he was more and more occupied, and frequently whole weeks passed in which
I only caught a glimpse of him. He knew and sympathised with my new line
of thought; he had accompanied me more than once to the Nekrovitchs', whom
he liked much, but he had no longer the time to devote much thought to
such matters. Of money I always had a considerable command; ever since our
father's death I had kept house, and now that Caroline was away I had full
control of the household purse.

Turning over all these thoughts in my mind as I sat toasting my feet
before the fire, I felt more and more inclined to throw in my lot with the
Anarchists. At the same time I felt that if I did take this step it must
be as a worker and in no half-hearted spirit. The small hours of the
morning were rapidly slipping by as I turned at last into bed to dream of
Anarchist meetings, melting into a confused jumble with the rights of cats
and the claims of the proletariat.



CHAPTER II

A GATHERING IN CHISWICK


As my first actual acquaintance with Anarchists was effected in
Nekrovitch's house, it will not be out of place for me to give a slight
sketch of the gatherings held there and of my host himself.

An interminably dreary journey by tram and rail, omnibus and foot, the
latter end of which lay along a monotonous suburban road, brought you to
the humble dwelling of the famous Nihilist. Here from time to time on