Albert Marlowe was not, on the whole, surprised to see his cousin. He guessed the errand that brought her, and he frowned slightly as she entered the room.
"Good evening," he said, in a distant tone. "I hope you are well."
"Well in health, but anxious in mind, Albert," she said. "Bert tells me that he has been discharged from the shop."
"Yes, but he is not the only one. There are three other boys."
"It has come upon us like a thunderbolt. I had no idea that he was in any danger of losing his place."
"I have nothing against your son, Mrs. Barton. It is a business necessity that compels me to dispense with his services."
"Why a business necessity?"
"You may have heard that I intend to introduce a pegging machine. It will do the work cheaper and more effectually than under the present system."
"Oh, why couldn't you have let matters remain as they were? You may gain something, but you are depriving the boys of their livelihood."
"You don't regard the matter in a business light, Mrs. Barton. I must keep up with the times. Other manufacturers are making the change, and I should stand in my own light if I adhered to the old-fashioned system."