the window. "Dad, you asked
me to come into this with you. Let's play the game together. I found it
wise to place the weight on the defence line. Will you play defence in
this?"

The lines in his father's face began to relax.

"All right, boy, we'll play it together, and meantime I shall play
defence."

"By Jove, Dad," cried Jack, in a tone of exultant confidence, "we'll
beat 'em. And now here comes that old Irish fire-eater. I'll go. No
alliance, Dad, remember." His father nodded as Jack left the room, to
return almost immediately with Mr. McGinnis, evidently quite incoherent
with rage.

In the outer office Jack paused beside the desk of the old bookkeeper.
From behind the closed door came the sound of high explosives.

"Rough stuff in there, eh, Wickes," said Jack, with a humorous smile.
For some moments he stood listening. "War is a terrible thing," he added
with a grin.

"What seems to be the matter, Mr. Jack?"

Jack laid before him the document sent out by the Allied Unions.

"Oh, this is terrible, Mr. Jack! And just at this time. I am very much
afraid it will ruin us."

"Ruin us? Rot. Don't ever say that word again. We will possibly have
a jolly good row. Someone will be hurt and perhaps all of us, more or
less, but I don't mean to be beaten, if I know myself," he added, with
the smile on his face that his hockey team loved to see before a match.
"Now, Wickes," continued Jack, "get that idea of failure out of
your mind. We are going to win. And meantime, let us prepare for our
campaign. Here's a bit of work I want you to do for me. Get four things
for me: the wages for the last three years--you have the sheets?"

"Yes, sir."

"--The cost of living from the Labour Gazette for the last three
years--you have them here--and the rates of increase in wages. Plot a
diagram showing all these things. You know what I mean?"

"Yes, sir, I understand."

"And find out the wages paid at our competing points."

"All right, Mr. Jack. I know what you want. I can give you the necessary
information in regard to the first three points almost at once. It will
take some days, however, to get the wages of our competing points."

"All right, old boy. Carry on!" said Jack, and with the same smile on
his face he passed out of the office into the shops.

It amused him slightly to observe the change in the attitude and bearing
of his men. They would not look at him fairly in the face. Even Snoopy
Sykes and Macnamara avoi