IN THE GLASS-SMOOTH MAHOGANY OF THE LONG TABLE RESERVED FOR the board of directors there was a monogram in colored wood—G W—reproduced from his signature. It had always annoyed the directors. They had no time to notice it now. But an occasional glance fell upon it—and then it was a glance of pleasure.

The directors sat around the table. It was the first meeting in the board’s history that had not been summoned by Wynand. But the meeting had convened and Wynand had come. The strike was in its second month.

Wynand stood by his chair at the head of the table. He looked like a drawing from a men’s magazine, fastidiously groomed, a white handkerchief in the breast pocket of his dark suit. The directors caught themselves in peculiar thoughts: some thought of British tailors, others -of the House of Lords—of the Tower of London—of the executed English King—or was it a Chancellor?—who had died so well.

They did not want to look at the man before them. They leaned upon visions of the pickets outside—of the perfumed, manicured women who shrieked their support of Ellsworth Toohey in drawing-room discussions -of the broad, flat face of a girl who paced Fifth Avenue with a placard “We Don’t Read Wynand”—for support and courage to say what they were saying.

Wynand thought of a crumbling wall on the edge of the Hudson. He heard steps approaching blocks away. Only this time there were no wires in his hand to hold his muscles ready.

“It’s gone beyond all sense. Is this a business organization or a charitable society for the defense of personal friends?”

“Three hundred thousand dollars last week.... Never mind how I know it, Gail, no secret about it, your banker told me. All right, it’s your money, but if you expect to get that back out of the sheet, let me tell you we’re wise to your smart tricks. You’re not going to saddle the corporation with that one, not a penny of it, you don’t get away with it this time, it’s too late, Gail, the day’s past for your bright stunts.”

Wynand looked at the fleshy lips of the man making sounds, and thought: You’ve run the Banner, from the beginning, you didn’t know it, but I know, it was you, it was your paper, there’s nothing to save now.

“Yes, Slottern and his bunch are willing to come back at once, all they ask is that we accept the Union’s demands, and they’ll pick up the balance of their contracts, on the old terms, even without waiting for you to rebuild circulation—which will be some job, friend, let me tell you-and I think that’s pretty white of them. I spoke to Homer yesterday and he gave me his word—care to hear me name the sums involved, Wynand, or do you know it without my help?”

“No, Senator Eldridge wouldn’t see you.... Aw, skip it, Gail, we know you flew to Washington last week. What you don’t