Show X 7 M a n aa by HAROLD TITUS copyright 1923 1934 harold titus service Isma aw CHAPTER VI continued 10 the engine crew had been fussing with i n suspected draw bar and did not nor enter the cook shanty until most of the others had left soon afterward the door opened again and blackmore came in now flow near are you ready to deliver he be asked elliott with a worried frown As soon as the boys there stoke their own boilers ben replied lightly sure you can make it As sure as a man can be 1 I sure hope so bell guess you know by now that im putting pulling for you la in this scrap but bill ive got to hold you to your contract to the hour and letter of it your friend brandon has wired into the house it seems offering any quantity of veneer stull stuff up to seventy thousand at ten dollars less than your tour contract calls for heres a wire alia shaking king a tele telegram ram ordering me to hold you to your agreement and it if youre late or short on scale to have brandon load tomorrow its out of my hands you see bens mouth tightened well it happens weve ducked from under our genial friend brandon again yeah well whipsaw whip saw sir air nick brandon blackmore grinned and unbuttoned hiscott his coat tie ne chuckled lie was glad he was on bens bells side for certain and as he lit ill his pipe and commenced to ro talk with an easing in his manner a triumphant sort of peace descended on the shanty but even as they visited a slender figure moving through the darkness with a slight limp followed the loot hoot owl steel up the long iong grade that climbed from the siding from the crest of this grade the steel pitched sharply northward into the narrow valley of the river where alders and willows showed black now against the snow on either side of the stream on the trestle this figure stood still a long iong interval listening for sounds in the cold quiet then he dropped down the bank of the stream to where the crib work of the trestle stood stoutly footed beneath the muck and water for many minutes he was there grunting it occasionally and when he climbed the bank again he trailed something carefully behind across the bridge now he went after more listening and down again beneath the north end of the trestle more grunting paNl pan ings in the snow hard prodding with a short steel bar and up again tr trailing alling something carefully once more next nest the man lighted a cigarette shielded the name flame of tile the match in cupped hands and after the tobacco was burning applied the fire to a pair of other objects held tightly between thumb and forefinger lie ile let them go and a pair of greenish greenl sh sputters sp utters began crawling across the trestle and the man was limping swiftly up the hill over the crest while the green sputters sp utters drew apart one crossing the trestle toward its Dort hernly end the other moving in the opposite direction it was twenty minutes later laer lien brn elliott was putting pulling on his mackinaw preparatory to going out with the first three cars of logs when he stopped suddenly one arm in its sleeve as a jolt shook the building rattling dishes and causing the door of the range oven to drop open with a bang none in the place spoke they looked at each other faces set in puzzlement again came a heavy jolt a loud detonation and a pan bell fell from its shelf vilh a crazy clatter no word still without sp speaking eaLing they leaped for the dohrwa doorway y and emerged to see the crew spilling from the mens shanty to look and listen its birdeye bird eye blaine croaked hoarsely as he ran out din fer sure where lenny benny by looking earnestly into elliotts alliotts Elli otts face for us to find out ben answered gril grimly itly and they followed him as he ran with long strides toward tile the direction from which the sound had come down the track to where it curved and dipped to the trestle which spanned the river minutes later they came up to him the fastest of them as he stood mu iau ti onless on tile the batik bank of the hoot owl looking at the mass of twisted railroad steel and of ties that dang candled dandled led from the swinging rails in ragged fringe ill at the scattered remnants of crib work at the piling standing splintered and awry and useless in the stream bed lea ben alliotts elliotts KIl Elli lotts otts bridge was goue gone ills way to the siding with ills his veneer logs on the delivery of which hung the fate of the operation was blocked no time lime remained to team them out there was no other oilier way to get them out except by steel and his steel was broken twisted useless lie ile turned to face them as they crowded up tip swearing swe arios and exclaiming in excited voia you houston he nipped to tile the camps boss net get th thaise htam larda off the lie torian line kird kie start a ire fire here you yon torii ou u three there tel get ii a ore fire going on n tile hie other hink bank you teamsters bik aidt to kanip find and dress peu jini aring aes deneys ie i lidilia p 11 Hint n I 1 lively now A jm of nf wk rou illig fit up blackmore cemore whose hose wind was short ea elbowed oared through the crowd panting heavily good G d elliott scotched scorched scot ched you hen den gave him it a fleeting scorching glance scotched scorched Scot ched li I 1 only got me good and mad and now began a scene the like of which had never been recorded in the thibup country men lien were there to la numbers where huge bonfires constantly tended that the light should be steady flared on the banks of the hoot owl sawyers cant hook men teamsters tolled to reduce the wreckage of the trestle s snaking it out of the way working hastily has lily noisily excitement evident in their movements and shouts others cut cue brush until the sloping river ban banks showed b bare are and dark back in the woods oil flares burned as the steam loader puffed and snorted a and nd rattled swung its boom lifted logs from their banks tossed them through the air and dropped them into place on a flat fiat car once loaded the car of logs and the jammer were trundled down the mile of track to the stream slow and slower the car moved until the boom of the loader overhung the gap where a trestle had been then blocks went into place to secure the wheels elliott gave the signal the boom swung a half circle hook men adjusted their tackle to a to log on the single car up it went around and out over the river bank and then ellen down elliott was below there with his cant hook men they grabbed th the e first stick wrestled it into place parallel with the current and others with mauls and stakes gave it a firm resting place on the bank another log another and still more until a crude foundation for trestle abutment had been made it was dIfU difficult cult work dangerous danger oua work too in the bad light latense intense cold handicapped the men also but they worked harder than they ever had W worked on that job ben bea encouraged he flattered be cajoled and he drove those men as they never had been driven before they moved on a run when going from place to place they seemed to try to outdo one another when strength became essential sent ial they were infected with el ilotti fire standing on the bank within the circle of firelight dawn mcmanus Mci lanus seemed to snuggle close to able armitage face even under the ruddy glow of flames iler her eyes followed just one figure that of cen ben elliott commanding resourceful a human dynamo he was shortly after midnight the supply team drove up front from camp the cook drew back blaD blankets letS which had covered its burden commenced putting generous pieces of steaming steak between slices of bread and the cook poured coffee from huge pots tor for the men who swarmed around the alet slet sleigh h A team came creaking up fro from the siding its sled laden with steel rails fist plates spikes and crack laying gayln tools back to the decks in the woods went the locomotive down it came aga again I 1 n hearing bearing more logs these chete were let down to a pile which rose almost to the track level when it was three feet higher nearly halt half the work would be finished workers staggered through the snow hearing bearing a steel rail it went nent into place fish plates clattered wrenches set au nuts and spikes put the rail secure on ties so when the locomotive leaking steam from I 1 its ts old joints lumbered down alth its next burden tile the loader was set out on this length of new track and began the task last of filling filing in the far side of tile the ravine leaving a sluiceway through which the waters of the steam gurgled and surged blackmore joined able and da dawn w n on the bank where the airell firelight jit struck topaz lights from the snow the old justice turned an inquiring gaze on him and the buyer shrugged two lie he muttered lies iles got less than six hours left to turn the trick it seem humanly possible able said slowly im beginning to think blackmore replied that the man human this tiling thing stopped most men I 1 know without a try but not el ilott 1 three and the foundation on the south side of the river was in four and the jammer was swinging loss logs rapidly into that gap five and tile the heads beads of men working dos dog gedly on the crib were up to the level ot of the old ties daybreak found them throwing the last lond load of logs loge into place and the pallid light of the early day revealed Elli alliotts elliotts Elliot otts ls face drawn and gaunt and colorless ills his eyes burned brightly strangely dark ills only chance Is that the local locally ll be late blackmore Elack more moaned to able six and broad axes shaped the logs on which ties would rest find up from the siding came a team at a trot and behind it another those these wore were men from tincup who had heard or 01 the work going on they loft their sleighs and looked at the emergency trestle and then stared fit at one another and shook their heads in amazement things like that just happen they seemed to be think thinking lil g then came a battered cutter with old tim jeffers driving alone to see what was to be seen heard the shots in town last night he told able come mornin I 1 drove this way the old justice nodded grimly you guessed then tim spit angrily tile the lad was gettin too close to ills his mark to suit some folks it seems seven and men staggered up the embankment bearing a rail 1 I w 4 T N il I 1 va I 1 F T all 1 her eyes followed just one figure that of ben elliott five minutes later it rang and san sang as the splice spike went home and another the last was brought up the gap gal aas was bridged the last spikes were going in the particular job was done but tension screwed up and up as a fiddle string is tightened it was seven thirty and far oil off a locomotive co screamed the local 1 blackmore Elack more gasped ashes at dixon bixon in a half hour now 11 II 1 the boys Ilc licked kedi A halt half hour I 1 A half hour in which to move six standard cars laden with a heavy scale of saw logs over that gradel grade 1 two trips ben elliott had estimated it would take two iwo trips for the leaking old locomotive to arp drag them the alie three miles to ro the siding and puff its way back and trundle the other three over the hill and down the slope it was a halt half mile climb from raer to lo summit with a better than four per cent grade A good loco locomotive mothe of even small tonnage might tale them over at once but not the old ruin that stood sending its plume of smoke into the morning air up tip the track yonder and if those logs wore were not put down for the train even now screaming its way toward the siding hen bea elliott was beaten lie ile straightened flinging away his in maul all 1 saw the last nut but tightened on the final listi fish plate and then holding up both hands face fixed toward the locomotive with its string of cars waiting around the bond bend and up the hill to the northward lie he began to run holding them there when the trestle was nas ready lien wondered why audibly excitedly stirred from their weir liless by this strange move instead of high balling bailing them on elliott was holding them back come on well drive itt it a teamster cried and ills his sled at once swarmed with men as ills his horses curses started toward camp and the train at a heavy gallop 1 CHAPTER VII the cars of veneer logs were coupled their air hoses dangling be cause the hoot owl never boasted air brale brake for its trains tiie the locomotive panted and leaking steam trailed off int into the forest mciver the engineer stood beside ills his cab wiping lis ills hands slowly on a ball or of waste and ills his fireman lung hung out the gangway its as ben came running up boull have to ro take em all over at once elliott panted locally Local ll 11 be there in fifteen minutes I 1 if not at the siding in time for the local we losel lose I 1 youve got to run for it mac and pick up enough speed going down to carry you over melver mclver rolled the waste and I 1 eyed his employer er then he shook his head slowly tough luck tor for you I 1 1 he sald said but with that rotten steel on a cold mornin and no telling what that trestle 11 do when nhen weight hits it lie he shook his head again and looked el llott ilott in the eye 1 I got kids he said simply sos the fl fireman reman some of the irate glare which had bad been in bens face dwindled lie too stared briefly down the track kids yes he said softly 1 I can cant it ask a man with kids to try it mac no hard fec fc eings ings ill take a slit shot myself teams clinked up then horses frost covered ben surveyed the crowd that pressed about the engine and swung up to the step im going to take her ov over r myself he said if I 1 get across that hump with this load pushing me ill need a brakeman im not going to ask anyone of you to ride maybe well pile up but if we do get to the top I 1 cant stop her alone at the mill without air with frost on the steel well go into the pond theres fifty dollars in it for the man ride with me they looked hard at him and then almost in unison their faces turned down the track to watch was to know what was it in their minds the dangers of that curve with rusty steel so cold the problematical strength of the trestle they had built through the night fifty dollars against a broken neck ben said and his voice trembled a bit lie he drew his watch wee got eleven or twelve minutes to catch the local ill urge no man fifty dollars and a long iong cliance chance any takers ile he saw dawn mcmanus standing behind the group tier her face was white dark eyes wide and frightened no man moved for a moment then quite simply without a word tim jeffers peeled his heavy sheepskin coat took a peavey henvey from a man beside him and advanced never mind the fifty elliott its my neck ben smiled smile then it seemed as though he were so weary from effort and strain that he must have cracked and cried had be not smiled lie ile said no word ile he swung up to the cab as the safety valve popped and steam commenced blowing off ben threw more coal into the fire box looked at his water gauge gaug ge shoved the reverse lever down into tile the corner and opened the throttle the little old locomotive gave a sharp an almost startled bark as valves released their PO power sending from its stack a great put puff of cumulous vapor into the still morning air the drivers spun and site she let go a rapid series of exhaust coughs ile he shut off opened again and this time the tires found purchase the slack came out the cars moved and journals squealing belching and stuttering they broke over to the d down own grade TO BB CONTINUED |