The monk lays out the cards. The first card is the six of cups. It suggests a meeting, perhaps a formal meeting and the making of an alliance. The second card is the four of wands and instantly he understands that this is a railway board. In 1836 the Taff Railway Board was formed to deliver coal and iron to Cardiff docks from Merthyr and all stops in between. The third card, the seven of swords, suggests another alliance; a brotherhood, an union. The monk is sensing trouble; rising working class consciousness. The monk is unsurprised by what he sees then, the ace of coins. The workers always want more money. At first the monk thinks that the next card, Judgement, is the union calling the workers out, but these are not mineworkers, their defenceless nakedness suggests something else, the company evicting the trouble makers and their families. The following card, The Wheel of Fortune, shows the workers gain ascendency; like monkeys they are all over the engines preventing them from moving and they have the upper hand. But the wheel will turn again. The monk is sure of this. The company will gain reparation for this outrage. That the decision goes against the union seems to be borne out. The Moon shows dogs howling, shut out from the city and the true company of men, they ululate in the stink and decay that surrounds them. The next card worries him. The queen of swords is carrying a red sword, she is looking towards these dogs with sympathy, she is going to avenge their wrongs.
Marseilles pack
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