class="smcap">Alick. Ah. I was just laughing at a wee joke, Mr. Murray.

Daniel. It must have been very funny.

Alick. Aye. It was. (Coming close to Daniel, who walks slowly to the middle of the kitchen.) I say. Were you at McArn's publichouse last night?

Daniel (looking round cautiously to see that no one else can hear him). Well, just a minute or two. Why?

Alick. There was someone there told Andy McMinn this morning, I believe, that you'd been talking of a great invention altogether, and he was that much curious to see it that him and his sister Sarah are coming over this day to have a look at it.

Daniel. Who? Sarah McMinn?

Alick. Aye. She's very anxious to see it, I believe.

Daniel. Um. Rather awkward this. She's not a woman that, plainly speaking, I care very much to talk about my ideas to.

Alick. But have you got something struck out?

Daniel. McCready, come here. (Alick goes closer to him.) It is really a great idea. Splendid. But I've a great deal of trouble over it. In fact I've been thinking out details of a particular gear all morning.

Alick. Aye. (He looks at Daniel and then endeavours to restrain unsuccessfully a burst of laughter.)

Daniel (angrily). You were always an ignorant hound anyway and be d——d to you. (He turns to go towards his workshop.)

Alick. Ah, Mr. Murray, I beg your pardon. It's another thing altogether I'm thinking about. I just wanted a talk with you this morning. You have a nice wee girl for a niece, Mr. Murray.

Daniel (somewhat mollified). Well?

Alick (bashfully). And I was wondering if you could put in a good word for me now and again with her.

Daniel. Now, look here, Alick. We can all work nice and comfortably together, can't we?

Alick. Aye.

Daniel. Well, if you behave yourself like a man with some manners, and not like an ignorant clodhopper, I can do a great deal for you.

Alick. Thank you, sir. You know, Mr. Murray, I have as nice a wee farm, and as good stock on it as well, as any man in the county, and if I'm lucky enough to get that niece of yours, you'll always be welcome to come and pass a day or two and have a chat.

Daniel. I think you and I will get along all right, Alick. There's one or two little things I need badly sometimes in this house. I mean I want help often, you know, Alick, to carry my points with John; points about going to see people and that sort of thing, and it's really very hard to manage John on points like that, unless we resort to certain means to convince him they are absolutely necessary.

Alick (uneasily). Yes. I sort of follow you.

Daniel. You know what I mean. John's a little dense, you know. He can't see the point of an argument very well unless you sort of knock him down with it. Now, if a thing is fair and reasonable, and a man is so dense that he can't see it, you are quite justified—at least, I take it so—to manufacture a way—it doesn't matter how—so long as you make that dense man accept the thing, whatever it is, as right. Do you follow me?

Alick. I'm just beginning to see a kind of way.

Mary (appearing at door from inner rooms). I can't see that thing anywhere. (She suddenly sees Alick.) Oh Alick! You here!

Alick. Yes. It's a nice morning, and you're looking beautiful!

Mary. Oh, bother. (She seems to suddenly recollect something.) Oh, I say! uncle! You remember? Uncle!

Daniel (somewhat perplexed). Eh?

Mary (motioning towards Alick). Telegram to come to London.

Daniel. Ah——Oh, yes, yes.

Mary. Let's go into your workshop and tell Alick what we want. Come on.

Alick. I'll do anything in the world you want.

(They all go into the workshop. As they disappear, John Murray, sweating and angry looking, comes through from the yard followed by Brown. John is a tall, stout man, with a rather dour countenance and somewhat stolid expression. He is a year or so the elder of Dan in age. He goes to the dresser, puts his hand on the top shelf, takes down a spanner and throws it down angrily on the table.)

John. There. There you are, you stupid-looking, good for nothing, dunder-headed, Italian idiot you.

Brown. You're something terrible cross this morning.

John. (heatedly). Is it any wonder? Away out at once now and put her to rights and quick about it. (Brown meekly goes out.) The like of servant men nowadays, I never seen in my mortal days. A concern of ignorant bauchles, every one of them.

Daniel (opening door of workshop and peeping out. He sees John and goes over to him with a genial air). Good morning John.

John (snappishly). Morning.

Daniel. John, what do you think, I believe I have just come on to a great idea about——

John. Ach! You and your great ideas! Here you've been blundering and blethering and talking these fifteen years and more, and I've never seen anything come of them yet.

Daniel (soothingly). I know, John, I know. But I'm handicapped you know. Bad place to work in and all the rest of it: but you've been kind to me, John. Keeping a brother and helping him after he has lost all his money isn't a common thing with many men, but John a day will come sometime, and you'll get it all back. (Impressively). Every penny. Aye, and twice over.

John (softening). Thank you, Daniel.

Daniel. You will, John, you will. But don't cast up things like that about the time I've been. It hurts me. A thing like this takes time to mature, you know, John. The great and chief thing for an inventor is time. Look at Palissy, the great French potter, who found out how to make porcelain glaze. Why he worked for years and years at his invention. And there was the man who found out how to make steam drive engines. Look at the years those men spent—and no one begrudged them.

John. I suppose that now.

Daniel. Certainly, John, nothing surer. And look at the fortunes those men made. But the great difficulty is trying to get someone to take up your patent. You see these men had the eyes of the world fixed on them. People knew all about them, and had their hands stretched out ready to grab what they invented. (Pathetically). I——I'm just a poor unknown man struggling in a wee dark corner.