t a
smoke."

Upon the receipt of Mr. Hardinge's official report, strongly condemning
the arrangements in the Vaughan, Mr. Brook at once appointed a new
manager in the place of Mr. Thompson, and upon his arrival he made him
acquainted with the extent of Jack's knowledge and ability, and
requested him to keep his eye specially upon him, and to employ him, as
far as possible, as his right-hand man in carrying out his orders.

"I wish that main wind drift were through," Jack said one day, six
months after his appointment, as he was sitting over his tea with Bill
Haden. "The gas is coming in very bad in the new workings."

"Wuss nor I ever knew't, Jack. It's a main good job that the furnace was
made bigger, and some o' th' airways widened, for it does come out sharp
surely. In th' old part where I be, a' don't notice it; but when I went
down yesterday where Peter Jones be working, the gas were just whistling
out of a blower close by."

"Another fortnight, and the airway will be through, dad; and that will
make a great change. I shall be very glad, for the pit's in a bad state
now."

"Ah! thou think'st a good deal of it, Jack, because thou'st got part of
the 'sponsibility of it. It don't fret me."

"I wish the men wouldn't smoke, dad; I don't want to get a bad name for
reporting them, but it's just playing with their lives."

Bill Haden was silent; he was given to indulge in a quiet smoke himself,
as Jack, working with him for five years, well knew.

"Well, Jack, thou know'st there's a craving for a draw or two of bacca."

"So there is for a great many other things that we have to do without,"
Jack said. "If it were only a question of a man blowing himself to
pieces I should say nought about it; but it is whether he is willing to
make five hundred widows and two thousand orphans rather than go for a
few hours without smoking. What is the use of Davy-lamps? what is the
use of all our care as to the ventilation, if at any moment the gas may
be fired at a lamp opened for lighting a pipe? I like my pipe, but if I
thought there was ever any chance of its becoming my master I would
never touch tobacco again."

Three days later, when Jack came up from his rounds at ten o'clock, to
eat his breakfast and write up his journal of the state of the mine, he
saw Mr. Brook and the manager draw up to the pit mouth. Jack shrank back
from the little window of the office where he was writing, and did not
look out again until he knew