to have a holiday. Why should Margaret be allowed nice drives with their mother when he
was obliged to stay at home and work. It was most unfair, he declared; and it may be
imagined that poor Miss Conway had rather a trying experience with her younger pupil on
the first day of his father's absence, when, in the afternoon, Mrs. Fowler and Margaret
drove to N—, and left him at home.

The road to N— lay through some most beautiful scenery, and Margaret thoroughly
enjoyed the drive. Now they were on an open common where the few trees to be seen
were stunted and grown one-sided, a fact which puzzled the little girl until it was explained
to her that the keen breeze blowing across the Atlantic was accountable for it, then she
remarked that the bare side of the trees was the one which faced the sea; now they had
left the common and were going down bill into a sheltered, wooded coomb, and by-and-by
the road led upwards again till the town of N— was reached, situated almost at the top of
the hill.

At the entrance to the town, Mrs. Fowler and Margaret got out of the carriage, and walked
up the main street—Fore Street it was called—looking into the shop windows. They had
paused outside a small china shop in which was some pretty pottery, when a familiar voice
addressed them in accents of pleasure and surprise.

"Can I believe my eyes? Who would have thought of meeting you here!"

Turning instantly they confronted a handsome, middle-aged lady, dressed as a widow,

whose comely face was wreathed in smiles. She was called Mrs. Lute, and had been a near
neighbour of theirs in London.

"Oh, how glad I am!" Mrs. Fowler exclaimed. "It is good to see you again! Are you staying
in the neighbourhood?"

"Yes; I have taken a furnished house at N— for two months. I saw it advertised, came to
see it, and the result is that here I am! Why, how well you look! And you were such a
wreck when you left town! Margaret, too, is looking all the better for the change of air! I
suppose you are still at Yelton?"

"Oh, yes! Why haven't you been to see us?"

"I have only been here a week. But, come, walk home with me, and have a cup of tea."

"I should like to, but I have some errands to execute. Oh, Margaret!" And Mrs. Fowler
turned to her little daughter eagerly. "Surely you could do the errands! See, here is the list
of what I want on this paper! Is your home far from here?" she inquired of Mrs. Lute.

"No, you must have passed it—a thatched, whitewashed house, with a porch covered with
clematis and roses."

"Oh, yes, I noticed it!" Margaret cried. "Mother, why don't you and Mrs. Lute drive back in
the carriage, and I will join you as soon as I have done the shopping?"

Thus it was arranged. Margaret was quite excited at meeting an old acquaintance, for Mrs.
Lute had long been on the friendliest terms with her neighbours in town. She was one of
the kindest of women, and had been exceedingly sympathetic during Mrs. Fowler's serious
illness in the spring.

When Margaret had executed her list of errands, she made her way to the whitewashed
house, outside which the carriage was waiting; and on being shown into the drawing-room
which faced the road, found her mother and Mrs. Lute seated there conversing happily.

"How warm the poor child looks!" the latter exclaimed. "Sit down in this comfortable chair,
my dear, and let me give you some tea; or would you rather have a glass of wine, for you
look tired, and—"

"Oh, no, thank you!" Margaret interposed hastily.

"Just as you like, my dear; but I persuaded your mother to take a little wine; I thought it
would do her good after her long drive, and I think it has refreshed her. Here's your tea,
my dear! Help yourself to cream and sugar, and do try this cake."

"Thank you, Mrs. Lute."

Margaret was startled for the moment to hear her mother had been drinking wine,
remembering how her father had refused to allow her to take it. She thought Mrs. Fowler
should have declined it; but the matter soon passed from her mind as Mrs. Lute began to
question her about Yelton.

"Everyone tells me it is a charming little village," Mrs. Lute said, "but your mother is not
enthusiastic about it. I think she is beginning to feel the lack of society. I have been telling
her she should be satisfied to have regained her health. She is looking wonderfully well."

Margaret, glancing at her mother, agreed with Mrs. Lute. No one would have guessed at
that moment that Mrs. Fowler had been an invalid so lately, for there was a pink colour in
her cheeks, and her blue eyes were shining with a happy light. She was as glad as was
Margaret to meet their old friend.

"You must pay us a visit at Greystone as soon as my husband returns," she said
hospitably, "and then you will be able to form your own ideas of Yelton and its inhabitants.
Margaret has struck up a friendship with a lame girl, Salome Petherick by name, and I
believe Gerald has picked acquaintance with several fishermen."

"Salome's father is a fisherman," Margaret remarked; "and oh, Salome has the most
beautiful voice you can possibly imagine, hasn't she, mother?"

"She certainly has. When you come to visit us, Mrs. Lute, you shall hear this Cornish
singing-bird. Poor girl, she is a sad cripple, yet she makes herself very useful, attends to
her father's cottage, and even does gardening!"

"She uses a pair of crutches as a rule," Margaret explained, "but when she is gardening,
she somehow manages to hop about on one, so that she has a hand free to work with.
Poor Salome! Her father drinks, and that is a great trouble to her."

"I should think so, indeed!" Mrs. Lute commented. "She ought to try to persuade him to
take the pledge. Total abstinence from all intoxicants is the only thing for some people."

"Father says," Margaret was beginning, when Mrs. Fowler somewhat abruptly changed the
conversation by inquiring for a mutual friend in town. It struck the little girl that her
mother did not wish her to air her father's teetotal views, so during the homeward drive
she recurred to the subject.

"Mother, I was going to tell Mrs. Lute that we are all teetotalers now," she said. "Don't you
want her to know?"
Mrs. Fowler hesitated and frowned slightly, refraining from meeting her little daughter's
gravely inquiring gaze.

"I suppose she will have to know, if she comes to stay with us at Greystone," she
responded in tones of annoyance. "I had forgotten your father's fad when I invited her."

"Oh, mother, don't call it a fad!" Margaret cried distressfully.

"That's what it is, child! Mrs. Lute is accustomed to take wine, yet no one can say she is
not a strictly temperate woman. Your father, I do not doubt, would like her to be a total
abstainer. Such nonsense! He used not to be so fastidious!" And Mrs. Fowler looked quite
angry.

Margaret made no answer. She had perfect faith in her father's judgment, but she felt
herself incapable of arguing the matter from his point of view.

On reaching home they found a telegram from Mr. Fowler, acquainting them with his safe
arrival in London. As Mrs. Fowler read it, the displeasure left her face for a softer, gentler
expression.

"How thoughtful he always is!" she exclaimed.

She was in exceedingly good spirits all the evening, and retired to rest apparently perfectly
well; but about midnight, Margaret was awakened by a sound in the room, and starting up
in bed, found her mother standing by her side in her night-gown, with a lighted candle in
her hand.

"What is it, mother? Are you ill?" The little girl inquired in alarm.

"No, but I am nervous, and cannot sleep! I wish your father had not gone! Did I frighten
you? I hope not. I felt I must have company."

Margaret was greatly astonished, for the thought had continually crossed her mind during
the day that Mrs. Fowler was relieved at her husband's absence. She jumped out of bed
immediately, and led her mother back to her own room.

"I will stay with you to-night, dear mother," she said gently. "You won't feel nervous then."

So mother and daughter lay down side by side, but not to sleep as yet, for the latter was
restless and sighed continually.

"You are sure you are not ill?" Margaret asked with loving anxiety.

"No, I am not ill, but I am very unhappy," was the response in a tone of great sadness.
"Oh, child, I wish you had a better mother!"

"You are the dearest mother in the world," Margaret cried earnestly.

"But very far from being the best. I am very troubled—no, I cannot tell you what about.
No, you couldn't help me. No one can."

"Yes, God can, mother," Margaret reminded her; then she quoted softly—

"When other helpers fail, and comforts flee,

Help of the helpless, O abide with me."
Mrs. Fowler caught her breath with a little sob; but doubtless, the words of Salome's
favourite hymn comforted her, for presently, Margaret knew by her regular breathing that
she had fallen asleep.

The little girl lay awake wondering what trouble her mother could possibly have, or if she
was only nervous and imaginative; and it was not until the first streaks of dawn peeped
into the room that she slept too.

CHAPTER VIII.
An Awful Thing.

WHEN Margaret awoke, she was alone. At first she was surprised to find herself in bed in
her mother's room, but in a few moments, she remembered how that happened to be the
case. Before, however, she had time to dwell much upon the matter, the door opened and
her mother entered, fully dressed, bearing a breakfast tray in her hands, which she placed
on the dressing-table.

"Have I overslept myself?" Margaret inquired. "I am so sorry."

"You need not be, my dear," Mrs. Fowler replied, smiling as she came to the bedside and
kissed her little daughter. "You had a disturbed night on my account. How foolish it was of
me to be too nervous to sleep alone! I blame myself for spoiling your rest. But, see, I have
brought your breakfast, so sit up and eat it at once; after you have had it, you can dress
and come down on the beach with me."

Mrs. Fowler looked alert and well. She talked brightly whilst Margaret was taking her
breakfast, and pulling a letter out of her pocket, which she had received from her husband
by the morning's post, read it aloud. It merely told of his journey to town, and concluded
with his love to the children, and a hope that Mrs. Fowler would take care of herself.

"I shall not tell him how silly I was last night," she said. "I suppose I cannot be quite so
strong as I thought. My late illness played sad havoc with my nerves. It is such a glorious
day, Margaret, that I am sure we ought to spend it out of doors."

Margaret assented willingly, and went to her own room to dress. By-and-by, she and her
mother strolled down to the beach, and passed a pleasant morning in the welcome shade
of a big rock. And in the afternoon, Mrs. Fowler declared her intention of again driving to N
—.

"Won't you be very tired, mother?" Margaret asked dubiously. "You mustn't overdo it, you
know."

"Oh, I will be careful, my dear!" Mrs. Fowler rejoined. "But I want to get some things I
forgot yesterday. Meeting Mrs. Lute so unexpectedly put everything else quite out of my
head. Miss Conway and Gerald can accompany us."

It was not such a pleasant drive as the one of the previous day, for Gerald was tiresome,
and continually stood up in the carriage to look at different objects of interest which
attracted his attention. Miss Conway begged him to sit still, but he would not obey her.
And, at last, he was jolted into his mother's lap, much to her annoyance and to his
amusement. She declared she wished she had left him at home, and that it would be a
long time before she would take him for a drive again. Whereupon, he only laughed, for he
did not believe she meant what she said.

"Are you going to see Mrs. Lute, mother?" Margaret inquired as they neared the town.

"No, not to-day. I will get out at the bottom of Fore Street, and you others shall drive on a
little farther and return for me. No, I will not have you, Gerald! You are to stay with Miss
Conway and your sister."

Mrs. Fowler spoke with decision in her tones; she was evidently determined to do her
shopping alone.

Accordingly, she got out of the carriage at the entrance to the town, and the others saw
her go into a grocer's shop as they were driven on. When the carriage returned a quarter
of an hour later, she was standing waiting outside the same shop. The shopman came out
and placed a parcel in the carriage, then Mrs. Fowler took her seat and gave the order
—"Home." She seemed lost in deep thought during the remainder of the drive, and spoke
but seldom, paying slight attention to the conversation the others carried on. She was
evidently glad to reach Greystone.

"I expect she is really very tired," Margaret reflected, "but does not like to confess it." And
she was confirmed in this opinion when she saw how quiet and languid Mrs. Fowler
appeared during the evening. She did not request Miss Conway to play to her as she
usually did, but lay on the sofa with a book in her lap, yawning occasionally as though
weary of the day, so that neither Margaret nor the governess were surprised when she
declared her intention of going to bed early. She would not hear of Margaret sleeping with
her, however, but kissed both of her children good night in the drawing-room, and told
them not to disturb her when they went upstairs to bed.

It was only eight o'clock when Mrs. Fowler retired for the night. At half-past eight Gerald
was put to bed, after which Margaret and her governess sat down together to their supper.
Each seemed rather depressed, Miss Conway even more so than her little pupil.

"It is so dull without father," Margaret sighed. "I hope he will not stay away very long. Oh,
dear! I think mother is very, very tired to-night, don't you? I am afraid she has been doing
too much."

"I hope not," was the serious reply. "You did not walk far this morning, did you?"

"Oh, no! We were sitting down on the beach most of the time. Mother read the newspaper
and talked and seemed all right then."

"Did you see anything of Salome Petherick?"

"Nothing, though we stood outside her garden several minutes looking at her flowers. I
suppose she was busy in the cottage. Oh, Miss Conway, how I do wish Salome's father was
a teetotaler! I was telling Mrs. Lute about him yesterday, and she said Salome ought to try
to persuade him to take the pledge."

"I did not know that Mrs. Lute was a teetotaler," Miss Conway exclaimed, looking rather
surprised.

"She is not. Indeed, she offered me a glass of wine."