The evening world. Newspaper, August 20, 1915, Page 11

(Ooprright, 1018, by Charice Scribner's Bone.) “Not directly, Our yard SYNopsts OF PRECEDING CHAPTERS, mile to the west of town. Short Line became a % operated as oné, though separate lay-oute.” CHAPTER VY. to be much of w detective.” . t ‘f was,” admitted the self- tied himself more deeply int cConfesséd simpleton, and smoked on wi ie @uessed that much, I'll yards, blue-print and gave it to at Little Butte and after- piaining the locations thoughtfully, even ‘ster, and I did. Asa matter of the help of a your persuasion wasn't needed. ing glass. would have stopped off anyway, , “And right over here by “Richard, I bave been nere seven the spot with th » and I found her—just three with you and Starbuck and Stillings $ret te een the bunch bas thought it worth nu outfit for night work?” ment in the mountains on Lake — find out for myself, as I did last ‘up to your mine on Mount Geooby. “The: re isn't mich to tell. I found otfice to do it. @unt of hers, and by chance—good you'd say—I bave something a By pie ary . common friends in New York. There's pot only got the li The big chemistry expert with the Sprague athletic slant moving uneasily in move Number Oi Tile chair, After a little interval of yuu're in for a silence he said: “I can’t be with you time, They've a Folng back to’ Woatiagton to-mor- on to-mor- Fows id new track means?” Maxwell's start carried him half wa: “No, L don't,” Maxwell out of his chair, and he dropped hie with a frown of perplexity, they are alread; possession. Don’ ehert pipe and broke the stem of it. “You will see before to-morrow “Great Scott, Calvin—don't say might. Pull yourself by ty that!" he implored. “You can’t throw man, and do @ little clear h soning. Why are these people start- ue down that way! Why, good Lord, rout to Dulld « railroad at 10 o'clock Saturday night? cy 4 ae =e rience enou; in crossing figh:s there's no ‘use in talking about iti {oh ow what that means!” Maxwell straightened up and ewore man, if it hadn't been for you and !ng 0! your brains... But, \shaw! ou simply can't go and leave us ing over the ragged edge!” “Pean; and I guess 1 must,” instet- Ut of @ full heart, ed Sprague gently. “And the worst of it Ise the why. It's just up to me, And I've got it to do.” Rend, Maxwell's perturbation had clearea With @ court injunction away to-morrow"’——— his small car, and when he returned was laying it on the desk, to town Sprague occupied the mech- “Calvin, you've had time to think it anician’s seat beside him. over,” said the man at the window. “You haven't made it very plain for the stair to the Savona rie but 1 oan understand that it’s of the railroad building toget! friendship agains’ ins e down the corridor to the door I'm human sSoaeu to know what that Tt was thus It happened that they of the despatcher’s room. Connolly, means, but"—— despatc! was at hi Sprague was holding up one of hia want pped I big aquare fingered hands in protest. riety Ke table railing, and when he s have been thinkin, oe deat he held up @ pudgy Dick,” he admitted gent —for the line-up, anyw ‘a been trying to get sf only oe » warm ba Mad I may wire from Copah for an hour drop out at any mi % or po ‘itr. Maxwell he said. “I when the game is going dead against t know where to raise you. you. Now we'll get action. You go back to the wee and Keep Maxwell, ft his com- with Benson. 'o wan Darton tareuge the. wicks the the earliest possible moment exactly . what it Is that the T-C, people are ‘bat I'll call him for you.” Fol- trying to do. While you're wirin, lowed's sharp rattling of the key and 1'll go out and try to find Btillings. @ few broken snippings from the ‘This was the situation at 10 o'clock sounder, and then the despatcher got on Saturday night. At the 9 o'clock Sunday morning+ breakfast Topaz cafe, when Maxwell, hollow- eyed and haggard from 4 nights was behind the closed door of vigil at the wiros, next speech the’ ‘supérintendent’s room, after with Sprague, the news Lied ed q hel had chosen the easiest of seat of war at Copah was suffictently ugthe he on the wire now?” asked through the wicket in up out of his chair, “Here he is,” he said. jo wants to talk to you, personally.’ ree chairs and setiled himself exciting. smoke, that Maxwell said: — Sing to mi you like the ™Fomething that Chief Engineer ed as it co! Bendon has been telling you over the which r Jack's Canyon branch’ fhandoned. the Panniking Nobody seems @ autw what they are going to do, OF ohaged nothing more than a short wigs It, At Geiay. ‘The marauders had a wreck- J pace’s ing crane aa part of their equipment; over to pry around a little. and half an hour after its aband ‘And he hasn't ment the derailed Southwestern “Q, folks have in mind?" en toppled over inti some sort of a track-building job, He fh wow they have a hundred or more scraper (cams in camp, a trainioad of new steel and forty carloads of cross- ies, And this afternoon they breught down a <echanical rail-layer—a ma- hine much used nowadays for rush- lob of track-layini work installing the that I have ever heard of, “You haven't done anything?” -C. has tts own Copah yard, “There isn't anything to do. me or.anything of that sort?” nor for the militia,” k and hada switthing connection with are on neutral grovnd now, and will the Paciiic Southwestern yard tracks; be until they reach our right of way— thourh, naturally, there is little ex- If that is what they are heading for. We have no manner of right to in- terfere with them until they actual trespassers; and as for thut, Ro physical force we could muster chan; 4 of business between the two competitivi ems.” ey connect with you?” asked tHATE THe SEA SHORE! SALT AiR 1S BAD FoR ROAT. LET'S Go To THE MOUNTAINS ally an independent iny-out, tying a mile to vee When ane of the Pacifl Southwestern, the two | a urs and ‘the . C ire Sporated they ae etill oad hat eles Goes Benson ony “hie has been asking questions and Nore, ChOwing the rag wi anybody who would talk, he saya; but we Tack. He is too (Continued,) desk she Hn Eich, seer ciate ettat ‘0 his chair ar ah After upon the ceiling gas ant er ak! aes sccuser’s the lapse of many minutes he said wees sHave you & bite print of the Copab ick?” GRUMBLIN IE FINE COMPLEKIONS WILL HAVE WHEN CONE BACK FROM THE SE4 SHORE | MATE TH AiR 3 BAD FoR MY THROAT TH woe WE \NF you @ little more. I saw her Maxwell rose and went to a filing om your eastbound? train, the case in the corner of the office. After that took om the sham dead &, little search he found the required picked up your office car. tive positions of the three railroad fou'll remember you asked me to yards. The expert studied the map going eo far as to y over a day or two with you in scrutinize the fine lettering on it with mall pocket magnify. C is where you say the new camp has use the girl stopped off. been pitched?” he asked, indicating le of the mag- Ago! In all my knocking around | “Yes; Benson says t's at the south and the rest of you, not one man in Sprague looked up qttickly, “Did Benson say they bad an electric ight “Why, no; I don’t remember that “Go ask him,” said Sprague paz. 1 had to blunder around and gy uy “Kha the\nuperimendeen whe had learned to take the expert’ FORGET (T Wednesday, when Starbuck took M® gestions without question, 1 T'S Good FoR MY COMPLE XION Bhi bar and trial, it’s all off, give Hixon his verdict, if only for ine Treason that he is one man fight cor tion, The only question is, shall I try to compromiée before it is too late ° WE HAD BETTER Go Ts THE MOUNTAWS. AIS AIR 1S BAD For Your THROAT P| jove, vin, you're @ wisard!” Uttle better thane speaking acquaint- ne exclaimed. "Your guess ie better _ @noe with the aunt—though ime than another man’ gener. They've outtit—the: nothing to it, Richard. The girl can strung it up and gone to work! already turned gon gays they are iuying @ track out down a couple of English titles—and across the valley of the Pannikin like gto pick any such ov this,” and he traced a curving line on of & man as your humble, the blue print, which Sprague was talk about something else.” still holding s| ig out on his knees. to a finish thie you foul in some in any more of these little two-steps way, and they are so sure of it tha! beginning to t you see what would stop them. Benson sa; are between four and five hat trac. gang, and CHAPTER VI. The Invasion. PRAGUE nodded. “Tt is a fight to @ finish, as I told you last night. And they have the advantage be- cause we don't know yet where or how they” dre going to hit Have you communicated with there _ The young incomer was not long in With a nod to the came across “No. We seem to be lopments, and that, is always @ mark of the losing side. I wish to goodness Btillings would “It's odd about Bob. often drop out without Jeaving a trall Have you fiftished? Then let's mo over to the office and see if ‘there is any further word from Benson or Leckhard.” ak soon as the ditched ma- Tarbell, who was driving Maxwell car, stopped, Jumped out id examined the tracks car by the help of “That's them,” he said taconically, when he resumed the steer! wheel. “That was the same car, It's got a ‘fangied tires with irry!” snapped Maxwell. know what they'¥e been doing to Stillings and Billy this time,” Happily they soon found that the evening visit of the two unkhown men to the abandoned pros! been charitable rather than Stillings, who th: first of the two captives to be hauled out of the dark pit on the mountain aide, told them that another basket of food had just been lowered by a aft. And when Star- buck came up he brought the basket Singularly enough, the tw: ones had no explanation to least, none that served to explain thing. It transpired that they bad together in the town house of ening before, and had to the theatre to- play they had taken & taxi to go to Btillings’s house in the suburbs to sleep. lowed them, an ised the taxi they had upon by &@ number of who tumbled out of the pursuing car. Since they had no w ckly overpowered, r, carried off to the mountains, and ped into the prot rope by which they hi thrown in after them. finding his man, pea alter rague’s table. Sprague—from Mr. “There's no answer, I be- and he went on to another table and began to chat with two other young men, strangers to Max- gt who had come in on the evening “You mean Bs Ueey ard, Scing, te v cut @ crossing throug! e ulbweat- Dick, 1 can't tell you or any- ern main line, and do it on Sunday when our people's can't stop them ighted match. “You've surrounded at least half of bueketing of cold jt guid the expert, “The other halt ," he broke will come later. if 1 wasn't going Sprague glanced at his note and passed tt across the table, read it and found that it merely add- ed to the mysteries without offering Lo! Ar in the way of enlighten- “Dear Sprague: our suggestion, and our young men ve spotted at least a score of the strangers at the different hotels, body seems to know any of them, and they won't talk. You will find @ list of names, copied from the hotel registers, on inclosed slip. occurred to me that Maxwell might know some of them, if your suspl- cions are well founded. It was when they were leaving th 1 dining room together that. they upon Tarbell, the ex-terror of Mon- tana cattle thieves. The®young man was way worn and dusty, for want of sleep. Maxwell walked to the window and stared across at the flaming are light a » banging in front of the Hotel Topas “N-no; not immediately, I believe.” on the opposite side of the plaza, well had driven out to the club- When he turned again Sprague had house on the shore of Lake Corona in rolled the blue print into @ tube and uestion was shot-like. found bim, Archer?” 00d as,” was the short tried to; but I don’t get “Tally!” said the big map on the opposite side of the table. having the same Rind of bad luck. T can’t locate Stillings.” id you try bis house?” “I did that first, His family is out of town, and be has been stopping at the club, But nobody there seems to know anything about bim. A lit- tle after midnight I found your di- oung Tarbell, and .” commanded Spraguy. bottom of an old pros- on Mount Baldwin; hin '® brother-in-law, to come back string into the and = Mr, weil’ Billy Bturbuck. I had s to pull ‘ aid, Maxwell “ito ere?" young special deputy shook bi Maxwell frowned over the list fora moment before handing it back, b “A few of them are familiar,” he “Tom Carmody is a division perintendent on the west end of the T-C,, and this man Hunniwell used to be in their legal department. or used to be, Car- “I don’t know the whys fores aby more 'n @ goat,’ “I got onto it through the the road-house out on the Topas pike. He said a bunch o' fellas came along in an auto late last night and stopped for drinks, come in two at a time, and two of didn’t come in at Was startin’ off there was a scrap some sort in the auto, and the bar- keep’, who was lookin’ out o’ the win- dow, 8wore to me vision detective, Vance Jackson 1 mody’s chief despatcher; a: ) say! thib is a Andy Cochran, their Canyon trainmaster.” day is still young. stairs and get @ little sleep. masked men and call maine carried away the final flies of claim correspondencs with the super. intendent’s notations on them, and Maxwell sat back in his chair and lighted his cigar, which had gone out t many times during the stressful morning. In the act the door ¢ private office suddenly opened the heavy-set, neatly groomed srt man whom 8; 0 had sa out at the hotel din: table t evening walked in and took t! at the d na they were “head finished bis simple asked Sprague, uatalah aah breakfast and he tock the good ad- It was nine hours later, the electrics were twinkling yellow inks and grays flood- junday evening streets jaza, when he came down and found Sprague just ready to go in to di 0; the other names are all strange to me.” Sprague took the list and pointed with a square-ended forefinger to one got a glimpse o° 1 foulld the guto tracks and followed ‘em, They left the road rossed and shoved that wood trail on in the sunset ing the quiet \ and the railroad don't know what it wae for?” asked Sprague, when they were rolling evenly back to thé city with Btarbuck at the steering-wheel, “No more than you do, lawyer's answer, culated over it all da; other way of amusing ourselyes—and it's @ perfectly blind trail, he knows I must hav they were after, and hi on the one. You can take your Gloria on the brid; Il had predicted oe, cae, Diamosks machine up an Maxwell had pi 5 w him?” he que » right to the Southwestern mal ae TA i SORGAE gos: Pet fee ana ‘had finally succeeded in rague blew a series of smoke cutting a crossing through ft, though rings toward the disused gas fixture not without a fight. The Southwest- hanging trom the centre of the ceil- ern force, with Leckhard, the division superintendent, at its head, had re- . Since it was past the superin- “Well, go on,” sald Maxwol: impa- ‘I had no idea of tendent eagerly. wasting the day this way.” him wait until they table for two in the corner of the cafe. “The Copah fight is over and the T-C. people have broken into your their new track,” the ex- “Well, I don’t Know him, eith: 1 to Know something ‘I found where thi took Mr. Stillings years ag doing @ little cot] work down in Okia- homa. It was during the time they were having the scrap with the oil Mr. Dimmock was t as an independent capital- ¢ East looking for bargains in oil wells, but really as @ represen- tative of the trust,” “Ig this the same man?” The expert held his fork pointing diagonally across hie plate. the line of this fork,” he directed in jow tones, “and you'll see him—at the further table by the door.” Maxwell looked and saw a gener- built, smooth shaven, cold fea- man who looked like big money, dining at a table alone, money look was not obtrusive; but it was sufficiently apparent in the city cut of the Sunday broadcloth, in the spotless linen, and not less in the at- titude of the obsequious waiter who hovered around the great man’ “I took the trouble to look up Mr, Dimmock in the Oklahoma period,” Sprague went on, was pretty well known in New York ae the right hand of a certain great money lord whose name we needn't That being the case, it is hardly necessary to add that his nce in Brewster at thi: there'd been another scrap, the w the bushes was tore up. About a ter back from the trail I foun Starbuck hollered up at when I peeked in, I couldn't see but Billy he said they was both been the one say he must midnight, with no hope of obtaining wire from Copah?" he suggested, legal help until Monday morning, “Benson, has struck something that Leckhard had “spotted” @ locomotive he can't account for, For a week or on the crossing, and when the nen moré the ‘Transcontinental people in charge of it were overborno by ve been gathering a working camp numbers, the engine had been de- at the qoreh end of~the bridge On rajied and “killed” before the pert announced brief}; to give up and go to but Leckhard has kept us posted. The track Is in, and frogged to a connec- tion with your main line; and the en- tire attacking force has camped “own ints of trespass, pre- ep you and Leckhard from interfering and tearing up their No, 1, whatever it may move accomplished.” tand; I can't begin said Maxwell in de- And then: “Nou word yet from At @he club town house the two to go and get his well-earned rest after the twenty- four-hour task of shadow work. “Get yourself in shape to go on an advisory Someta with 6 to chase back and Maxwell looked dee, “"Bout a hundred foot, or maybe “We'll get a car and go after them,” superintendent's instant de- “You say this was last ofght; have they had anything to eat?” Billy said a basket of had been lowered down to ‘em @ epell after they was chucked In,” Go over to the shops and get a coil of rope out of the wrecking- car, and I'll get an auto. along, Calvin?” “Sure,” was the prompt reply. Maxwell, being a reasonably wealthy as well as the superin- tendent of the ratiroad, kept two cars ~~@ runabout and a big touring ma- The stubborn resistance had pur- Injunction to the attorney Maxwell drove down to t! building, and the expert was with him went up to the despatcher’s to understand There was no more news from the Copah seat of war, two hundred miles to the eastward, or, at most, nothing different. The huge alien track laying force was still guarding the crossing through the Southwestern main line id the new junction with the Nev- ada Bhort Line in the western yards. Leckhard reported that Benson was sleeping off his fati, vious night, and said that all was quiet on the late battle ground, “And still no hy >| jon pee one prague, ha ie age, walked tr “By and large, Calvin, that is the most mysterious ine in the bunch, I can't under- te r “No; and what is more to the point, ‘there is none from StHllings— nor from Tarbell crossing frogs. ‘and after that?” queried Sprague, hen Maxwell had told of the losing tat the main line crossing. ‘After that they went on building across the valley and heading for the » western end of our yard. At the last flectively report, which came about 8 o'clock, iF eile smoked reneotively they had less than a mile of steel to by jangle with the Copah lay before they would be on our right ‘about any trackage of way. Benson is crazy. He is yell- ‘own, or street cross- Ing at me now to petition the Gover- m beginning to think that this is a bYwger game than any we've played yet, Dick, up Editor Kendall of the Tribune this afternoon and had a little heart- talk with him. There is big trouble of some he has smelled it, = “I found that he ea of the pre- Out everywhere, mention here, h Promised to keep in touch p to the time hie paper goe: ght to help us to get at the facts,” said the superintendent. “Kendall is our friend, and he has some mighty keen young fellows on hie staff. By the way, there's one of them now—just coming in at the family, were both housed in a dow: lo drive over Lake pike was quickly made, Dimmock?" asked the superintendent, fo, but he'll be pretty sure to the gentleman for himself. Whe question of pure news is involv to be found running the 5 "t help us out any,” with two men in it going toward Oddly enough, a8 it seemed, the inbound car geve th berth, tearing altnowe inte ti at the passing, and apesding redl - dase, Mr, Mi At i fouon; and me the ‘pel ious ot ‘ontiotathg, tear back to the Ce we needn't coms to ‘wp perted blows the purely academic ques- NEXT. WEEK'S if} [Jacqueline of Gold SS ee ‘ | By VICTOR ROUSSEAU | ‘ashington sat out on t roh of the hotel smoking in thoughtful @olitude and staring ab- sently at the unwinkimg eyes of th mast head electrics in the rail yard diagonally oppumite, The Monda; morning Mheop J bright and fair, ne a iy the mornings do In the in| ones basa knot Sn a tone yont Maxwell sou, desk the big budied po whe news story ‘ent at Se ry was evidently an Aseool- ated Press despatch, amt fully non-committal in ite to the Transcontinental’s rushing the new tract a connection with the Nevada Short Line yards. None the leas, the iropression was oo given that the Southwestern’s oppo- sition to the move had only per- functory and for publie effect. Also, the impression was conveyed that the Copah public, at least, believed thot there was a mecret und tween the twa railroad corporations: lerstanding be- Turning to the Inside pages, Max- bay found no bo yy nie on the news story, war still won- or Kendall had missed why Editor mil when Stillings came 8 cha [rv Nepeeh meh amt tbr oa ho “They told me I'd find you here,” ed to sald the la r, “and I wai word with the ‘The jury will Or 't know ) Bletch mn le - ford was alten weeks bu ago, his was bigh that I retuscd to to him. “It’s a hold-up!” snapped the supers Intended sbortly. “I haven't changed my mind.” it.” said ttorney, rising to + “1 thought ra five you One last chance at it. The caso is con's Comte it your to 1oowe ‘won's re t= ey ey And then, as he was turning to © “By the way, that was @ mighty Cold: blooded thing the T.-C, peo) did yesterday, wasn't it? What meant” Sprague. He ing he'd $ 1 ble hasn't shown up yet, Will you come Duel over to the court house and see Jury sandbag us?” He to Quite naturally the fhardworkin, superintendent had no notion of wasting forenoon in a courtroot and he said so tersely. And beyoni Stillings’s departure and the finishing of the late breakfast, he went across to his office and plunged into the Gay's tasks. for ere was an unusual quantity of it seemed, ¢) the work that and no sooner was he through with hy one file of referred rs than Cal~ maine, the chief clerk, was ready with another, Only once durii forenoon was “the steady office grin lightaned by an interruption from the outside world. At 10 o'clock Benson jn wired from Copah, saying that the T.-C. track layera were at work in, carefully ai and now track as if it were to be a per- manency, Also, the chief engineer asked if any legal steps had be: taken looking to the prevention of further trespass. ballasting the Maxwell broke the routine pace long enough to dictate to Cal @ the re- y ay paneoe’s aaking. t Coe oh | fac ly. No Steps had as ‘ot been taken. A fia rt of the intrusion had gone to Pacifio Southwestern headquarters in New York, no action would be taken until New York had spoken, Tt was a little before noon when Cal. ious moucholp of a fine lad bf Maxwell, I bell et te my name,” ret ristling with & wholly unac- we countable prickling of antagonism. “T have come, as an officer of Judge Watson's court, to take over your railroad,” announced the cold-feas tured man calmly, and as he said it the telephone busser un: Maxwell's | tot went off as though a ral re-alarm had been sounded from the central office, Maxwell reached for the telephon and put the receivér to his ear, waa Stillings who was at the other end of the wire, and he was franti- cally incohere But out of the at- torney's coruscating babblement the superintendent picked enough to ena- bie him to surround the principal fact. t In the face of all precedent, in defi- ance of all its l@mal rights, the Ne- vado Short Line had been practically declared bankrupt and a receiver had been appointed, Notwithstanding hig nerve, which was ordinarily very good, snappy little guperintendent's hand trembled whew he replaced the ea) seer on book and turned to tor, 6 “Bo you've got us at last, have you, Mr, Dimmock?” he said, constraining himself to speak calmly. “It was on the Hixon case, our attorney tells “Uniess I am much mistaken we m: inderstand many thi morrow that we can't ap; night,” wae Bp long after M hie office ‘You should have compromised that i bia “E think that fe About ae fr personal save AOU. the er going to make a clean ete or nal all heads of departments . jew head of all de} your secretary, as you will, Must yo Soaping toe olan “it ie u my luncheon me yu wi ‘ana me over ys, ow Rr bad ‘some , itera Aa it aaa Hix had Stullinge had fieem ahd was Dat oe ! and the over. Ji . fudge Wal was indi ees at Ya ja & sonse of their a) e ra te Sones Ou tried to beak tm” gone out on and shouted at told me, in the ft .J ample opportunity t we could, why ths recat wae, ino : i Binh word ooure ‘ateon was leav- the the Short y aa