k about it, too."

"Did ye mean me?" the man asked impudently, but Bannon, without heeding,
went over to the hoist. Presently a rough hand fell on his shoulder.
"Say," demanded Reilly again, "did ye mean me?"

"No doubt of that. Go and get your time."

"I guess not," said the man. "Not me. My hammer just slipped. How're you
going to prove I meant to do it?"

"I'm not. I'm going to fire you. You ain't laid off, you understand;
you're fired. If you ever come back, I'll have you kicked off the
place."

"You don't dare fire me," the man said, coming nearer. "You'll have to
take me back to-morrow."

"I'm through talking with you," said Bannon, still quietly. "The faster
you can light out of here the better."

"We'll see about that. You can't come it on the union that way----"

Then, without any preparatory gesture whatever, Bannon knocked him down.
The man seemed to fairly rebound from the floor. He rushed at the boss,
but before he could come within striking distance, Bannon whipped out a
revolver and dropped it level with Reilly's face.

"I've talked to you," he said slowly, his eye blazing along the barrel,
"and I've knocked you down. But----"

The man staggered back, then walked away very pale, but muttering.
Bannon shoved back the revolver into his hip pocket. "It's all right,
boys," he said, "nothing to get excited about."

He walked to the edge and looked over. "We can't wait to pick it up a
stick at a time," he said. "I'll tell 'em to load four or five on each
larry. Then you can lift the whole bunch."

"We run some chances of a spill or a break that way," said the foreman.

"I know it," answered Bannon, dryly. "That's the kind of chances we'll
have to run for the next two months."

Descending to the ground, he gave the same order to the men below; then
he sent word to Peterson and Vogel that he wished to see them in the
office. He wiped his feet on the mat, glancing at Hilda as he did so,
but she was hard at work and did not look up. He took the one unoccupied
chair and placed it where he could watch the burnished light in her red
hair. Presently she turned toward him.

"Did you want something?" she asked.

"Excuse me. I guess--I----"

In the midst of his embarrassment, Max and Pete came in. "I've got a
couple of letters I want to talk over with you boys," he said. "That's
why I sent for you."

Pete laughed and vaulted to a seat on the draughting-table. "I was most
afraid to come," he said. "I