ll?"

"Oh, yes," Darrell answered, laughing; "I went to work as usual, only to
find the door shut in my face, the same as the rest."

"H'm! What do you think of the 'strike' now?"

"I think you are making them swallow their own medicine, but I don't see
why you need give me a dose of it; I haven't threatened to strike."

Mr. Underwood's eyes twinkled shrewdly as he replied, "You had better go
out there and get your pay along with the rest, and then go to your room
and pack up. You may not be needed at the mill again for the next six
months."

"Will it be as serious as that, do you think?" Darrell inquired.

Before Mr. Underwood could reply the superintendent opened the office
door hastily.

"Mr. Underwood," he said, "will you come out and speak to the men? They
are all waiting outside and I can't drive them away; they say they won't
stir till they've seen you."

With a look of annoyance Mr. Underwood rose and passed out into the
office; Darrell, somewhat interested, followed.

"Well, boys," said Mr. Underwood, as he appeared in the doorway, "what
do you want of me?"

"If you please, sir," said one man, evidently spokesman for the crowd,
and whom Darrell at once recognized as Dan, the engineer,--"if you
please, sir, we would like to know how long this shut-down is going to
last."

"Can't tell," Mr. Underwood replied, shortly; "can't tell anything about
it at present; it's indefinite."

"Well," persisted the man, "there's some of us as thought that mebbe
'twould only be till this 'ere trouble about the meals is settled, one
way or t'other; and there's some as thought mebbe it hadn't nothing to
do with that."

"Well?" said Mr. Underwood, impatiently.

"Well, sir," said Dan, lowering his voice a little and edging nearer Mr.
Underwood, "you know as how the most of us was satisfied with things as
they was, and didn't want no change and wouldn't have made no kick,
only, you see, we had to, and we felt kinder anxious to know whether if
this thing got settled some way and the camp opened up again, whether we
could get back in our old places?"

"Dan," said Mr. Underwood, impressively, and speaking loudly enough for
every man to hear, "there can be no settlement of this question except
to have things go on under precisely the same terms and conditions as
they've always gone; so none of your leaders need come to me for terms,
for they won't get 'em. And as to opening up the mines and mill, I'll
open them up when