登陆注册
15452000000040

第40章 CHAPTER IX.(2)

"How can I refuse you that?" said Henry, hanging his head. "You have been a good friend to me. But, sir, mark my words, this place will be my destruction. Well, when am I to begin work?"

"To-morrow, at ten."

"So be it," said Henry, wearily, then left the works and went home; but, as he went, he said to himself. "It is not my doing." And his double-faced heart glowed and exulted secretly.

He told his mother how the Trades had beaten him, and he was out of work.

Mrs. Little consoled him hypocritically. She was delighted. Then he told her his departure had been delayed by Dr. Amboyne: that made her look a little anxious.

"One question, dear: now the Union has beaten you, they will not be so spiteful, will they?"

"Oh, no. That is all over. The conquerors can afford to be good-natured. Confound them!"

"Then that is all I care about. Then do not leave Hillsborough.

Why should you? Wait here patiently. You do not know what may turn up."

"What, mother, do YOU want to stay here now?" said Henry, opening his eyes with astonishment.

"Wherever my son is happy and safe from harm, there I wish to stay--of course."

Next morning Henry called on Dr. Amboyne, and found him in his study, teaching what looked a boy of sixteen, but was twenty-two, to read monosyllables. On Little's entrance the pupil retired front his uphill work, and glowered with vacillating eyes. The lad had a fair feminine face, with three ill things in it: a want, a wildness, and a weakness. To be sure Henry saw it at a disadvantage: for vivid intelligence would come now and then across this mild, wild, vacant face, like the breeze that sweeps a farm-yard pond.

"Good-morning, Little. This is your fellow-workman."

"He does not look up to much," said Henry, with all a workman's bluntness.

"What, you have found him out! Never mind; he can beat the town at one or two things, and it is for these we will use him. Some call him an idiot. The expression is neat and vigorous, but not precise; so I have christened him the Anomaly. Anomaly, this is Mr. Little; go and shake hands with him, and admire him."

The Anomaly went directly, and gazed into Little's face for some time.

He then made his report. "He is beautiful and black."

"I've seen him blacker. Now leave off admiring him, and look at these pictures while I prose. Two thousand philosophers are writing us dead with 'Labor and Capital.' But I vary the bore. 'Life, Labor, and Capital,' is my chant: and, whereas Life has hitherto been banished from the discussion, I put Life in its true place, at the head of the trio. (And Life I divide into long Life, and happy Life.) The subject is too vast to be dealt with all at once; but I'll give you a peep of it. The rustic laborer in the South sells his labor for too little money to support life comfortably. That is a foul wrong. The rustic laborer in the North has small wages, compared with a pitman, or a cutler; but he has enough for health, and he lives longer and more happily than either the pitman or the cutler; so that account is square, in my view of things. But now dive into the Hillsborough trades, and you will find this just balance of Life, Labor, and Capital regarded in some, but defied in others: a forger is paid as much or more than a dry-grinder, though forging is a hard but tolerably healthy trade, and dry-grinding means an early death after fifteen years of disease and misery. The file-cutters are even more killed and less paid. What is to be done then? Raise the wages of the more homicidal trades! But this could only be done by all the Unions acting in concert. Now the rival philosophers, who direct the Unions, are all against Democritus--that's myself; they set no value on life. And indeed the most intelligent one, Grotait, smiles blandly on Death, and would grind his scythe for him--AT THE STATEMENT PRICE--because that scythe thins the labor market, and so helps keep up prices."

"Then what can we do? I'm a proof one can't fight the Unions."

"Do? Why, lay hold of the stick at the other end. Let Pseudo-

Philosophy set the means above the end, and fix its shortsighted eyes on Labor and Capital, omitting Life. (What does it profit a file-cutter if he gains his master's whole capital and loses his own life?) But you and I, Mr. Little, are true philosophers and the work we are about to enter on is--saving cutlers' lives."

"I'd rather help take them."

"Of course; and that is why I made the pounds guineas."

"All right, sir," said Henry, coloring. "I don't expect to get six guineas a week for whistling my own tune. How are we to do the job?"

"By putting our heads together. You have, on the side of your temple, a protuberance, which I have noticed in the crania of inventors. So I want you to go round the works, and observe for yourself how Life is thrown gayly away, in a moment, by needless accident, and painfully gnawed away by steel-dust, stone grit, sulphuret of lead, etc.; and then cudgel your brain for remedies."

"Sir," said Henry, "I am afraid I shall not earn my money. My heart is not in the job."

"Revenge is what you would like to be at, not Philanthropy--eh?"

"Ay, doctor." And his black eye flashed fire.

"Well, well, that is natural. Humor my crotchet just now, and perhaps I may humor yours a month or two hence. I think I could lay my hand on the fellow who blew you up."

"What, sir! Ah! tell me that, and I'll do as much philanthropy as you like--after--"

"After you have punched your fellow-creature's head."

"But it is impossible, sir. How can you know? These acts are kept as secret as the grave."

"And how often has the grave revealed its secrets to observant men?

Dr. Donne sauntered about among graves, and saw a sexton turn up a skull. He examined it, found a nail in it, identified the skull, and had the murderess hung. She was safe from the sexton and the rest of the parish, but not from a stray observer. Well, the day you were blown up, I observed something, and arrived at a conclusion, by my art."

"What, physic?"

同类推荐
热门推荐
  • 蜜宠小辣妻:老公,求放开

    蜜宠小辣妻:老公,求放开

    晚上,夜都酒吧的包厢里。苏念喝的绯红的白皙小脸扬起已经僵硬的笑,朝里面的几个中年男人挥手:“不好意思,我去下卫生间马上就回来。”
  • 质疑录

    质疑录

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 太上九要心印妙经

    太上九要心印妙经

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 阴阳妖记

    阴阳妖记

    苏倾灵是名普普通通的阴阳先生,在某次抓妖是,意外被叫相公,从此走向了逃命生涯。七尾妖猫,僵尸王这些普通人一辈子也见不到的东西居然都被苏倾灵遇到了。和女僵尸的爱情能否成功,敬请期待《阴阳妖记》
  • 梅子黄时雨

    梅子黄时雨

    [花雨授权]有什么比较好的办法可以让她,把自己的丈夫推销出去?一个青涩的初恋已经让她哭笑不得,难道还要她等待另一段爱的结果?算了,还是继续追逐初恋的青涩吧,为什么就在这个时候,向来温文儒雅的他却越来越难捉摸……
  • 重生大凉:皇后归来

    重生大凉:皇后归来

    她不过是个女娃娃,却被大凉先帝从大池夺来,安了个将军之子的身份。至此,她以皇子身份活了些许多年。却因幼时失忆分不清敌我,辅佐大凉吞并了天下。她算是倾尽天下,助凉晨登上了共主地位,换来的却是一杯毒酒。奈何煞气太沉,眨眼之间她回到了失忆那年,查身份,辨人心,斗苍穹,这一世的她并不想风花雪月。却在见到他时,身不由己。他名南笙,一生只在寻得父亲好友之女。他犹记得父亲临终所托,带回小八,照顾好她。南笙偶尔觉得,寻找小八是个负担,她回不来的。却因孝不得不继续。直到见到真人,压抑不住的狂喜让他瞬间忘了自己,不顾一切的只为和她在一起。“小八,你来,我带你回家。”“淡雨,送客。”“小八,你被我折服了吗?”“淡雨。”“小八,你这身青色袍子上的绣样真好看,脱了让我看看好吗?”“送客。”这样的日常,其实,八月还是很喜欢的,她好像习惯了南笙的无理取闹。凉晨发兵围堵八月的时候,南笙正在厨房熬粥,凉晨持剑刺向八月心房的时候,南笙正扔了勺子冲到八月身前,八月好不容易扒拉开南笙的时候,凉晨已经倒地昏迷了。“小八,你看,我的迷魂散是不是真的很好用?”那天,阳光很暖,洒在南笙额前的碎发上,八月看着南笙突然有些移不开眼睛,她决定嫁给他了。却在婚礼上见到了南笙心爱的女子。原来,他不爱她,是么?
  • 天王变

    天王变

    我本无意去争雄,奈何苍天欺人甚,待我剑指南天时,世间万物我为尊。现世中的废材阴差阳错下到了异界该如何生活?为了生存,他开始了战天之路,破因果,改天命,谱写属于自己的传奇人生。
  • 宅男的奋斗史

    宅男的奋斗史

    宅男林辉穿越到民国二十六年,没有软妹子,也没有傲娇未婚妻,更没有家财万贯的老爹。只有一个刚死了娘的傻儿子。还有一个家徒四壁的家。但是这一切都无法阻挡林辉的奋起,这是一个宅男的奋斗史。一切都由这里开始。.......还好,林辉有一个系统......
  • 滋润人生温情故事

    滋润人生温情故事

    一篇篇励志故事,仿佛驾船双桨,助我们逆流而上;一句句哲理名言,宛如驱车长策,让我们执著向前;一缕缕感悟心语,如同智慧钥匙,开启心灵天窗;品读隽永文章,体验百态人生;分享哲理故事,聆听心灵感动。《睿励人生》带给我们的是睿智的感悟,励志的信念。 本书是“睿励人生”系列丛书之《滋润人生温情故事》,书中精选了近百篇温暖的情感故事,让我们用心灵感知世间纯真的温暖与光明,品味幸福与温情,让爱情、亲情、友情浸润疲惫的灵魂,得到心灵的净化和情感的释放。
  • 百变小农民

    百变小农民

    一张皮纸,舞动乾坤。画里画外,屌丝称雄。一个穷屌丝,处处遭人白眼,时时被人算计。但是——没眼的耗子天照顾,得到了一张百变图之后,穷屌丝的生活开始了逆袭。神医,神算,神功,要啥有啥,想啥来啥。小看我的人,我看着你病死。算计我的人,我把你咒死。欺压我的人,绝不让你好死。