Poyser, Martin

Mrs. Poyser's husband and Hetty Sorrel's uncle; a substantial, jovial farmer, the tenant of Hall Farm, and the "broadest man in the parish". "Aportly figure, with a ruddy black-eyed face, which bore in it the possibility of looking extremely acute, and occasionally contemptuous, on market-days, but had now a predominant aftersupper expression of hearty good nature ... he was of so excellent a disposition that he had been kinder and more respectful than ever to his old father since he had made a deed of gift of all his property, and no man judged his neighbours more charitably on all personal matters; but for a farmer, like Luke Britton, for example, whose fallows were not well cleaned, who didn't know the rudiments of hedging and ditching, and showed but a small share of judgment in the purchase of winter stock, Martin Poyser was as hard and implacable as the north-east wind." "Mr. Poyser was in his Sunday suit of drab, with a red-and-green waistcoat, and a green watchribbon having a large cornelian seal attached, pendant like a plumb-line from that promontory where his watch-pocket was situated; a silk handkerchief of a yellow tone round his neck; and excellent grey-ribbed stockings, knitted by Mrs. Poyser's own hand, setting off the proportions of his leg. Mr. Poyser had no reason to be ashamed of his leg, and suspected that the growing abuse of top-boots and other fashions tending to disguise the nether limbs, had their origin in a pitiable degeneracy of the human calf. Still less had he reason to be ashamed of his round, jolly face, which was good-humour itself." He is proud of his wife's superior acuteness and cleverness, and of the unblemished record of his family which has "held up its head and paid its way as far back as its name was in the parish register". His easy good\ nature is a marked contrast to his wife's keen tongue and critical habit, but when his niece, Hetty Sorrel, brings disgrace on the family he is harder towards her than is his faultfinding wife.

<em>Adam Bede</em>

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