night.

At length his companion, who had slept steadily on ever since they had
entered the train at Carlisle, at about one in the morning, awoke,
rubbed his eyes, and glanced at the window.

"We are going to have a fine day at last, Humphreys," said Brand.

"They have been having better weather in the South, sir."

The man looked like a well-dressed mechanic. He had an intelligent face,
keen and hard. He spoke with the Newcastle burr.

"I wish you would not call me 'sir,'" Brand said, impatiently.

"It comes natural, somehow, sir," said the other, with great simplicity.
"There is not a man in any part of the country, but would say 'sir' to
one of the Brands of Darlington. When Mr. Lind telegraphed to me you
were coming down, I telegraphed back, 'Is he one of the Brands of
Darlington?' and when I got his answer I said to myself, 'Here is the
man to go to the Political Committee of the Trades-union Congress: they
won't fight shy of him.'"

"Well, we have no great cause to grumble at what has been done in that
direction; but that infernal _Internationale_ is doing a deal of
mischief. There is not a trades-unionist in the country who does not
know what is going on in France. A handful of irresponsible madmen
trying to tack themselves on to the workmen's association--well, surely
the men will have more sense than to listen. The _congres ouvrier_ to
change its name, and to become the _congres revolutionnaire_! When I
first went to Jackson, Molyneux, and the others, I found they had a sort
of suspicion that we wanted to make Communists of them and tear society
to pieces."

"You have done more in a couple of months, sir, than we all have done in
the last ten years," his companion said.

"That is impossible. Look at--"

He named some names, certain of them well known enough.

The other shook his head.

"Where we have been they don't believe in London professors, and
speech-makers, and chaps like that. They know that the North is the
backbone and the brain of England, and in the North they want to be
spoken to by a North-countryman."

"I am a Buckinghamshire man."

"That may be where you live, sir: but you are one of the Brands of
Darlington," said the other, doggedly.

By-and-by they entered the huge, resounding station.

"What are you going to do to-night, Humphreys? Come and have some dinner
with me, and we will look in afterward at the Century."

Humphreys looked embarrassed for a moment.

"I was think