The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-12-13


citizens are all peaceable-"
"Get out!''
why, man, I'm rot even asking for
subscription; 1 simply want TO ten"
Get outr' snapped the man with the
gun. and in a foam the newsman climbed
down. curious crowd gathered close to
hear an editorial version of the ten COM
mandments revised on the spur of the mo-
ment. Felix Kennedy said it was worth
going miles to hear That's the coolest
deal 1 ever struck on the plains. boys,
declared the editor Talk about your be-
reaved parents If the boy doesn't have a
chill when that man reaches him / miss
my guess. He acts to me as if he was
afraid his grief would get away before he
got to Denver"
Meantime George Sinclair was tying a
silk handkerchief around his neck, while
Neighbor gave him parting injunctions. AS
he put up his foot to swing into the cab
the boy looked for all the world like q
jockey toe in a stirrup. Neighbor glanced
at his watch.
"Can you make it by IL o'clock?" he
growled.
MAKE what?"
Denver"
Denver or the ditch, Nelghbor.'
laughed George, testing the air. Are you
right back there, Pat?" he called, as Con-
ductor Francis strobe forward to COM
pare the Mountain time.
Right and tight and I call it fve-two-
thirty now. What have you, Georgie?"
Observation-Disclosures, answered Sinclair,
leaning from the cab window. "And we're
ready"
Then CO." cried Pat Francis. raising two
fingers.
Coz echoed Sinclair, and waved back
ward smile to the crowd, as the pistons
took the push and the escapes wheezed.
went UP. The little engineer shook
his cap. and with a flirting, shaking slide
the McWilliems special drew slipping away
between the shining rails for the Rockies.
Just how McWilliams felt we had no
means of knowing; but we knew our
hearts would not beat freely until his in
fernal special would slide safely over the
last of the 266 miles which lay between the
distressed man and his unfortunate child
From McCloud to Ogalalla there was a
good bit of twisting and Slowing; but look
ing east from Athens a marble dropped
between the rails might roll clear into the
Ogalalla yards. 1t was a sixty-mile grade
the ballast of Stag, and the sweetest, spring
lest bed under steel.
To cover those sixty miles in better thar
| fifty minutes was like picking them off the
ponies; and the Five-Nine breasted the
Morgan divide, fretting for more hills to
| climb.
The Five-Nine-for that matter any OF
the Sky-Scrapers are built to balance ten OF
dozen sleepers, and when you run them
| light they have fashion of roofing their
noses into the track A modest upgrade
! just about counters this tendency; but or
a slump and a stiff clip and no tail &c
speak Of, you feel as If the drivers were
going to buck up on the ponies every once
|. In while. However, they never do, anG
] George whistled for Scarboro junction, and
$50 miles and two waters, in 19S minutes out
Of McCloud; and, looking happy, cussed Mr.
McWilliams a little, and gave her another
hatfull Of steam.
1t is getting down a hill, like the hills OF
the Mattaback valley, at such a pace thai
pounds the track out of shape. The Five
Nine lurched at the curves like a mad
woman. shook free with very fury, and 4
the baggage had not been fairly loaded
down with the grief Of McWillams, it mus
have jumped the rails dozen times in a.
many minutes.
| Indeed, the fireman-it was Jerry MacEl
roy-twisting and shifting between the ten
der and the furnace, looked for the frs
/ time grave, and stole a questioning glanc
| from the steam gauge towards George.
| But yet he didn't expect to see the boy
his face set ahead and down the track
| straighten so suddenly up, sink in the lever
and close at the instant on the air. Jerr,
felt her stumble under his feet-caught VI
like girl in a skipping rope-and grabbin,
| a brace looked, like wise stoker, for hi
| answer out of the window. There IA
| ahead it rose in hot curling clouds of smok
| down among the alfalfa meadows and owe
the sweep of willows along the Mattabacl
| river. The Mattaback bridge was on fire
| with the McWllliams special on one sid
| and Denver on the other.
Jerry MacElroy yelled-the enginee
didn't even look around; only whistled al
alarm back TO Pat Francis, eased her dow
the grade bit. like man rejecting, an,
watched the smoke and flames that rose L
bar the McWilliams special out of Denver
The Five-Nine skinned across the mead
ows without a break. and pulled up hun
dred feet from the burning bridge. 1t wa
| an old Howe truss, and snapped like pop
corn as the flames bit into the rotten shed