> he would have them pay for his dinner or he wouldn't go I assume this means he was not paid for his intervention otherwise? That sounds perfectly reasonable

> he would have them pay for his dinner or he wouldn't go I assume this means he was not paid for his intervention otherwise? That sounds perfectly reasonable to me. In my city, there is a big punk squat/concert room which does not pay bands for playing, but they provide them with shelter and food. That's like, the minimum when you ask someone to come. Also, I wouldn't see myself inviting friends to my place and ask them to pay for their food.