orders he had then on hand. He had locked
up a good deal of his capital in new and
expensive machinery, and he had also bought
cotton largely, for the fulfilment of these
orders, taken under contract. That he had
not been able to complete them, was owing
in some degree to the utter want of skill on
the part of the Irish hands whom he had
imported; much of their work was damaged
and unfit to be sent forth by a house which
prided itself on turning out nothing but first-
rate articles. For many months, the
embarrassment caused by the strike had been an
obstacle in Mr. Thornton's way; and often,
when his eye fell on Higgins, he could have
spoken angrily to him without any present
cause, just from feeling how serious was the
injury that had arisen from this affair in which
he was implicated. But when he became
conscious of this sudden, quick resentment,
he resolved to curb it. It would not satisfy
him to avoid Higgins; he must convince
himself that he was master over his own anger,
by being particularly careful to allow Higgins
access to him, whenever the strict rules of
business, or Mr. Thornton's leisure permitted.
And by-and-bye, he lost all sense of resentment
in wonder how it was, or could be, that
two men like himself and Higgins, living by
the same trade, working in their different
ways at the same object, could look upon
each other's position and duties in so strangely
different a way. And thence arose that
intercourse, which though it might not have the
effect of preventing all future clash of opinion
and action, when the occasion arose, would,
at any rate, enable both master and man to
look upon each other with far more charity
and sympathy, and bear with each other more
patiently and kindly. Besides this improvement
of feeling, both Mr. Thornton and his
workmen found out their ignorance as to
positive matters of fact, known heretofore to
one side, but not to the other.

But now had come one of those periods
of bad trade, when the market falling brought
down the value of all large stocks; Mr.
Thornton's fell to nearly half. No orders
were coming in; so he lost the interest of
the capital he had locked up in machinery;
indeed, it was difficult to get payment for
the orders completed; yet there was the
constant drain of expenses for working the
business. Then the bills came due for the
cotton he had purchased; and money being
scarce he could only borrow at exorbitant
interest, and yet he could not realise any
of his property. But he did not despair;
he exerted himself day and night to foresee
and to provide for all emergencies; he was
as calm and gentle to the women
in his home as ever; to the workmen
in his mill he spoke not many words,
but they knew him by this time; and many
a curt, decided answer was received by them
rather with sympathy for the care they saw
pressing upon him, than with the suppressed
antagonism which had formerly been
smouldering, and ready for hard words and hard
judgments on all occasions. "Th' measter's
a deal to potter him," said Higgins, one day,
as he heard Mr. Thornton's short, sharp
inquiry, why such a command had not been
obeyed; and caught the sound of the
suppressed sigh which he heard in going past the
room where some of the men were working.
Higgins and another man stopped over-hours
that night, unknown to any one, to get the
neglected piece of work done; and Mr. Thornton
never knew but that the overlooker, to
whom he had given the command in the first
instance, had done it himself.

"Eh! I reckon I know who'd ha' been
sorry for to see our measter sitting so like a
piece o' grey calico! Th' ou'd parson would ha'
fretted his woman's heart out, if he'd seen the
woeful looks I have seen on our measter's face,"
thought Higgins, one day, as he was approaching
Mr. Thornton in Marlborough Street.

"Measter," said he, stopping his employer
in his quick resolved walk, and causing that
gentleman to look up with a sudden annoyed
start, as if his thoughts had been far away.

"Have yo' heerd aught of Miss Marget
lately?"

"Miss—who?" replied Mr. Thornton.

"Miss Marget—Miss Hale—th' oud
parson's daughter—yo' known who I mean well
enough, if yo'll only think a bit—" (there
was nothing disrespectful in the tone in which
this was said).

"Oh yes!" and suddenly, the wintry frost-
bound look of care had left Mr. Thornton's
face, as if some soft summer gale had
blown all anxiety away from his mind; and
though his mouth was as much compressed
as before, his eyes smiled out benignly on his
questioner.

"She's my landlord now, you know,
Higgins. I hear of her through her agent here
every now and then. She's well and among
friends—thank you, Higgins." That "thank
you" that lingered after the other words,
and yet came with so much warmth of feeling,
let in a new light to the acute Higgins.
It might be but a will o' th' wisp, but he
thought he would follow it and ascertain
whither it would lead him.

"And she's not getten married, measter?"

"Not yet." The face was cloudy once more.
"There is some talk of it, as I understand,
with a connection of the family."

"Then she'll not be for coming to Milton
again, I reckon."

"No!"

"Stop a minute, measter" Then going up
confidentially close, he said. "Is th' young
gentleman cleared?" He enforced the depth
of his intelligence by a wink of the eye, which
only made things more mysterious to Mr.
Thornton.

"Th' young gentleman, I mean—Master
Frederick, they ca'ed him—her brother as was
over here, yo' known"