head forward to see
the figures. He did not look up when the door opened and Max came to the
railing gate.

"Grady's been up on the distributing floor," said Max, breathlessly, for
he had been running.

"What did he want?"

"He's going to call the men off at ten o'clock if we don't put in a
runway and dollies on the distributing floor."

Bannon looked at his watch.

"Is that all he wants?"

Max, in his excitement, did not catch the sarcasm in the question.

"That's all he said, but it's enough. We can't do it"

Bannon closed his watch with a snap.

"No," he said, "and we won't throw away any good time trying. You'd
better round up the committee that's supposed to run this lodge and send
them here. That young Murphy's one of them--he can put you straight.
Bring Pete back with you, and the new man, James."

Max lingered, with a look of awe and admiration.

"Are you going to stand out, Mr. Bannon?" he asked.

Bannon dropped his feet to the floor, and turned toward the table.

"Yes," he said. "We're going to stand out."

Since Bannon's talk with President Carver a little drama had been going
on in the local lodge, a drama that neither Bannon, Max, nor Peterson
knew about. James had been selected by Carver for this work because of
proved ability and shrewdness. He had no sooner attached himself to the
lodge, and made himself known as an active member, than his personality,
without any noticeable effort on his part, began to make itself felt. Up
to this time Grady had had full swing, for there had been no one among
the laborers with force enough to oppose him.

The first collision took place at an early meeting after Grady's last
talk with Bannon. The delegate, in the course of the meeting, bitterly
attacked Bannon, accusing him, at the climax of his oration, of an
attempt to buy off the honest representative of the working classes for
five thousand dollars. This had a tremendous effect on the excitable
minds before him. He finished his speech with an impassioned tirade
against the corrupt influences of the money power, and was mopping his
flushed face, listening with elation to the hum of anger that resulted,
confident that he had made his point, when James arose. The new man was
as familiar with the tone of the meetings of laborers as Grady himself.
At the beginning he had no wish further than to get at the truth. Grady
had not stated his case well. It had convinced the laborers, but to
James it had weak