Excelling in
speciousness, it was natural that he should think success as a
politician within his easy reach; possessed by a plausible theory of
government, he readily conceived himself on the heights of
statesmanship, ruling the nation for its behoof. And so, as he read
the London and provincial papers this morning, they had all at once
a new interest for him; he probed questions, surveyed policies, and
whilst smiling at the intellectual poverty of average man, gravely
marked for himself a shining course amid the general confusion and
ineptitude.
At ten o'clock there shot a glint of promise across the clouded sky;
rain had ceased, the wind was less boisterous. Lashmar set forth
briskly on foot, and walked to Shawe, where he arrived in good time
for his appointment. The manager of the mill, a very intelligent
Scotchman, conscientiously showed him everything that was to be
seen, and Dyce affected great interest. Real interest he felt little
or none; the processes of manufacture belonged to a world to which
he had never given the slightest thought, which in truth repelled
him.
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