He is not worth attempting to bully. He is a puppet politician of a
type that ought to have been dead and buried generations ago. Enoch
Stone is our only hope in the House now. He is a strong man, and he
has hold of the truth."

"Have they decided upon Henslow's successor?" she asked.

"Not yet," he answered.

She looked up at him.

"I heard from uncle this morning," she said, smiling meaningly.

He shook his head.

"Well, it was mentioned," he said, "but I would not hear of it. I am
altogether too young and inexperienced. I want to live with the people
for a year or two first. That is why I am glad to get to London."

"With the people?" she asked, "in Jermyn Street?"

He laughed good-humouredly.

"I have also lodgings in the Bethnal Green Road," he said. "I took
possession of them last week."

"Anywhere near Merry's Corner?" she asked.

"What do you know about Merry's Corner?" he exclaimed, with uplifted
eyebrows. "Yes, my rooms are nearly opposite, at the corner of the next
street."

"I've been down there once or twice lately," she said. "There's a
mission-hall just there, and a girl named Kate Stuart gave me a letter
to go three times a week."

He nodded.

"I know the place. Week-night services and hymn-singing and preaching.
A cold, desolate affair altogether. I'm thankful I went in there,
though, for it's given me an idea."

Yes?

"I'm going to start a mission myself."

"Go on."

"On a new principle. The first thing will be that there will be no
religious services whatever. I won't have a clergyman connected with
it. It will be intended solely for the benefit of the people from a
temporal point of view."

"You are going a long way," she said. "What about Sundays?"

"There will be a very short service for the mission helpers only. No
one will be asked from outside at all. If they come it will be as a
favour. Directly it is over the usual week-day procedure will go on.

"And what is that to be?"

Brooks smiled a little doubtfully.

"Well," he said, "I've got the main idea in my head, but all the details
want thinking out. I want the place to be a sort of help bureau, to
give the people living in a certain street or couple of streets
somewhere to go for advice and help in cases of emergency. There will
be no money given away, under any consideration--only food, clothing,
and, if they are asked for, books. I shall have half-a-dozen bathrooms,
and the people who come regularly for advice