"I really didn't think you would come," said Olle. "It's so beautifully light up there."
"What a reason! I wish you'd been there!"
"How is Lundell getting on in smart society?"
"Don't envy him. He won't have an easy time if he's going to make his way as a portrait-painter. But let's talk of something else. I have been longing for this evening, so as to study the working man at close quarters. It will be like a breath of fresh air after these deadly fumes; I feel as if I were allowed to take a stroll in the wood, after having long been laid up in a hospital. I wonder whether I shall be disillusioned."
"The working man is suspicious; you will have to be careful."
"Is he generous? Free from pettiness? Or has the pressure which has lain on him for so long spoiled him?"
"You'll be able to see for yourself. Most things in this world differ from our expectations."
"That's true, unfortunately."
Half an hour later they had arrived in the great hall of the working men's union "Star of the North." The place was already crowded. Arvid's black dress-coat did not create a good impression; he caught many an unfriendly glance from angry eyes.
Olle introduced Arvid to a tall, gaunt man with a face full of passion, who seemed to be troubled with an incessant cough.