No soft benignity beamed in the preacher's face as he turned to the Courts. "My pulpit, Judge," answered John Dexter sternly, "first of all stands for the gospel of Justice between man and man. It will afford sanctuary for the thief and the Magdalene, but only the penitent thief and the weeping Magdalene!" And John Dexter brought down a resounding fist on the table before him. "I believe that the first duty of religion is to preach shame on the wicked, that they may quit their wickedness, and if," John Dexter's voice rose as he went on, "in the light of our widening intelligence we see that employers are organized wickedly to rob their workers of justice in one way or another, I stand with those who would make the thief disgorge for his own soul's sake, incidentally, but chiefly that justice may come into an evil world and men may not mock the mercy and goodness of God by pointing at the evil men do unrebuked in His name, and under His servants' noses. My pulpit is a free pulpit, sir. When it is not that, I shall leave it. And even though I do not agree sometimes with a man's message, so long as my pulpit is free, any man who desires to cry stop thief, in the darkness of this world, may lift his voice there, and no man shall say him nay! Have you gentlemen anything further to offer?" Commerce ceased rubbing its hands. Its alter ego, Business, was obviously getting ready to say something, but was only whistling for the station, and the crowd knew it would be a minute before his stuttering speech should arrive. Patriotism was leaning forward with its hands back of its ears, smiling pleasantly at what he did not understand, and Industry, who saw the strings in which his world was wrapped up for delivery, cut, and the world sprawled in confusion before him by the preacher's defiance, was pulling his military goatee solemnly when Science toddled in, white-clad, pink-faced, smoking his short pipe and clicking his cane rather more snappily than usual. He saw that he had punctuated an embarrassed situation. Only Religion and Patriotism were smiling. Science brought his cane down with a whack and piped out: "So you are going to muzzle John Dexter, are you--you witch-burning old pharisees. I heard of your meeting, and I just thought I'd come around to the bonfire! What are you trying to do here, anyway?" At last Business which had been whistling for the station was ready to pull in; so it unloaded itself thus: "We are p-protesting, Doc, at th-th-th-th m-m-m-man Adams--this l-l-labor sk-sk-skate and s-s-socialist occupying J-J-John Dexter's p-pulp-p-pit!"