effect of a throng of busy angry insects but richard knew better he had penetrated their disguise a disguise assumed to their ultimate purpose with the greater certainty he knew them to be human he knew their purpose to be a moral one and looking upon them the spirit which animated them he was taken with a reverence and sympathy for average toiling humanity by him before for he saw that by these the workers the final issues are inevitably decided by these the final verdict is pronounced they may be contemptible but in their intelligence strength they are little short of majestic of art letters practical even religion even in a degree nature herself they are alike and judges it must be s progress sa it always has been so time out of mind in point of fact and then he wondered why they were so patient of why had they not risen long ago and the pretensions of those indolent the of the honey � those of whom by birth and wealthy and he was himself so conspicuous an example but then clearer understanding of this whole strange matter came to him � they like all else � mighty though they are in their intention � are obedient to fate they can only act when the time is ripe and then he understood still more clearly their purpose in here whether they were conscious of it or not was they were present to witness and to accomplish an act of justice � richard paused a moment struggling with his own thought and then he saw quite plainly that he himself was the object of that act of justice he himself was the centre of that dimly apprehended approaching event his his by means of that punishment was that which had brought this great multitude together here to night he was awed yet with that awe came gratitude an immense sense of relief he need not seek self losing himself among far away or the ice bound regions of the south he could stay here sit quite still even � and that was well for he was horribly tired and spent he need only wait when the time was ripe they would do all the rest � do it for him by doing it to him � how finely simple it all was incidentally he wondered if it would hurt very much not that that mattered for beyond lay peace only he hoped they would get to work pretty soon so that it might be over before the end of the second act when the would come back richard s face had grown very youthful and eager his eyes were bright and still he gazed down at that great company his heart went out to it he loved it loved each and every member of it as he had never conceived of loving heretofore he would hke to have gone down among them and become part of them one with them in purpose a of their strength but that was forbidden they were his yet in that capacity they were not the less but the more they were welcome to exact full justice he longed after them longed after the pain it was their mission to inflict � and they were getting ready surely they were getting ready there was a sensible movement among them they turned pale faces away sir richard from the brilliantly lighted stage and towards the great of them they were busy insects again and they � angrily they yet even while noted all this greatly moved by it its inner meaning its profound relation to himself and the drama of his own existence he was not wholly of the progress of the opera and the charm of the graceful and music which saluted his ears he was aware of the entrance of the hero of his greeting by his clad followers he felt kindly just off the surface of his emotion so to speak towards this of the young actor s appearance was attractive his voice fresh and sympathetic his bearing modest but the aristocratic occupants of the boxes treated him the famous tenor whose name was on the programme having failed to arrive this local and comparatively artist had been called upon to fill his part therefore the smart world talked more loudly than before while the occupants of the jealous for the reputation of their fellow citizen broke forth into stormy protest and richard could have found it in his heart to protest also for it was a waste of energy this senseless conflict it was unworthy of the dignity of that dull coloured multitude on whom his hopes were so strangely set � of the men in whose hands are the final rewards and by whose voice the final judgment is pronounced it pained him to see these ministers of the eternal justice thus led away by trivial and their attention distracted from the main issue for what in god s name did he and his sentimental love amount to this pretty fellow of a player this hero of the modern stage weighed in the he and his whole occupation and calling were lighter surely than vanity itself rightly considered he and his singing were but as a as some glittering trifle of upon the veil still hiding the awful yet countenance of that tremendous and so surely ai event � let him sing away then sing in peace for the sound of his singing might help to the weariness of the hours until the supreme hour should strike and the glittering veil be torn asunder and the countenance it covered be at last and wholly revealed reasoning thus richard raised his opera glasses and swept those many of and the aspect of them was to him very sinister for everywhere he seemed to encounter soft faces of hot s progress colour and costly clothing devised to the physical of womanhood 