The day of trial came at last; and after a sleepless night, I was trying
to make a good breakfast before going down to Mr Ruddle's with the
inventor.
I believe I felt as nervous and excited as Hallett himself; for Mr
Ruddle had spoken to me the night before about some unpleasant
suspicions that he had.
"I don't like to accuse any body, Grace," he said; "but I'm afraid a
certain person who shall be nameless has been setting some of the
ignorant, drunken loafers of the trade against the machine."
That was all then, but it was enough to make me uneasy, though I did not
believe in the possibility of any trade outrage in the middle of London.
Hallett looked very pale, but I never saw him seem more manly,
thoughtful, and handsome, as he stood there in his mother's room,
holding her hands.
"I shall come back, dear," he said, kissing her tenderly, "telling you
of my success. No, no, don't shake your head. Good-bye, dear, wish me
success. Good-bye, Linny, darling! Ah! Mr Girtley, you here?"
"To be sure," cried Tom Girtley; "I've come to wish you success. Linny
and I are going to throw old shoes after you. Mind! a champagne supper
if you succeed. Tony and I will find the champagne. Hallo! here's Papa
Rowle."
There was no mistaking that step, without the sound of the old man
taking snuff, and he entered directly after; got up in grand style, and
with a flower in his button-hole.
He had a bunch of flowers, too, for Mrs Hallett, and a kiss for Linny;
and then, shaking hands all round, he began to rub his hands.
"It's a winner, Hallett--a winner!" he exclaimed. "Come along, Girtley,
you'll make one. We want some big boys to cry `Hooray!'"
"I'll come, then," said Tom merrily; and directly after we went off,
trying to look delighted, but all feeling exceedingly nervous and
strange.
Hallett and Girtley went on in front, and Mr Jabez took my arm, holding
me a little back.
"I'm glad Girtley's coming, Grace," he said; "he's a big, strong fellow,
and we may want him."
"Why?" I said excitedly.
"I don't know for certain, my boy, but I'm afraid there's mischief
brewing. I can't swear to it, but I believe that devil, John Lister,
has been stirring up the scoundreldom of the trade, with stuff about the
machine taking the bread out of their mouths, and if the trial passes
off without a hitch, I shall be surprised."
"Mr Ruddle hinted something of the kind, last night," I said.
"Yes, but don't let Hallett know, poor fellow! He's weak and ill enough
already. He might break down. Ruddle had men watching the place all
last night, so as to guard against any malicious attempts."
"But do you think they would dare to injure the machine?" I exclaimed.
"Fools will do anything if they are set to do it," said the old man,
sententiously.
"If Lister is at the bottom of any such attempts he deserves to be
shot," I cried indignantly.
"And his carcase given to the crows," said the old man. "But I say,
Antony Grace, my boy, is Miss Carr likely to come to see the trial?"
"No," I replied; "she asked me to let her know the time, but she said
she could not come."
"Humph! I should have liked her to see it," he said. "But come along;
don't let's lag behind; and mind this, my ideas may only be suspicions,
and worth nothing at all."
There was a group or two of men hanging about the rival office, bearing
Lister's name, at the end of the street, as we went up to the great
building, and as I passed the timekeeper's box I could not help thinking
of the day when, a shivering, nervous boy, I had gone up only to meet
with a rebuff; while now one of the first persons to come bustling up,
looking very much older, but as pugnacious and important as ever, was
Mr Grimstone, who was quite obsequious as he shook hands first with me,
and then with Hallett.
"Very, very proud, gentlemen," he exclaimed, "very proud indeed. Great
changes since you used to honour us with your assistance."
"Yes, Mr Grimstone," I said, laughing as I wondered how I could ever
have trembled before him, "and time hasn't stood still."
"No, indeed, but we wear well, Mr Jabez Rowle and I, sir. Ha-ha-ha!
Yes, old standards, sir, both of us, and we stand by the old
establishment. We don't want to go away inventing great machines."
"Oh, Grimstone! the men are still there with the machine?" said Mr
Ruddle, coming up.
"No, sir, not now. They went off when I came, but I've put the new
watchman on."
"Confound it all, Grimstone! You've never put a stranger there?"
exclaimed Mr Ruddle furiously.
"But I have, sir," said the overseer importantly. "Here he is, sir.
Bramah lock," and he held out a bright new key.
"Oh, I see," said Mr Ruddle, laughing. "Here's Mr Girtley, senior."
The great engineer came up, nodded to his son and me, shook hands with
Hallett, and then we all went to the room where the machine had been set
up, glistening, bright, and new, with the shaft and bands of the regular
engine gear passing through above it.
The first thing noticed was that the window was open; and annoyed that
the mist of a damp morning should be admitted, I hurriedly closed it,
thinking then no more of the matter.
It wanted quite an hour to the time appointed, and the interval was
employed in superintending the alteration of a few bolts and nuts, which
Mr Girtley wanted tightened, and as I watched the great engineer, a man
whose name was now an authority throughout Europe, and who was
constantly refusing contracts, pull off his coat, take a spanner, and
help his men, I began to realise that it was his personal attention to
small matters and his watchful supervision that had raised him to his
present position.
"Nice hands!" he said, laughing, as he held them out all over blacklead
and oil. "Wise lad, you were, Tom, to leave it, and take to your
parchment and pounce."
There was a covert sneer in his words, which Tom seemed to take, for he
said quickly:
"Perhaps, father, I may help you as much with my brain as I used to help
you with my hands."
"Yes, yes, of course, my boy, and we must have lawyers. Well, Grace,
how do you feel about it now?"
"I think I'd ease that nut a little, sir," I said, pointing to one part
of the machine.
"Why?" he said sharply.
"I fancy that there will be so much stress upon that wheel that it will
be better to give it as much freedom as we can, and, perhaps I am wrong,
sir, but it strikes me--" I glanced at Hallett, and felt the blood flush
to my face, for I felt that what I was about to say must sound very
cruel to him.
"Go on, Antony," he said kindly; but I saw that he was very pale.
"It strikes you?" said Mr Girtley.
"That this is the weak part of the contrivance. Here falls the stress;
and, when it is running at full speed, I feel sure that the slight
structure of this portion will tell against the machine doing good work,
and it may result in its breaking down."
"Go on," said Mr Girtley bluntly; for I had stopped, feeling
uncomfortable at the dead silence that had fallen upon the group.
"It is not a question of efficiency," I said, "but one of detail, of
substantiality and durability. At first sight it seems as if it would
make the machine cumbersome, but I feel sure that if we made that shaft
and its wheel four times the thickness--that is to say, excessively
massive, we should get a firm, solid regularity in the working, a fourth
of the vibration, and be able to dispense with this awkward fly-wheel.
My dear Hallett," I exclaimed hurriedly, as I saw how his pallor had
increased, "pray forgive me. I was quite led away by my thoughts.
These are but suggestions. I daresay I was wrong."
"Wrong!" exclaimed Mr Girtley, catching my hand in his, and giving it a
grip that made me wince. "Every word you have said, my boy, is worth
gold. Tom, I'd have given ten thousand pounds to have heard you speak
like that."
"But then, you see, I could not, father," said his son good-humouredly.
"Antony Grace here is a born engineer, and you'll have to make him a
partner one of these days."
I hardly heard their words, for my anxiety about Hallett. I seemed to
have been trampling upon his hopes, and as if I had been wanting in
forethought after having the superintendence of the manufacture for so
long.
"I ought to have suggested these alterations before," I faltered.
"How could you?" said Mr Girtley gruffly. "You only saw the failing
just now. I can see it, of course, when you point it out. We only
climb by our falls, Grace. Locomotives were only got to their present
perfection after no end of failures. Well, Mr Hallett, what do you
say?"
"Antony Grace is quite right," he replied. "That is undoubtedly a
failing spot, and where, if driven at high speed, the machine would
break down. I have had no training as an engineer, and have had to work
blindfold, and in the midst of difficulties."
"Mr Hallett," said the great engineer, "I have had training as an
engineer--a long and arduous training--and I tell you that if you had
had twice as much experience as I, you would not have succeeded with
your contrivance the very first time. I threw myself into this affair
as soon as I saw it, for I felt that it was one of those machines that
make their mark in history; and now that we are going to try it, even if
it does not come up to our expectations, I say, don't be discouraged,
for I tell you it must and will succeed. I'm not a proud man, as a
rule, but I am proud of my reputation, and if money is wanted to bring
your great invention to perfection, the cash shall be forthcoming, even
if we have to borrow."
"Hear, hear!" cried Mr Jabez, and a slight flush appeared in Hallett's
pale face.
"I'm very sorry I spoke, Hallett," I whispered to him, as I took his
hand.
"What, for giving me such great help?" he said, smiling. "You foolish
fellow, Antony, I am not a spoilt child, that I cannot bear to listen to
my mistakes."
Our conversation was broken off here; for just then a couple of
gentlemen arrived, and these were followed by others, till the room was
quite full. For invitations had been sent out to some of the principal
printers and newspaper proprietors to come and see the testing of the
new machine.
Hallett, as the patentee, had to throw off his reserve, and come, as it
were, out of his shell to answer questions, and point out the various
peculiarities and advantages of his machine, all of which I noticed were
received with a good deal of reserve; and there was a shrug of the
shoulders here, a raising of the eyebrows there, while one coarse-minded
fellow said brutally:
"Plaything, gentlemen, plaything. Such a machine cannot possibly
answer. The whole principle is wrong, and it must break own."
I was so annoyed at this bitter judgment, delivered by one who had not
even a superficial knowledge of its properties, that I said quickly, and
foolishly, I grant:
"That is what brainless people said of the steam-engine."
"O!" he said sharply, "is it, boy? Well, you must know: you are so old
and wise. Well, come, gentlemen, I have no time to waste. When is your
plaything to be set going, Mr Ruddle?"
"Now," said Hallett quietly, as he silenced me with a look, just as,
like the foolish enthusiastic boy I was, some hot passionate retort was
about to escape my lips.
Mr Girtley nodded, and he gave a glance round the machine. Then he
looked up at the shaft that was revolving above our heads, and took hold
of the great leather band that was to connect it with our machine, and I
noticed that everyone but Hallett and myself drew back.
I was so angry and excited that if I had known that the whole machine
was about to fly to pieces, I don't think I should have stirred. Then,
biting my lips, as I heard a derisive laugh from the Solon who had
annoyed me, I saw Mr Girtley give the band that peculiar twitch born of
long custom, when an undulation ran up the stout leather, it fitted
itself, as it were, over both wheels; there was a rapid whirring noise,
and the next instant the great heavy mass of machinery seemed as it were
to breathe as it throbbed and panted, and its great cylinders revolved.
There was the glistening of the polished iron and brass, the twinkling
of the well-oiled portions, the huge roll of paper began to turn, and I
saw its virgin whiteness stamped directly after with thousands of lines
of language. My doubts of success died away, and a hearty cheer broke
forth from the assembled party; and then, as I felt a fervent wish that
Miss Carr had been present to see our triumph, there was a horrible
grinding, sickening crash; broken wheels flew here and there; bar and
crank were bent in horrible distortion; there was an instantaneous
stoppage of everything but the great fly-wheel, which, as if in
derision, went spinning on, and there lay poor Hallett stunned and
bleeding upon the floor.
"Foul play--foul play!" roared Mr Girtley, in a voice of thunder, in
the midst of the ominous silence. "I was too late to stop the machine.
Some scoundrel had placed a great pin underneath, and I saw it fall.
Here, look! Here!" he roared, as he stamped with rage; and he pointed
to a round bent bar of iron, such as is used to screw down a paper
press. "There it is. It was placed on that ledge, so that it might
fall with the jar. Mr Ruddle, this is some of your men's work, and,
blast them! they deserve to be hanged."