al departures. His heart bowed to its
sorry education and took counsel with him, bidding him be of good
courage and push on. He was up against it, but he would get round it,
and there on the other side lay the same wide prospect, with the
Idea shining high. At one point he faltered, but that was a matter of
expediency rather than of courage. He searched and selected, as he went
along the street, among phrases that would convey his disaster to Dora
Milburn.

Just at that point, the turning to his own office, he felt it hard luck
that Alfred Hesketh should meet and want a word with him. Hesketh had
become tolerable only when other things were equal. Lorne had not seen
him since the night of his election, when his felicitations had seemed
to stand for very little one way or another. His manner now was more
important charged with other considerations. Lorne waited on the
word, uncomfortably putting off the necessity of coming out with his
misfortune.

"I haven't come across you, Murchison, but you've had my sympathy, I
needn't say, all this time. A man can't go into politics with gloves
on, there's no doubt about that. Though mind you, I never for a moment
believed that you let yourself in personally. I mean, I've held you all
through, above the faintest suspicion."

"Have you?" said Lorne. "Well, I suppose I ought to be grateful."

"Oh, I have--I assure you! But give me a disputed election for the
revelation of a rotten state of things--eh?"

"It does show up pretty low, doesn't it?"

"However, upon my word, I don't know whether it's any better in England.
At bottom we've got a lower class to deal with, you know. I'm
beginning to have a great respect for the electorate of this country,
Murchison--not necessarily the methods, but the rank and file of the
people. They know what they want, and they're going to have it."

"Yes," said Lorne, "I guess they are."

"And that brings me to my news, old man. I've given the matter a lot of
time and a lot of consideration, and I've decided that I can't do better
than drive in a stake for myself in this new country of yours."

"It isn't so very new," Lorne told him, in rather dull response, "but I
expect that's a pretty good line to take. Why, yes--first rate."

"As to the line," Hesketh went on, weightily, leading the way through
an encumbering group of farmers at a corner, "I've selected that, too.
Traction-engines. Milburn has never built them yet, but he says the
opportu