“Get away from here at once, Connie!” said Donald, firmly, but kindly.
Connie lowered her eyes to her moccasined foot, that was weaving patterns in the dry soil, and shook her small head obstinately.
She patted the stock of her rifle. “I—I want to help you.”
Donald looked down at the weary little figure. He stepped down from the stump, keeping a wary eye on the belligerent strikers, and came to her side. “Connie,” he said softly, “you are a dear, brave little girl, but you must get away from this place, as there may be serious trouble. Please, Connie,” he entreated, reaching out a hand to stroke her shining hair.
Connie’s face paled quickly, and she shrank from the caress. Her slender body trembled at his touch, and his display of tenderness brought a sudden rush of tears to her eyes. But she made no move to leave the scene.
Finding that he could not shake Connie’s determination to stay, Donald returned to the vantage point of the stump. “Jack,” he said, turning to his big foreman, “I am going to make one last appeal to these men. If I am any judge of human nature about half of them, if they can save their faces, will welcome the chance to go back to work. They are being dominated by Hand.”
Gillis shrugged his shoulders. “Do what you think best,” he said.
Donald passed the dynamite to Gillis and stepped forward with his arms extended, palms upward. The crowd moved uneasily. Hand came slowly to his feet, his small eyes narrowed with suspicion.
“Men,” Donald began in a high clear voice, “I would like to convince you that you will gain nothing by your present tactics. Bloodshed will surely ensue. I have orders to refuse your exorbitant demands. Personally, I have no choice in the matter; there is no other course for me to pursue. In spite of your interference we will continue working with the few men who have remained loyal. I will ask for police protection only as a last resort. I appeal particularly to the men who worked for me here at this camp. Is there one of you who can truthfully say that you were not accorded fair treatment? Is there one of you who will not admit that the general equipment for your comfort is unequalled in any camp in British Columbia? You are making a mistake, men,” he went on in a pleading tone, “a mistake you will be sorry for later, for you will be blacklisted in every camp in the country. Go back to work, and I promise you there will be no mark against you. That’s all.”