noon
He did what seemed to him the most necessary part of it all with conscientious fidelity . But his mind , a good part of the time , was with the men in the shops . He could not escape the conviction that if a railroad company had the willingness to do so , it could make the surroundings of their men safer and happier without getting poorer work , or even losing any money by it . When noon sounded he went home , resolved to do whatever lay in his power to make the men feel that they were regarded as something more than machines . George was downstairs when his father came in , and looked at him with curiosity rather than with any feeling of shame for the scene of the night before . After lunch was over , Mr. Hardy called his son into the study for a little talk with him before going down to the funeral . `` I do not need to tell you , George , '' began his father quietly but with feeling , `` that I felt the disgrace of your drunkenness last night very bitterly .