George (perturbed).  Hold on, dad!

Asher.  I mean what I say, I don’t care who he is.

Bert (who retains his self-possession).  Excuse me, Mr. Pindar, but I’d like to ask you a question—­I’ve heard the men talking about this in the shops.  You don’t like it if we go off to—­fight, but if we join the union you fire us, no matter how short-handed you are.

Asher.  It’s a principle with me,—­I won’t have any outside agency dictating to me.

Bert.  But if it came to recognizing the union, or shutting down?

Asher.  I’d shut down tomorrow.

   (George, who sees the point, makes a gesture as if about to
   interrupt.)

Bert.  That’s what I’m getting at, Mr. Pindar.  You say you’d shut down for a principle, whether the government gets the machines or not.  And the men say they’d join the union for a principle, whether the government gets the machines or not.  It looks to me as if both was hindering the war for a principle, and the question is, which principle is it that agrees best with what we’re fighting for?

Asher.  No man joins a union for a principle, but for extortion.  I can’t discuss it,—­I won’t!

Bert.  I’m sorry, sir.

   (He turns to go out, lower right.)

George (overtaking him and grasping his hand).  So long, Bert.  I’ll look you up, over there!

Bert (gazing at him).  All right, Mr. George.

George.  Goodbye, Timothy.  Don’t worry about the boy.

Timothy.  It’s proud I am to have him go.  Mr. George,—­but I can’t think why he’d be joining the union, and never telling me.

(He stands for a moment troubled, glancing at Asher, torn between loyalty to his employer and affection for his son.  Then he goes out slowly, upper right.  All the while Dr. Jonathan has stood in the rear of the room, occasionally glancing at George.  He now comes forward, unobtrusively, yet withal impressively.)

Asher.  I never expected to hear such talk from a son of Timothy Farrell,—­a boy I thought was level-headed. (To Dr. Jonathan) What do you think of that?  You heard it.

Dr. Jonathan.  Well, he stated the issue, Asher.

Asher.  The issue of what?

Dr. Jonathan.  Of the new century.

George.  The issue of the new century

Asher.  You’re right, we’ve got to put these people down.  After the war they’ll come to heel,—­we’ll have a cheap labour market then.

Dr. Jonathan.  Humanity has always been cheap, but we’re spending it rather lavishly just now.

Asher, You mean that there will be a scarcity of labour?  And that they can continue to blackmail us into paying these outrageous wages?