Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1907-01-30
THE ROADMASTER'S STORY


Bucks put It, .but, Haley, you must
remember this thing ut Omaha isn't
going to last. They can't run road
like this with Harvard graduates and
tire new deal down there some fine day
Stay here with me, and I'll say this,
HALEY, if l go, ever. you go with me-"
And HALEY, sitting with his head be-
tween his hands, listening to his wife
and to Bucks, said, one day, Enough"
and the first of the month reported for
duty as roadmaster.
Agnew, meantime, had stopped all
construction work not too far along to
discontinue. The bridge at the Spider
fortunately was beyond his mandate;
1t was finished to a rivet as HALEY had
planned 1t. Three spans, two piers and
a pair of abutments-solid as the Te-
tons. But the Peace river canyon work
was caught in the air. Hailey's cais-
sons gave way to piles, which pulled
the cost down from 100000 to $4,000,
and incidentally it was breathed that
the day for extravagant expenditures
on the West End was past, and Bucks
dipped bit deeper than usual into Cal
lahan's box of crosscut ald rammed
the splintered leaf into his brer bit
harder and said no word.
''But if we lose just one more bridge
It's goodby and gone to the California
fast freight business" muttered Gala
han. ITS taken two years to get it
back as it is. Did you tell the president
that?" he growled at Bucks, smoking
Bucks put out his little wave.
81 told him everything. l told him
we couldn't stand another tie-up. 1
showed them all the records. One
bridge at Peace river, three at the
Spider in ten years"
what did they say?'
"Said they had entire confidence in
Agnew's judgment; very eminent au-
thority and that sort; new blood was
making itself felt in every department
that of course, was fired at me, but
they heard all | intended to say, Just
the same. | asked the blooming board
whether they wanted my resignation,
eshb iDdNho pohoNd W lduSn SllCAlly-
"the president invited me up to the
Millard to dine with him. Hello, Phil
Haileyw he exclaimed as the new
roadmaster walked in the door. "Hap-
by New Year. How's your culyerts,
old boy? Ed Peeto said yesterday the
piles were going in down at Peace
river"
"Just as good as concrete as long as
they stay in," smiled HALEY, land
they do cost heap less. This is great
bridge weather-and for that matter
great track weather"
We had no winter that year till
spring and no spring till summer, and
it was a spring Of snow and summer
of water. Down below the plains were
lost in the snow after Easter even-the
snow that brought the Blackwood dis
aster with three engines and rotary
to the bad, not to speak of old man
Sankey, a host in himself. After that
the snow let up; it was then no longer
a matter of keeping the line clear; it
matter Of .ashinS- the -4so.et- 20
the right of way to keep it from swim
ming clear. HALEY had his hands full;
he caught it all the while and worse
than anybody but he worked like two
men, for in pinch that was his way.
Bucks, irritable from repeated blows of
fortune, leaned on the wiry roadmaster
as he did ON Callahan or Neighbor.
HALEY knew Bucks looked to him for
the track, and he strained every nerve
making ready for the time the noun
tain SHOWS should go out.
There was nobody easy on the West
End, and least of all HALEY, for that
spring, ahead of the suns, ahead of the
thaws. ahead of the waters, came