Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-01-28
CHAPTER X.

| by the stare OF surprise Alr. Breton had lOf
him. 1t was new experience 20 the mil
owner, meeting his workmen in fashionable
parlors.
"Curran, is itl was sure had seen you
In the mill, but you had on a white apron
them Mr.. Breton laughed Familiarity, but
he did not hold out his hand.
Couldn't Curran see how rudely he was
treatedl Mr.. Breton's laugh and tone rasped
Berthas finer sensibiLties, so that she was al
once indignant with him, and disguised with
Curran who seemed to bear it so uncon'
sciously. CuITan's brow was unrutiled; he
| had only folded his arms across his breast,
sometimes a sign OF excitement with him.
| "Mr Curran had the good fortune, be-
lieve, to do my daughter great service"
| Mr. Ellingsworth's manner was the perfec-
ton of well bred rudeness. 1t expressed the
infinite elevation and polish of the person
who assumed it, far above the very natural
| feeling of disgust ut the presence of so vulgar
a person as this workman. 1t suggested ire
sistibly the great contempt such II person
ought to call forth but at the same time
that Ellingsworth was unapproachable by
even as vulgar thing us contempt.
"Indeedv exclaimed Mr.. Breton, as he
seated himself, ~ will thank you, too, it was
good job for you, and / will see it don't
hurt your interests any, either
"How do you like your work" went on Mr..
| Breton in his harsh mill voice. 81 hope you
amt one of those who don't know when they
are well off,
~ can keep from starving; that is well OFF,
l suppose
Mr. Breton was at loss but for moment
"But you poor people don't save what you
get. You ought to economic
Curran's eyes flashed dangerously, but he
bit his lip and kept silence.
Mr.. Ellingsworth saw IA scene was immi-
nent. How little tact Mr.. Breton showed in
patronizing the young man so provokingly
before the golden haired goddess whom he
had no doubt fallen in love with. Something
must be done.
Excuse ice Have you had any serious
trouble with your wound, Mr. Curranr
~ have only lost few days; that is moth
ing" he answered quickly.
"But it must be considerable for a poor
mani" broke in Mr., Breton, wish his grand
| air; ~ will direct my paymaster to make it
up to YOU
Curran glanced across the room at Miss
Ellingsworth. He expected to see her face
flushed with anger. She would leap to her
feet in indignant remonstrance to shield him
from such impertnence, all the generosity Of
her nature in revolt against such return for
his devotion to her.
She was looking at him, but much as girl
looks at a strange animal she has been pet
ting, when suddenly they tell her he bites.
Curran turned away from her and ground
his teeth. Then he looked at Mr.. Breton
Cant your paynaster make up for the
pain, too as well as the lost timer
Mr.. Ellingsworth was at his wits end. He
saw the cloud gathering in the workman's
eyes, and that his lip trembled with sup
pressed feeling when he spoke.
"How long have you been in town, Mr..
CurranT he said to change the conversation
if possible into safer channels.
"Only six months.n
"Why," volunteered Mr.. Breton after an
awkward silence, that is about as long as
the mill hands have been fault finding so
loudly" The old gentleman looked sharply
at him. 81 don't suppose you would tell who
has been making the trouble"
Eyes, Sir" Curran had risen to his feet,
the flush of offended self respect in his cheeks
When l came here found the mills paying
you II per cent dividends, while the help
who ground them out for you, were crushed
almost to the earth. felt bound to tell them,
as l now tell you, that the owner has no
more God given right to all the profit Of their
work than they to all the profit of his
investment"
"And you are the man who has been stir
ring up this mischief here!" cried Mr.. Bre-
ton almost starting from his chair. He had
caught him at last then. ''And do you say
that man isn't entitled to the interest on
his money! My money represents Thousand
such lives as yours; it ought to have thou
sand times the pay" He had more terrible
guns than of the batteries of logic for the
rebel, but he could not resist the temptation
to explode the fallacies of his class before he
let him go.
The young mans eyes flashed beautifully.
"Your money represents thousand lives,
then, out of which you have sucked the life
bloods And at how much do you value
human lfef AS much as 81 900 for a soult A
thousand dollars for all the joys and hopes
and possibilities of human lifes Your val
uation is too miserably small. / tell you,"
and Curran threw out his right hand in
magnificent gesture, II tell you, a human
creature ought to have for its service good
portion of the comforts and delights the
world is so bounteous with. Anything less
is slavery, a slavery worse than negro bond
age. Do you call it pay that you give the
hopeless men and women that weave gold for
you on your loomsl Rather say the daily
recurring fact of hunger chains them to your
mill"
Mr.. Ellingsworth had sunk back in his
seat in despair; he might as well resign him
self to the situation since it seemed beyond
his power to change it. Mr.. Breton was
likely to hear some startling truths before
he succeeded in refuting this dangerous
young man. Perhaps it was just as well,
too; there is no sense in a mans making his
money as the rich do, by one kind or another
of imposition or injustice and then affect
such ridiculous Inconsistencies. There is
no sense in being blind and stupid about
how one comes TO be rich, the comfortable
fact remaining. What was the use of Breton
wrestling with such young giant as thiss
81 pay my help market prices of labor.
don't propose to make them gifts" The
old gentleman handled his cane nervously,
but he could punish the man enough later
He felt Ellingsworths sharp eyes, he must
think of something to absolutely overwhelm
the arguments of his workman. He ran
over IN his mind the smooth axioms of his |
class, and tried hard to recollect some of the
perfect syllogisms of the political economists |
Curran stood, his elbow resting on the back |
of the chair he had been sitting in, in n at |
titude SO dignified and agraceful that Mr.. !
Elingsworth glanced across at his daughter
to see If she had observed it. 1t was not |
quite SO inconceivable after all, that Bertha |
might have taken fancy to him. But then |
his whole associations had been with the poor,
and what possible harmony, even for mo-
ment-then Mr.. Ellingsworth remembered |
the maid servant crying at this moment in
the dining room.
"Naturally you prefer to let your half
clothed ill fed hands make you the presents;
they earn you big dividends; you throw them
a crust of bread, the market price of labor
you call it, and put the dividends in your own
pocket"
but it's my money made the MILL and my
management runs it."
''As for the money" retorted Curran, ''per-
haps you inherited a part of it, saved by the
tax laid on the poor Of the last generation, or