At the moment she had thought it rather cruel and unjust to the young man. He no longer seemed tiresome to her, now that she knew he had been crossed in love, as clearly as appeared from his verses. That explained and excused all the peculiarities of his behaviour. She hastened to assure him that, for her part, she thought his verses lovely, and in shy but fervent sympathy, tried to console him somewhat for his supposed misfortune.
Herr Wilberg suffered himself to be comforted. He found it indescribably refreshing to meet at last with a being who could understand him, and still more refreshing to feel himself compassionated by the said being. It was quite a misfortune that they had by this time reached the chief-engineer's house, and that the master of it, in his august person, stood at the window, watching them with surprised and rather critical looks. Wilberg had no wish to expose himself to his superior's jokes, which, he knew, would be inevitable, should it occur to Mélanie to relate their meeting with Hartmann and their common flight. He took leave of the young lady therefore, and Fräulein Mélanie ran up the steps, racking her brains to try and find out who the object of this interesting and unfortunate attachment could be.
Old Manager Hartmann sat at home in his cottage, leaning his head on his hand; not far from him, at the window, stood Lawrence and Martha. As Ulric suddenly opened the door, the three broke off their conversation so abruptly, that the new-comer might easily have guessed they had been talking of him. He did not notice it, however, but closed the door, flung his hat on the table and threw himself without a word of greeting into the great arm-chair by the fireside.
"Good day," said the Manager, turning slowly round to him. "Don't you think it worth your while now to say a civil word when you come in? I should have thought you might have kept that up, at least."
"Don't worry me, father," exclaimed his son impatiently, throwing back his head and pressing his hand to his forehead.
The Manager shrugged his shoulders and turned away. Martha left her place by the window and sat down by her uncle, taking up the work she had laid aside while talking with Lawrence. For some minutes there was an oppressive silence in the room, then the younger man went up to his friend.
"Deputy Wilms has been here to speak to you, Ulric. He will come back in an hour. He has been making the round of all the neighbouring works."
Ulric passed his hand over his brow, as though to chase away some tormenting dream.
"Well, and how goes it?" he asked, but in a listless mechanical way; he seemed hardly to know what the other was speaking of.
"They are going to join us. Our example appears to have given them courage, for the game is beginning everywhere now. The forges will strike first, and the other works will follow suit, unless all they ask is granted to them at once. That is out of the question, so in a week all the miners and works in the district will be empty."