other, into whose still longer ears it may be the means, under Providence, of instilling somewhat?' We answer, 'None knows, none can certainly know: therefore, write on, worthy Brother, even as thou canst, even as it is given thee.'"
CARLYLE.
III. John Barton's Great Trouble
V. The Mill on Fire—Jem Wilson to the Rescue
VIII. Margaret's Debut as a Public Singer
IX. Barton's London Experiences
XI. Mr. Carson's Intentions Revealed
XIV. Jem's Interview with Poor Esther
XV. A Violent Meeting Between the Rivals
XVI. Meeting Between Masters and Workmen
XIX. Jem Wilson Arrested on Suspicion
XX. Mary's Dream—And the Awakening
XXI. Esther's Motive in Seeking Mary
XXII. Mary's Efforts to Prove an Alibi
XXV. Mrs. Wilson's Determination
XXVI. The Journey to Liverpool
XXXI. How Mary Passed the Night
XXXII. The Trial and Verdict—"Not Guilty"
XXXV. "Forgive Us Our Trespasses"
XXXVI. Jem's Interview with Mr. Duncombe
XXXVII. Details Connected with the Murder
Preface
Three years ago I became anxious (from circumstances that need not be more fully alluded to) to employ myself in writing a work of fiction. Living in Manchester, but with a deep relish and fond admiration for the country, my first thought was to find a frame-work for my story in some rural scene; and I had already made a little progress in a tale, the period of which was more than a century ago, and the place on the borders of Yorkshire, when I bethought me how deep might be the romance in the lives of some of those who elbowed me daily in the busy streets of the town in which I resided. I had always felt a deep sympathy with the care-worn men, who looked as if doomed to struggle through their lives in strange alternations between work and want; tossed to and fro by circumstances, apparently in even a greater degree than other men. A little manifestation of this sympathy, and a little attention to the expression of feelings on the part of some of the work-people with whom I was acquainted, had laid open to me the hearts of one or two of the more thoughtful among them; I saw that they were sore and irritable against the rich, the even tenor of whose seemingly happy lives appeared to increase the anguish caused by the lottery-like nature of their own. Whether the bitter complaints made by them,
