Gilpin observer., 1906-11-08

Make sign, Brown, he said,
telling the men that our whistle is
jiSging-what a woodland that for
the ensuing three weeks, until our
own is thoroughly cooled, they will
listen for the whistles of adjacent
factories. Put it on the same post"
There's no ROOM" Brown chuckled-
Then take another post. There's
plenty of posts,' said Rigby, going
back to his newspaper
Danny got another little idea, too
His fireman had to cart out ashes
big sheetiron whee,barrow, and the
way lay over the cobblestones under
the window of little Rigby's Office.
Just before Otis died, he bought
Danny fine new wheebarrow for
| the purpose, for the old one was loose
/ in the joints and pretty rickety gen
orally, and when a man was pushing
her she sounded more than anything
else like a carload OF tinware being
struck by lightning.
But two or three days after the
whistle stopped work, Danny-he's a
tender-hearted feller-Danny got a;
sentimental feeling for the old wreck
and dragged her out of the scrap heap,
and set his fireman wheeling ashes,i
back and forth, back and forth, back
and forth, till the din sent Rigby to-
the speaking-tube once more.
Brown" he cried, what on earth!
ails that wheelbarrow?"
Ripe old age" answered Brown.
We'll, does it have to make that.
noise?"
THE poor thing can't speak and
tell us" chuckled the old gentleman.
Il presume it does.'
We'll, it's enough to drive a man
mad" said Rigby. "Ill have it stop
ped, except when I'm out of this Of
fee. Listen. You make another sign.
reading like this: 'Workmen are pos
itively prohibited from carting coal
and ashes without obtaining permis-
sion from the superintendent Nail il.
up
Another sign!" muttered Brown
"Yes, another sign!" shouted Rig
by, who heard him. "I'll make these
men understand that they're to do as
like and not as they like. And III
get this Internal place whacked into
shape if 1 have to plaster the walls
inside and out with signs, from the
ground to the roof!'
Rigby didn't come back that noon
time, but he sent boy to Brown
with note, saying that he had
severe headache, and would the fac
tory kindly try to run without him till
the following morning.
! He took his time getting there the
following morning, too, and by the
time he finally did arrive the boss had
come in in fury.
| What under the sun is the matter?
Why is the factory shut down." he
demanded of Brown.
II Too many signs,' snickered Brown.
"The last of them being the most re-
sponsible."
l. What do you mean"
: We'll, to put it another way, want
of coal is keeping US from running" ;"
Goal. Great Scott" shouted the
boss. You had 60 tons last week.
What's Rigby doing with it? Eating.
it,"
Il haven't seen him at it, said
Brown, speaking slowly and distinct
ly and enjoying every word. But
he forbade any man to toucfr
the pile without his permission, and
he hasn't been lere since yesterday
noon. The boilers were cold at six
O'Clock"
Brown, Brown, Brown!" groaned
the old man. Had you no more sense
than to follow fool orders like that?"
why, bless me-" said Brown.
looking at him squarely with his in
nocent old eyes, isn't it one of the
new notions? One of the latest wrin-
kles in acid manufacture? I'm doing
my best to cooperate"
The boss looked hack at him for N
full minute, and he had to smile at
last, bu, ii was a. smile as hard as
flint.
And what wretched idiocy is this? ?''
he said, pointing to the new sign, and
then to the others, with his cane.
What are they doing here?'
Mr. Rigby's orders
"Well!-" said the boss. And there
too much for even his extended vo-
cabulary.
When he got breath he said:
There's another sign in your hand.
Brown. What is it,
"Well-oh. that?" stammered brown
, going red.
Lets see It," said the boss. What.
, ever 1t is, heaven knows it can bsno
, worse than the others"
And with that he took 1t and-Irea
this:
!
, In Memoriam