\'Thenletmeexplain。Withtheintroductionofmachineryandthefactorysysteminthelatterpartoftheeighteenthcentury,thegreatmassoftheworkingpeoplewasseparatedfromtheland。Theoldsystemoflaborwasbrokendown。Theworkingpeopleweredrivenfromtheirvillagesandherdedinfactorytowns。Themothersandchildrenwereputtoworkatthenewmachines。Familylifeceased。Theconditionswerefrightful。Itisataleofblood。\'
\'Iknow,Iknow,\'BishopMorehouseinterruptedwithanagonizedexpressiononhisface。\'Itwasterrible。Butitoccurredacenturyandahalfago。\'
\'Andthere,acenturyandahalfago,originatedthemodernproletariat,\'Ernestcontinued。\'AndtheChurchignoredit。Whileaslaughter—housewasmadeofthenationbythecapitalist,theChurchwasdumb。Itdidnotprotest,asto—dayitdoesnotprotest。AsAustinLewis*says,speakingofthattime,thosetowhomthecommand\"Feedmylambs\"hadbeengiven,sawthoselambssoldintoslaveryandworkedtodeathwithoutaprotest。*（2）TheChurchwasdumb,then,andbeforeI
goonIwantyoueitherflatlytoagreewithmeorflatlytodisagreewithme。WastheChurchdumbthen？\'
*CandidateforGovernorofCaliforniaontheSocialistticketinthefallelectionof1906ChristianEra。AnEnglishmanbybirth,awriterofmanybooksonpoliticaleconomyandphilosophy,andoneoftheSocialistleadersofthetimes。
*（2）ThereisnomorehorriblepageinhistorythanthetreatmentofthechildandwomenslavesintheEnglishfactoriesinthelatterhalfoftheeighteenthcenturyoftheChristianEra。Insuchindustrialhellsarosesomeoftheproudestfortunesofthatday。
BishopMorehousehesitated。LikeDr。Hammerfield,hewasunusedtothisfierce\'infighting,\'asErnestcalledit。
\'Thehistoryoftheeighteenthcenturyiswritten,\'Ernestprompted。
\'IftheChurchwasnotdumb,itwillbefoundnotdumbinthebooks。\'
\'IamafraidtheChurchwasdumb,\'theBishopconfessed。
\'AndtheChurchisdumbto—day。\'
\'ThereIdisagree,\'saidtheBishop。
Ernestpaused,lookedathimsearchingly,andacceptedthechallenge。
\'Allright,\'hesaid。\'Letussee。InChicagotherearewomenwhotoilalltheweekforninetycents。HastheChurchprotested？\'
\'Thisisnewstome,\'wastheanswer。\'Ninetycentsperweek！Itishorrible！\'
\'HastheChurchprotested？\'Ernestinsisted。
\'TheChurchdoesnotknow。\'TheBishopwasstrugglinghard。
\'YetthecommandtotheChurchwas,\"Feedmylambs,\"\'Ernestsneered。Andthen,thenextmoment,\'Pardonmysneer,Bishop。Butcanyouwonderthatwelosepatiencewithyou？WhenhaveyouprotestedtoyourcapitalisticcongregationsattheworkingofchildrenintheSoutherncottonmills？*Children,sixandsevenyearsofage,workingeverynightattwelve—hourshifts？Theyneverseetheblessedsunshine。Theydielikeflies。Thedividendsarepaidoutoftheirblood。AndoutofthedividendsmagnificentchurchesarebuildedinNewEngland,whereinyourkindpreachespleasantplatitudestothesleek,full—belliedrecipientsofthosedividends。\'
*EverhardmighthavedrawnabetterillustrationfromtheSouthernChurch\'soutspokendefenceofchattelslaverypriortowhatisknownasthe\'WaroftheRebellion。\'Severalsuchillustrations,culledfromthedocumentsofthetimes,arehereappended。In1835
A。D。,theGeneralAssemblyofthePresbyterianChurchresolvedthat:
\'slaveryisrecognizedinboththeOldandtheNewTestaments,andisnotcondemnedbytheauthorityofGod。\'TheCharlestonBaptistAssociationissuedthefollowing,inanaddress,in1835A。D。:\'TherightofmasterstodisposeofthetimeoftheirslaveshasbeendistinctlyrecognizedbytheCreatorofallthings,whoissurelyatlibertytovesttherightofpropertyoveranyobjectwhomsoeverHepleases。\'TheRev。E。D。Simon,DoctorofDivinityandprofessorintheRandolph—MaconMethodistCollegeofVirginia,wrote:\'ExtractsfromHolyWritunequivocallyasserttherightofpropertyinslaves,togetherwiththeusualincidentstothatright。Therighttobuyandsellisclearlystated。Uponthewhole,then,whetherweconsulttheJewishpolicyinstitutedbyGodhimself,ortheuniformopinionandpracticeofmankindinallages,ortheinjunctionsoftheNewTestamentandthemorallaw,wearebroughttotheconclusionthatslaveryisnotimmoral。HavingestablishedthepointthatthefirstAfricanslaveswerelegallybroughtintobondage,therighttodetaintheirchildreninbondagefollowsasanindispensableconsequence。ThusweseethattheslaverythatexistsinAmericawasfoundedinright。\'
ItisnotatallremarkablethatthissamenoteshouldhavebeenstruckbytheChurchagenerationorsolaterinrelationtothedefenceofcapitalisticproperty。InthegreatmuseumatAsgardthereisabookentitled\'EssaysinApplication,\'writtenbyHenryvanDyke。Thebookwaspublishedin1905oftheChristianEra。Fromwhatwecanmakeout,VanDykemusthavebeenachurchman。ThebookisagoodexampleofwhatEverhardwouldhavecalledbourgeoisthinking。
NotethesimilaritybetweentheutteranceoftheCharlestonBaptistAssociationquotedabove,andthefollowingutteranceofVanDykeseventyyearslater:\'TheBibleteachesthatGodownstheworld。HedistributestoeverymanaccordingtoHisowngoodpleasure,conformablytogenerallaws。\'
\'Ididnotknow,\'theBishopmurmuredfaintly。Hisfacewaspale,andheseemedsufferingfromnausea。
\'Thenyouhavenotprotested？\'
TheBishopshookhishead。
\'ThentheChurchisdumbto—day,asitwasintheeighteenthcentury？\'
TheBishopwassilent,andforonceErnestforboretopressthepoint。
\'Anddonotforget,wheneverachurchmandoesprotestthatheisdischarged。\'
\'Ihardlythinkthatisfair,\'wastheobjection。
\'Willyouprotest？\'Ernestdemanded。
\'Showmeevils,suchasyoumention,inourowncommunity,andI
willprotest。\'
\'I\'llshowyou,\'Ernestsaidquietly。\'Iamatyourdisposal。Iwilltakeyouonajourneythroughhell。\'
\'AndIshallprotest。\'TheBishopstraightenedhimselfinhischair,andoverhisgentlefacespreadtheharshnessofthewarrior。\'TheChurchshallnotbedumb！\'
\'Youwillbedischarged,\'wasthewarning。
\'Ishallprovethecontrary,\'wastheretort。\'Ishallprove,ifwhatyousayisso,thattheChurchhaserredthroughignorance。
And,furthermore,Iholdthatwhateverishorribleinindustrialsocietyisduetotheignoranceofthecapitalistclass。Itwillmendallthatiswrongassoonasitreceivesthemessage。AndthismessageitshallbethedutyoftheChurchtodeliver。\'
Ernestlaughed。Helaughedbrutally,andIwasdriventotheBishop\'sdefence。
\'Remember,\'Isaid,\'youseebutonesideoftheshield。Thereismuchgoodinus,thoughyougiveuscreditfornogoodatall。
BishopMorehouseisright。Theindustrialwrong,terribleasyousayitis,isduetoignorance。Thedivisionsofsocietyhavebecometoowidelyseparated。\'
\'ThewildIndianisnotsobrutalandsavageasthecapitalistclass,\'heanswered;andinthatmomentIhatedhim。
\'Youdonotknowus,\'Ianswered。\'Wearenotbrutalandsavage。\'
\'Proveit,\'hechallenged。
\'HowcanIproveit……toyou？\'Iwasgrowingangry。
Heshookhishead。\'Idonotaskyoutoproveittome。Iaskyoutoproveittoyourself。\'
\'Iknow,\'Isaid。
\'Youknownothing,\'washisrudereply。
\'There,there,children,\'fathersaidsoothingly。
\'Idon\'tcare—\'Ibeganindignantly,butErnestinterrupted。
\'Iunderstandyouhavemoney,oryourfatherhas,whichisthesamething—moneyinvestedintheSierraMills。\'
\'Whathasthattodowithit？\'Icried。
\'Nothingmuch,\'hebeganslowly,\'exceptthatthegownyouwearisstainedwithblood。Thefoodyoueatisabloodystew。Thebloodoflittlechildrenandofstrongmenisdrippingfromyourveryroof—beams。Icanclosemyeyes,now,andhearitdrip,drop,drip,drop,allaboutme。\'
Andsuitingtheactiontothewords,heclosedhiseyesandleanedbackinhischair。Iburstintotearsofmortificationandhurtvanity。Ihadneverbeensobrutallytreatedinmylife。BoththeBishopandmyfatherwereembarrassedandperturbed。Theytriedtoleadtheconversationawayintoeasierchannels;butErnestopenedhiseyes,lookedatme,andwavedthemaside。Hismouthwasstern,andhiseyestoo;andinthelattertherewasnoglintoflaughter。Whathewasabouttosay,whatterriblecastigationhewasgoingtogiveme,I
neverknew;foratthatmomentaman,passingalongthesidewalk,stoppedandglancedinatus。Hewasalargeman,poorlydressed,andonhisbackwasagreatloadofrattanandbamboostands,chairs,andscreens。Helookedatthehouseasifdebatingwhetherornotheshouldcomeinandtrytosellsomeofhiswares。
\'Thatman\'snameisJackson,\'Ernestsaid。
\'Withthatstrongbodyofhisheshouldbeatwork,andnotpeddling,\'*Iansweredcurtly。
*Inthatdaythereweremanythousandsofthesepoormerchantscalledpedlers。Theycarriedtheirwholestockintradefromdoortodoor。Itwasamostwastefulexpenditureofenergy。Distributionwasasconfusedandirrationalasthewholegeneralsystemofsociety。
\'Noticethesleeveofhisleftarm,\'Ernestsaidgently。
Ilooked,andsawthatthesleevewasempty。
\'ItwassomeofthebloodfromthatarmthatIhearddrippingfromyourroof—beams,\'Ernestsaidwithcontinuedgentleness。\'HelosthisarmintheSierraMills,andlikeabroken—downhorseyouturnedhimoutonthehighwaytodie。WhenIsay\"you,\"Imeanthesuperintendentandtheofficialsthatyouandtheotherstockholderspaytomanagethemillsforyou。Itwasanaccident。Itwascausedbyhistryingtosavethecompanyafewdollars。Thetootheddrumofthepickercaughthisarm。Hemighthaveletthesmallflintthathesawintheteethgothrough。Itwouldhavesmashedoutadoublerowofspikes。Buthereachedfortheflint,andhisarmwaspickedandclawedtoshredsfromthefingertipstotheshoulder。Itwasatnight。Themillswereworkingovertime。Theypaidafatdividendthatquarter。Jacksonhadbeenworkingmanyhours,andhismuscleshadlosttheirresiliencyandsnap。Theymadehismovementsabitslow。
Thatwaswhythemachinecaughthim。Hehadawifeandthreechildren。\'
\'Andwhatdidthecompanydoforhim？\'Iasked。
\'Nothing。Oh,yes,theydiddosomething。Theysuccessfullyfoughtthedamagesuithebroughtwhenhecameoutofhospital。Thecompanyemploysveryefficientlawyers,youknow。\'
\'Youhavenottoldthewholestory,\'Isaidwithconviction。\'Orelseyoudonotknowthewholestory。Maybethemanwasinsolent。\'
\'Insolent！Ha！ha！\'HislaughterwasMephistophelian。\'GreatGod！
Insolent！Andwithhisarmchewedoff！Neverthelesshewasameekandlowlyservant,andthereisnorecordofhishavingbeeninsolent。\'
\'Butthecourts,\'Iurged。\'Thecasewouldnothavebeendecidedagainsthimhadtherebeennomoretotheaffairthanyouhavementioned。\'
\'ColonelIngramisleadingcounselforthecompany。Heisashrewdlawyer。\'Ernestlookedatmeintentlyforamoment,thenwenton。
\'I\'lltellyouwhatyoudo,MissCunningham。YouinvestigateJackson\'scase。\'
\'Ihadalreadydeterminedto,\'Isaidcoldly。
\'Allright,\'hebeamedgood—naturedly,\'andI\'lltellyouwheretofindhim。ButItrembleforyouwhenIthinkofallyouaretoprovebyJackson\'sarm。\'
AndsoitcameaboutthatboththeBishopandIacceptedErnest\'schallenges。Theywentawaytogether,leavingmesmartingwithasenseofinjusticethathadbeendonemeandmyclass。Themanwasabeast。
Ihatedhim,then,andconsoledmyselfwiththethoughtthathisbehaviorwaswhatwastobeexpectedfromamanoftheworkingclass。
CHAPTERTHREE。
Jackson\'sArm。
LITTLEDIDIDREAMTHEFATEFULpartJackson\'sarmwastoplayinmylife。JacksonhimselfdidnotimpressmewhenIhuntedhimout。I
foundhiminacrazy,ramshackle*housedownnearthebayontheedgeofthemarsh。Poolsofstagnantwaterstoodaroundthehouse,theirsurfacescoveredwithagreenandputrid—lookingscum,whilethestenchthatarosefromthemwasintolerable。
*Anadjectivedescriptiveofruinedanddilapidatedhousesinwhichgreatnumbersoftheworkingpeoplefoundshelterinthosedays。
Theyinvariablypaidrent,and,consideringthevalueofsuchhouses,enormousrent,tothelandlords。
IfoundJacksonthemeekandlowlymanhehadbeendescribed。Hewasmakingsomesortofrattan—work,andhetoiledonstolidlywhileI
talkedwithhim。Butinspiteofhismeeknessandlowliness,IfanciedIcaughtthefirstnoteofanascentbitternessinhimwhenhesaid:
\'Theymighta—givenmeajobaswatchman,*anyway。\'
*Inthosedaysthieverywasincrediblyprevalent。Everybodystolepropertyfromeverybodyelse。Thelordsofsocietystolelegallyorelselegalizedtheirstealing,whilethepoorerclassesstoleillegally。Nothingwassafeunlessguarded。Enormousnumbersofmenwereemployedaswatchmentoprotectproperty。Thehousesofthewell—to—dowereacombinationofsafedepositvaultandfortress。
Theappropriationofthepersonalbelongingsofothersbyourownchildrenofto—dayislookeduponasarudimentarysurvivalofthetheft—characteristicthatinthoseearlytimeswasuniversal。
Igotlittleoutofhim。Hestruckmeasstupid,andyetthedeftnesswithwhichheworkedwithhisonehandseemedtobeliehisstupidity。Thissuggestedanideatome。
\'Howdidyouhappentogetyourarmcaughtinthemachine？\'Iasked。
Helookedatmeinaslowandponderingway,andshookhishead。
\'Idon\'tknow。Itjusthappened。\'
\'Carelessness？\'Iprompted。
\'No,\'heanswered,\'Iain\'tforcallin\'itthat。Iwasworkin\'
overtime,an\'IguessIwastiredoutsome。Iworkedseventeenyearsinthemmills,an\'I\'vetooknoticethatmostoftheaccidentshappensjustbeforewhistle—blow。*I\'mwillin\'tobetthatmoreaccidentshappensinthehourbeforewhistle—blowthaninalltherestoftheday。Amanain\'tsoquickafterworkin\'steadyforhours。I\'veseentoomanyof\'emcutupan\'gougedan\'chawednottoknow。\'
*Thelaborerswerecalledtoworkanddismissedbysavage,screaming,nerve—rackingsteam—whistles。
\'Manyofthem？\'Iqueried。
\'Hundredsan\'hundreds,an\'children,too。\'
Withtheexceptionoftheterribledetails,Jackson\'sstoryofhisaccidentwasthesameasthatIhadalreadyheard。WhenIaskedhimifhehadbrokensomeruleofworkingthemachinery,heshookhishead。
\'Ichuckedoffthebeltwithmyrighthand,\'hesaid,\'an\'madeareachfortheflintwithmyleft。Ididn\'tstoptoseeifthebeltwasoff。Ithoughtmyrighthandhaddoneit—onlyitdidn\'t。Ireachedquick,andthebeltwasn\'tallthewayoff。Andthenmyarmwaschewedoff。\'
\'Itmusthavebeenpainful,\'Isaidsympathetically。
\'Thecrunchin\'oftheboneswasn\'tnice,\'washisanswer。
Hismindwasratherhazyconcerningthedamagesuit。Onlyonethingwascleartohim,andthatwasthathehadnotgotanydamages。Hehadafeelingthatthetestimonyoftheforemenandthesuperintendenthadbroughtabouttheadversedecisionofthecourt。
Theirtestimony,asheputit,\'wasn\'twhatitoughttohaveben。\'AndtothemIresolvedtogo。
Onethingwasplain,Jackson\'ssituationwaswretched。Hiswifewasinillhealth,andhewasunabletoearn,byhisrattan—workandpeddling,sufficientfoodforthefamily。Hewasbackinhisrent,andtheoldestboy,aladofeleven,hadstartedtoworkinthemills。
\'Theymighta—givenmethatwatchman\'sjob,\'werehislastwordsasIwentaway。
BythetimeIhadseenthelawyerwhohadhandledJackson\'scase,andthetwoforemenandthesuperintendentatthemillswhohadtestified,IbegantofeelthattherewassomethingafterallinErnest\'scontention。
Hewasaweakandinefficient—lookingman,thelawyer,andatsightofhimIdidnotwonderthatJackson\'scasehadbeenlost。MyfirstthoughtwasthatithadservedJacksonrightforgettingsuchalawyer。ButthenextmomenttwoofErnest\'sstatementscameflashingintomyconsciousness:\'Thecompanyemploysveryefficientlawyers\'
and\'ColonelIngramisashrewdlawyer。\'Ididsomerapidthinking。ItdawneduponmethatofcoursethecompanycouldaffordfinerlegaltalentthancouldaworkingmanlikeJackson。Butthiswasmerelyaminordetail。Therewassomeverygoodreason,Iwassure,whyJackson\'scasehadgoneagainsthim。
\'Whydidyoulosethecase？\'Iasked。
Thelawyerwasperplexedandworriedforamoment,andIfounditinmyhearttopitythewretchedlittlecreature。Thenhebegantowhine。
Idobelievehiswhinewascongenital。Hewasamanbeatenatbirth。
Hewhinedaboutthetestimony。Thewitnesseshadgivenonlytheevidencethathelpedtheotherside。NotonewordcouldhegetoutofthemthatwouldhavehelpedJackson。Theyknewwhichsidetheirbreadwasbutteredon。Jacksonwasafool。Hehadbeenbrow—beatenandconfusedbyColonelIngram。ColonelIngramwasbrilliantatcross—examination。HehadmadeJacksonanswerdamagingquestions。
\'Howcouldhisanswersbedamagingifhehadtherightonhisside？\'
Idemanded。
\'What\'srightgottodowithit？\'hedemandedback。\'Youseeallthosebooks。\'Hemovedhishandoverthearrayofvolumesonthewallsofhistinyoffice。\'Allmyreadingandstudyingofthemhastaughtmethatlawisonethingandrightisanotherthing。Askanylawyer。
YougotoSunday—schooltolearnwhatisright。Butyougotothosebookstolearn……law。\'
\'DoyoumeantotellmethatJacksonhadtherightonhissideandyetwasbeaten？\'Iqueriedtentatively。\'DoyoumeantotellmethatthereisnojusticeinJudgeCaldwell\'scourt？\'
Thelittlelawyerglaredatmeamoment,andthenthebelligerencefadedoutofhisface。
\'Ihadn\'tafairchance,\'hebeganwhiningagain。\'TheymadeafooloutofJacksonandoutofme,too。WhatchancehadI？ColonelIngramisagreatlawyer。Ifhewasn\'tgreat,wouldhehavechargeofthelawbusinessoftheSierraMills,oftheErstonLandSyndicate,oftheBerkeleyConsolidated,oftheOakland,SanLeandro,andPleasantonElectric？He\'sacorporationlawyer,andcorporationlawyersarenotpaidforbeingfools。*WhatdoyouthinktheSierraMillsalonegivehimtwentythousanddollarsayearfor？Becausehe\'sworthtwentythousanddollarsayeartothem,that\'swhatfor。
I\'mnotworththatmuch。IfIwas,Iwouldn\'tbeontheoutside,starvingandtakingcaseslikeJackson\'s。WhatdoyouthinkI\'dhavegotifI\'dwonJackson\'scase？\'
\'You\'dhaverobbedhim,mostprobably,\'Ianswered。
\'OfcourseIwould,\'hecriedangrily。\'I\'vegottolive,haven\'tI？\'*（2）
*Thefunctionofthecorporationlawyerwastoserve,bycorruptmethods,themoney—grabbingpropensitiesofthecorporations。ItisonrecordthatTheodoreRoosevelt,atthattimePresidentoftheUnitedStates,saidin1905A。D。,inhisaddressatHarvardCommencement:\'Weallknowthat,asthingsactuallyare,manyofthemostinfluentialandmosthighlyremuneratedmembersoftheBarineverycentreofwealth,makeittheirspecialtasktoworkoutboldandingeniousschemesbywhichtheirwealthyclients,individualorcorporate,canevadethelawswhichweremadetoregulate,intheinterestsofthepublic,theusesofgreatwealth。\'
*（2）Atypicalillustrationoftheinternecinestrifethatpermeatedallsociety。Menpreyedupononeanotherlikeraveningwolves。Thebigwolvesatethelittlewolves,andinthesocialpackJacksonwasoneoftheleastofthelittlewolves。
\'Hehasawifeandchildren,\'Ichided。
\'SohaveIawifeandchildren,\'heretorted。\'Andthere\'snotasoulinthisworldexceptmyselfthatcareswhethertheystarveornot。\'
Hisfacesuddenlysoftened,andheopenedhiswatchandshowedmeasmallphotographofawomanandtwolittlegirlspastedinsidethecase。
\'Theretheyare。Lookatthem。We\'vehadahardtime,ahardtime。I
hadhopedtosendthemawaytothecountryifI\'dwonJackson\'scase。They\'renothealthyhere,butIcan\'taffordtosendthemaway。\'
WhenIstartedtoleave,hedroppedbackintohiswhine。
\'Ihadn\'ttheghostofachance。ColonelIngramandJudgeCaldwellareprettyfriendly。I\'mnotsayingthatifI\'dgottherightkindoftestimonyoutoftheirwitnessesoncross—examination,thatfriendshipwouldhavedecidedthecase。AndyetImustsaythatJudgeCaldwelldidawholelottopreventmygettingthatverytestimony。Why,JudgeCaldwellandColonelIngrambelongtothesamelodgeandthesameclub。Theyliveinthesameneighborhood—oneI
can\'tafford。Andtheirwivesarealwaysinandoutofeachother\'shouses。They\'realwayshavingwhistpartiesandsuchthingsbackandforth。\'
\'AndyetyouthinkJacksonhadtherightofit？\'Iasked,pausingforthemomentonthethreshold。
\'Idon\'tthink;Iknowit,\'washisanswer。\'AndatfirstI
thoughthehadsomeshow,too。ButIdidn\'ttellmywife。Ididn\'twanttodisappointher。Shehadherheartsetonatriptothecountryhardenoughasitwas。\'
\'WhydidyounotcallattentiontothefactthatJacksonwastryingtosavethemachineryfrombeinginjured？\'IaskedPeterDonnelly,oneoftheforemenwhohadtestifiedatthetrial。
Heponderedalongtimebeforereplying。Thenhecastananxiouslookabouthimandsaid:
\'BecauseI\'veagoodwifean\'threeofthesweetestchildrenyeeverlaideyeson,that\'swhy。\'
\'Idonotunderstand,\'Isaid。
\'Inotherwords,becauseitwouldn\'ta—benhealthy,\'heanswered。
\'Youmean—\'Ibegan。
Butheinterruptedpassionately。
\'ImeanwhatIsaid。It\'slongyearsI\'veworkedinthemills。I
beganasalittleladonthespindles。Iworkedupeversince。It\'sbyhardworkIgottomypresentexaltedposition。I\'maforeman,ifyouplease。An\'Idoubtmeifthere\'samaninthemillsthat\'dputoutahandtodragmefromdrownin\'。Iusedtobelongtotheunion。
ButI\'vestayedbythecompanythroughtwostrikes。Theycalledme\"scab。\"There\'snotamanamong\'emto—daytotakeadrinkwithmeifIaskedhim。D\'yeseethescarsonmeheadwhereIwasstruckwithflyingbricks？Thereain\'tachildatthespindlesbutwhatwouldcursemename。Meonlyfriendisthecompany。It\'snotmeduty,butmebreadan\'butteran\'thelifeofmechildrentostandbythemills。
That\'swhy。\'
\'WasJacksontoblame？\'Iasked。
\'Heshoulda—gotthedamages。Hewasagoodworkeran\'nevermadetrouble。\'
\'Thenyouwerenotatlibertytotellthewholetruth,asyouhadsworntodo？\'
Heshookhishead。
\'Thetruth,thewholetruth,andnothingbutthetruth？\'Isaidsolemnly。
Againhisfacebecameimpassioned,andheliftedit,nottome,buttoheaven。
\'I\'dletmesoulan\'bodyburnineverlastin\'hellforthemchildrenofmine,\'washisanswer。
HenryDallas,thesuperintendent,wasavulpine—facedcreaturewhoregardedmeinsolentlyandrefusedtotalk。NotawordcouldIgetfromhimconcerningthetrialandhistestimony。ButwiththeotherforemanIhadbetterluck。JamesSmithwasahard—facedman,andmyheartsankasIencounteredhim。He,too,gavemetheimpressionthathewasnotafreeagent,aswetalkedIbegantoseethathewasmentallysuperiortotheaverageofhiskind。HeagreedwithPeterDonnellythatJacksonshouldhavegotdamages,andhewentfartherandcalledtheactionheartlessandcold—bloodedthathadturnedtheworkeradriftafterhehadbeenmadehelplessbytheaccident。Also,heexplainedthatthereweremanyaccidentsinthemills,andthatthecompany\'spolicywastofighttothebitterendallconsequentdamagesuits。
\'Itmeanshundredsofthousandsayeartothestockholders,\'hesaid;andashespokeIrememberedthelastdividendthathadbeenpaidmyfather,andtheprettygownformeandthebooksforhimthathadbeenboughtoutofthatdividend。IrememberedErnest\'schargethatmygownwasstainedwithblood,andmyfleshbegantocrawlunderneathmygarments。
\'Whenyoutestifiedatthetrial,youdidn\'tpointoutthatJacksonreceivedhisaccidentthroughtryingtosavethemachineryfromdamage？\'Isaid。
\'No,Ididnot,\'wastheanswer,andhismouthsetbitterly。\'I
testifiedtotheeffectthatJacksoninjuredhimselfbyneglectandcarelessness,andthatthecompanywasnotinanywaytoblameorliable。\'
\'Wasitcarelessness？\'Iasked。
\'Callitthat,oranythingyouwanttocallit。Thefactis,amangetstiredafterhe\'sbeenworkingforhours。\'
Iwasbecominginterestedintheman。Hecertainlywasofasuperiorkind。
\'Youarebettereducatedthanmostworkingmen,\'Isaid。
\'Iwentthroughhighschool,\'hereplied。\'Iworkedmywaythroughdoingjanitor—work。Iwantedtogothroughtheuniversity。Butmyfatherdied,andIcametoworkinthemills。
\'Iwantedtobecomeanaturalist,\'heexplainedshyly,asthoughconfessingaweakness。\'Iloveanimals。ButIcametoworkinthemills。WhenIwaspromotedtoforemanIgotmarried,thenthefamilycame,and……well,Iwasn\'tmyownbossanymore。\'
\'Whatdoyoumeanbythat？\'Iasked。
\'IwasexplainingwhyItestifiedatthetrialthewayIdid—whyIfollowedinstructions。\'
\'Whoseinstructions？\'
\'ColonelIngram。HeoutlinedtheevidenceIwastogive。\'
\'AnditlostJackson\'scaseforhim。\'
Henodded,andthebloodbegantorisedarklyinhisface。
\'AndJacksonhadawifeandtwochildrendependentonhim。\'
\'Iknow,\'hesaidquietly,thoughhisfacewasgrowingdarker。
\'Tellme,\'Iwenton,\'wasiteasytomakeyourselfoverfromwhatyouwere,sayinhighschool,tothemanyoumusthavebecometodosuchathingatthetrial？\'
Thesuddennessofhisoutburststartledandfrightenedme。Heripped*outasavageoath,andclenchedhisfistasthoughabouttostrikeme。
*Itisinterestingtonotethevirilitiesoflanguagethatwerecommonspeechinthatday,asindicativeofthelife,\'redofclawandfang,\'thatwasthenlived。Referenceisheremade,ofcourse,nottotheoathofSmith,buttotheverbrippedusedbyAvisEverhard。
\'Ibegyourpardon,\'hesaidthenextmoment。\'No,itwasnoteasy。AndnowIguessyoucangoaway。You\'vegotallyouwantedoutofme。Butletmetellyouthisbeforeyougo。Itwon\'tdoyouanygoodtorepeatanythingI\'vesaid。I\'lldenyit,andtherearenowitnesses。I\'lldenyeverywordofit;andifIhaveto,I\'lldoitunderoathonthewitnessstand。\'
AftermyinterviewwithSmithIwenttomyfather\'sofficeintheChemistryBuildingandthereencounteredErnest。Itwasquiteunexpected,buthemetmewithhisboldeyesandfirmhand—clasp,andwiththatcuriousblendofhisawkwardnessandease。Itwasasthoughourlaststormymeetingwasforgotten;butIwasnotinthemoodtohaveitforgotten。