ed him curtly.

Saltash raised his eyes suddenly. "When they do--what then?" he said.

"What do you mean?" said Dick.

He laughed mischievously. "I suppose you know that you are credited with
being at their head?"

Dick, in the act of striking a match, paused. He looked at the other man
with raised brows. "At their head?" he questioned. "What do you mean?"

Without the smallest change of countenance Saltash enlightened him. "As
strike-leader, agitator, and so on. You have achieved an enviable
reputation by your philanthropy. Didn't you know?"

Dick struck the match with an absolutely steady hand, and held it to his
cigarette. "I did not," he said.

Saltash puffed at the cigarette, peering at him curiously through the
smoke. "Which may account for your failure to find Ivor Yardley," he
suggested after a moment.

"In what way?" said Dick.

Saltash straightened himself. "I imagine he is not a great believer
in--philanthropy," he said.

Dick's eyes shone with an ominous glitter. "From my point of view these
insinuations are not worth considering," he said, "though no doubt it has
given you a vast amount of enjoyment to fabricate them."

"I!" said Saltash.

"You!" said Dick.

There was a moment's silence, then Saltash began to laugh. "My dear chap,
you don't really think that! You'd like to--but you can't!"

Dick looked at him, thin-lipped, uncompromising, silent.

"You actually do?" questioned Saltash. "You really think I care a
twopenny damn what anybody thinks about you or anyone else under the sun?
I say, don't be an ass, Green, whatever else you are! It's too tiring for
all concerned. If you really want to know who is responsible--"

"Well?" said Dick.

"Well," Saltash sent a cloud of smoke upwards, "look a bit nearer home,
man! Haven't you got--a brother somewhere?"

Dick gave a sudden start. "I have not!" he said sternly.

Saltash nodded. "Ah! Well, I imagine Yardley knows him if you don't. He
is the traitor in the camp, and he's out to trip you if he can." He
laughed again with careless humour. "I don't know why I should give you
the tip. It is not my custom to heap coals of fire. Pray excuse them on
this occasion! I suppose you are quite determined to take _Juliette_ to
the meeting to-night?"

"I am quite determined to go," said Juliet quietly, as she came down the
stairs. "Will you have anything, Charles? No? Then let us start! It is
getting late. You are driving yourself?"

He threw open