The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1906-12-21

ly, but promptly.
What is il, Barbara
MAY | spend $1,000 If get this job
done by noon? That's the last min
ute, Mr.. Duncan. tells me-"
"But how can YOU
"Never mind how May ] have the
SCOOP
"Yes--twenty thousand-any amount,
If only we succeed i'm pushing that car
on rails across the county line before
the clock strikes ID"
Every well. III see what i can do.
Mr.. Duncan, can YOU cook griddle
| cakesT'
Happily, yes" answered he. I'm
an old soldier, YOU know
Every well, then. Please come here
! and cook for little while-iust till |
get back | won't he long"
Duncan took command of he" two
! frying pans. \ little amused smile ap-
| peared on his face Us he did so in spite
of his diScOurag cement and melancholy.
! But TO the common sense and sincerity
/ of the girl there seemed nothing lu-
! dicrous in setting him tAu5 10 the un-
| dignifed work Intent upon her
| scheme, she darted away 10 whore the
several gangs OF men were still max
| ing some pretenSe OF working. TO each
gang she said:
1--WE got S2,C09 for you men if you
stick TO your work ard finish ii before
noon today. III divide the money
equally among all the men who stick.
1T will be $40 apiece or more. OF
course you'll get your triple wages be-
sides. Will YOU keep it up? It's only
for few hours more
Her tone was eager and her manner
almost piteouSly pleading Without the
responsiveness of her personal appeal
II is doubtful if the men would have
yielded to the temptation OF the extra
earning. Even with her influence add
ed more than third of them-thoSe
who had already east their tools aside
and surrendered TO eXbauStion-refUS-
ed TO go on again with task TO which
they felt themselves hopelessly un-
equal But in every gang she address,
ed there was a majority of men who
braced themselves anew and respond
ed. The very last of the gangs 10
whom she made her appeal put their
response into the form Of a cheer and
instantly the other gangs echoed it.
What on earth has that girl said or
done to the men TO fetch cheer from
them?' calculated VIII Hallam.
Reckon Little Missiles jest done be-
witched EN-" responded Bob as he
poured batter into his pans
moment later Barbara, with face
that had not yet relaxed its look Of in
tense earnestness, returned TO the fire
and resumed her work over the pans.
Thank you. Mr.. Duncan" was all
she said in recognition Of his. service
as n maker of griddlecakes. But she
added:
THE men will stick TO work, now, l
think-or most OF them. at any rate.
Perhaps you and Mr.. Temple can do
something TO shorten ito lessen the
amount"
Then turning to Bob, she said:
Bring the hog, Bob as quickly as
you can. There's barely time to roast
1t before noon"
The men had nearly all had their
breakfast now, SO that the making Of
grddlecakes had about ceased Hal
lam, Duncan and the young engineer
Temple, taking new courage from
Barbara's report, were going about
among the gangs wading knee deep
in water and mud and giving such di- /
rections as were needed.
Duncan especially was rendering
service. AS an old soldier who had /
had varied experience in the hurried |
construction Of earthworks under diff /
culties he was able In many ways to .
hasten the present work One thing be /
hit upon which went far to make sue
cess possible. That end OF the crib |
which reached and crossed the county
line offered cavernous space to be |
filed in. 1t was thickly surrounded by
trees, and Duncan ordered all these
felled, directing the chopping so that
the trunks and branches should fall
into the crib. Then setting men to
chop off such of the branches as pro-
truded above the proposed embank-
ment level and let them fall into the
unoccupied spaces he presently had
that part Of the crib loosely filed I'm
with tangled timber and treetOps.
Gangs Of men were meanwhile push
ing cars along the temporary track and
dumping their loads of earth among
the felled trees. Duncan. with small
gang, was extending these temporary
tracks along the crib as fast as the
earth dumped i'm provided n bed.
This work OF filling was very slow.
of course, and when Duncan's watch
showed 10 o'clock he was well nigh
ready TO despair. Under the strain Of
bis anxiety he had forgotten TO take
any breakfast and the prolonged ex-
posture TO water and rain had so far
depressed his vitality That he now
found a chill creeping over him. He
hurried TO Barbara's fire for some cof-
Zee and a few mouthfuls OF greatly
needed food. There for the first time
ne saw what Barbaras promised din
her was TO be. The two separated
halves Of a dressed hog hung before
md partly over the fire roasting.