roy his workshops before the evacuation,
was so great that he was tried by court-martial, and, notwithstanding
his considerable influence, promptly shot.)

A burst of cheering from the town in the direction of the market-place
drew the attention of the two young fellows away from the works to the
events that were taking place in the town. They left the works, closing
the great gates after them, and joined the townspeople in their great
welcome to the soldiers of Belgium and the Allies as they passed through
in triumph in pursuit of their enemies. It was all very exhilarating,
and even the discovery that Max's house had been burned to the ground
was insufficient to damp their patriotic ardour, for they had expected
no less. It had not been possible to arrange to save this, and, as Max
said, so long as the works were saved it mattered little about the
house. Another could soon be found, or built for that matter. But the
works--to get those into full swing in quick time was the equivalent of
a victory for the Allies.

And in almost full swing they were in a couple of days. All that day and
the next the loyal workmen dribbled back--some from the town, some from
remote villages, and many from across the Dutch border. With hearty
goodwill they threw themselves into their work, and soon the roar of the
lathes and engines announced that the Durend works were themselves once
more.

The tale of how Max Durend had fought the long battle of the works, of
how vigilantly he had watched over them, and of how, at last, he had won
the greatest fight of all in saving them from destruction, passed from
mouth to mouth among the workmen. If anything had been needed to cement
the strong bond between them and their employer, this would have
supplied it. But their relations were already of the best, and this
great story served but to set a seal upon it and to render the link
between the two unbreakable.

And from strength to strength the great workshops went on. Ever in the
van of progress--for Max had learned his work from the bottom upwards
and was ever ready to learn more--secure in the possession of skilled
workmen filled with zeal and goodwill, well-directed, and trusted far
and wide, the Durend works expanded until they were twice the size of
any similar concern in Belgium.

Jack Dale stuck to Max to the end. He followed his friend's example and
went through all the shops, learning the work thoroughly, and later on
became the manag