had never had to fight for his point. The weight and momentum Clark put
before him were too great for that. But now every angle of the
Consolidated Company seemed to offer itself for frontal attack. He put
this to his chief in justification of his own anxiety.

"It's been a matter of writs and injunctions all day. There are enough
in my office now to paper the rail mill."

"Well, why should you worry?"

Bowers glanced up with surprise. "Eh?"

"You're doing your duty, you can't do anything more. But perhaps you
feel chagrined at being associated with me in the present difficulty.
You needn't expostulate,--I can quite understand it."

The lawyer turned a brick red. It was quite true. He had begun to look
on this calamity as one for which he and Clark were both partly
responsible.

"If you worry--and it's quite absurd that you should--your value
automatically decreases. Has it occurred to you that, from now on, the
importance of your position is vastly increased? We shall look to you
more than ever. I dare not worry--there's too much to be done. You were
our advisor, now you are our protector against unfair attack--and
there'll be lots of it. What's more, Bowers, you are the only one who is
sure of his money."

Bowers nodded. He began to feel more comfortable.

"What's going on in St. Marys?"

"Nothing much yet--they don't know what to get ready for. Filmer and the
rest are sending out accounts they hope to collect, a good deal of
property is on offer without any takers, but, at the bottom, I don't
think the town is rattled. There's a sort of feeling that the works are
too big to be wiped out."

Clark smiled gravely. He was aware that to the townsfolk the works had
become part of the landscape, and, imaginatively, not much more. But
just as they could not contemplate the obliteration of part of the
landscape, so it was difficult to conceive permanent idleness at the
works. It was a case of the immobility of the non-speculative mind,
which is lethargic in hours of exaltation but comfortably steadfast in
times of stress.

"Listen," he said earnestly. "There's an element in Ironville which may
soon have to be controlled by force; but as to St. Marys what you've got
to do is to spread the feeling that there's nothing like confidence to
maintain business. Can't you see that if your office were knee deep in
writs it doesn't affect you? You've got to remain the efficient,
smoothly working, impe