Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-08-26
THE SMOKE-EATERS
BY HARVEY J. O'TnGGINS
TX.
A PERSONALLY CONDUCTED REVOLT
Copyright, 1904 1905, by the Century Coz

indifferently across the room in his under
clothes, and followed the captain into his
office.
where's Corrigan?" Meaghan asked,
turning at his desk.
Donnelly answered. stolidly. II don't
know. He's washin' himself. think. TAX
in a bath"
Meaghan frowned at him. He wished to
the men, but the majesty of office would not
! let him bend to it now. who gave him
leaveT' he demanded, threateningly.
Donnelly raised sandy eyebrow with an
expression of his yellow face that asked If
ne, then. was supposed to be in charge Of
the house.
The captain flushed Tell him want to
cover his dignity.
Donnelly went out obediently with the or
der; but he did not deliver it. He turned
slyly at his cot to see whether the captain
was watching him; and, finding that the eye
of authority was elsewhere, he lay down
again. He did not answer the questions of
the men, He closed his eyes and watched
the captains door under stealthy lids.
Meaghan seated himself at his desk and
smoked an inch of his cigar patiently. He
had been unable to get any explanation of
the situation from his lieutenant. He in
tended to examine Corrigan, who at least,
was not man of guile.
! When he looked up at the clock muscle
frightened in his jaw. his eyes puckered and
he closed his lips tightly the cigar. In
irritated Impotence.
He exploded. at last, in an oath. pushed
back his chair and strobe to the door.
'Donnelly! he shouted, and began to walk
up and down the carpet.
The innocent Donnelly stood calm in the
doorway. The captain plucked the cigar
from between his teeth Tell Corrigan I
want him. Tell him I want him here
now! He emphasized the words with two
heavy blows on the desk top.
Donnelly turned an expressionless back on
! him and departed-to his cot again.
Two minutes passed. Three minutes passed.
Capt. Meaghan bit into his cigar. Five in
solent minutes-three hundred contemptuous
seconds-ticked placidly on the clock
He flung himself at the door and yelled:
"Donnelly! Donnelly! Tell that
Corrigan that If he don't come here in two
shakes I'll yank him out O. that bath an
turn him in the street. His voice echoed
| through the building in a roar.
Donnelly went. with thin-lipped smile.
to the bath ROOM and was met at the door
of 1t by Corrigan. who came out with a
towel around his middle, dripping and I'M
clothed. The water trickled down from his
hair over a face that was knit in a white
passion. He walked boldly into the cap
tain's office. leaving wet trail behind him.
What dyuh want?''
Meaghan glared and swallowed, fighting
down rush of anger that swelled in his
neck. Corrigan, brea thing hard, watched
him under beaded eyebrows The towel be-
gan to slip from his hips; he held it with his
hands.
The captain controlled himself to ask:
'Where've yuh been?"
Corrigan answered: "Takin' a wash
Meaghan stuck out a venomous foref1nger
at him. .Yuh were" he cried. "Yuh were,
were yuh? Well, I'll fix yuh fer this. What
d'yuh mean by comm in here without yer
clothes? BY -, I'll kick y out O. here
like dog!'
Corrigan barred his lower teeth THAT'S
It, he snarled. Like a dog! There's been
you an Scully. There ain't no dogs in this
crew. an there amt goin' to be treated like
none. see?"
Capt. Meaghan threw aside his cigar and
his forehead.
Since Scully come in here" Corrigan
went on. thickly, 't amt At fer no man
not fer no man. It's about time yah let up,
see? We amt goin' to stan fer It,"
Meaghan. In his helplessness, began to
browbeat him with all the epithets Of abuse
that his rage could recollect. Corrigan
waved ed h the towel at him eontemptuously
o yuh nothin but pair O. nuts"
Meaghan rushed at him. Corrigan side
stepped and ficked the wet towel In his
face, and the tail of it, cracking like whip
lash. struck the captain across the eyes and
blinded him. He went past, inarticulate,
into the arms of Lieut. Scully, who had hur-
rieI upstairs at the noises of the quarrel
and came running in to clinch with the in
furiated captain and hold him.
The crew rushed into the room and sur
rounded him. Long Tom" Donnely hooked
Corrigan out Of the jostle by. the elbow and
returned him grimly to his bath. Keep
stripped" he said. AN wet" he added
There's fight COMM
Lieut.. Scully cleared the office and shut
the door on the men. while the captain, with
hand over his smarting right eye and
blinking wildly with his left one, stamped
around the room sputtering. The lieuten-
ant judged 1t the part of wisdom to pretend
that he did not understand the situation
Somethin in yer eye, sir?" he asked, po-
litely.
Capt. Meaghan did not hear. He had
stumbled into the waste-paper basket and
he stopped to kick 1t across the room. The
scraps of torn paper rose like flock of
frightened birds. Scully watched them set
tie. "Somethin' in yer eyer" he repeated
delicately.
The captain turned on him, snorting with
pain and rage. "What?' he yelled. You
you Where's that Corri-
GAM? He broke into an unintelligible abuse
OF Corrigan, the crew and the silent Scuily
w NATIVE yuh been dom to them?" he
crie6. Don't yuh know no more about
hardin men? The whole company's
up" E:
scully faced the storm with a thoughtful
| narrowing of his eyes. They'll hear yuh
out there" he warned him.
He hit me-" Meaghan roared.
"Who?"
"Corrigan, Corriganu Corrlgan,!r'
Inc lieutenant stood with his back to the
door and settled his face in frown to hide
| the jubilant thought that he had his stua-
| ton well in hand. The quarrel was the cap
| tains now. The men would have old Mea-
| CHAN to deal with: and behind Meaghan was
| the authority of the whole department to
| crush them down.
Scully, on his first coming to the truck
| house. had taken his cue from Meaghan's
| manner and acted the minor autocrat with
| the men. After struggling against their
| covert intractability for almost a month he
! had decided to provoke some one Of them to
| open hostility: he had picked on Corrigan
| as the least formidable among them, and
! had prosecuted him with every form of off,
| cial oppression. The result was excellent
| from his present point of view.
He relaxed the anxiety of his forehead
| The captain continued to thresh about the
| room, seemingly In blind fury. He threw
| his cap from him; he tore off his coat; he
| flung aside the desk chair that was In his
| way; and he worked himself into greater
| rage with every attack on the defenseless-
| ness Of these inanimate victims of his
| wrath. But this was his purpose exactly;
| for, behind his impulse to anger. there was
\ the recognition of need to spur himself on
| to a desperate recklessness. And by one of
| those anomalies that make even the mental
| processes of a Meaghan intricate, in the