pended, as it was
at this moment. The advocacy of the Damesley strike had been so far a
stroke of business for Wharton as a Labour Member.

It was now the seventh week of the strike, and Wharton's "leaders,"
Craven's letters from the seat of war, and the _Clarion_ strike fund,
which articles and letters had called into existence, were as vigorous
as ever. The struggle itself had fallen into two chapters. In the first
the metal-workers concerned, both men and women, had stood out for the
old wages unconditionally and had stoutly rejected all idea of
arbitration. At the end of three or four weeks, however, when grave
suffering had declared itself among an already half-starved population,
the workers had consented to take part in the appointment of a board of
conciliation. This board, including the workmen's delegates, overawed
by the facts of foreign competition as they were disclosed by the
masters, recommended terms which would have amounted to a victory for
the employers.

The award was no sooner known in the district than the passionate
indignation of the great majority of the workers knew no bounds.
Meetings were held everywhere; the men's delegates at the board were
thrown over, and Craven, who with his new wife was travelling
incessantly over the whole strike area, wrote a letter to the _Clarion_
on the award which stated the men's case with extreme ability, was
immediately backed up by Wharton in a tremendous "leader," and was
received among the strikers with tears almost of gratitude and
enthusiasm.

Since then all negotiations had been broken off. The _Clarion_ had gone
steadily against the masters, against the award, against further
arbitration. The theory of the "living wage," of which more recent days
have heard so much, was preached in other terms, but with equal vigour;
and the columns of the _Clarion_ bore witness day by day in the long
lists of subscriptions to the strike fund, to the effects of its
eloquence on the hearts and pockets of Englishmen.

Meanwhile there were strange rumours abroad. It was said that the trade
was really on the eve of a complete and striking revolution in its whole
conditions--could this labour war be only cleared out of the way. The
smaller employers had been for long on the verge of ruin; and the larger
men, so report had it, were scheming a syndicate on the American plan
to embrace the whole industry, cut down the costs of production, and
regulate the output.

But for