The Havre herald. [volume] (Havre, Mont.) 1904-1908, 1907-03-22

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frightful blow.
Pausing for hardly q breath. the sig
mailing again began, then the backing,
up and up and up the line, and again
the massive machines were hurled
screaming into the cut.
you're getting there, Georgie!' ex-
claimed Sankey when the rolling and
lurching had stopped. No one else
could tell thing about 1t, for It was
snow and snow and snow, above and
behind and ahead and beneath. Sim
clair coughed the fakes out Of his eyes
and nose and mouth, like q baffIed
collie. He looked doubtful Of the claim
until the mist had blown clear and the
qulverlng monsters were again recalled
for dash. Then it was plain that
Sankey's instinct was right. They
were gaining.
Again they went In, lifting a very
avalanche over the stacks, packing the
banks OF the cutGwith walls hard as
Ice. Again as the drivers stuck they
raced In a frenzy, and into the shrek
Of the wind went the unearthly scrape
Of the overloaded safeties. XII
Slowly and sullenly the machines
were backed again.
''She's doing the work, Georgie."
cried Sankey. "For that kind Of
cut she's as good as rotary. Look
everything over now while I go back
and see how the boys are standing 1t.
Then we'll give her one more and give
IL the hardest kind"
I And they did give her one more, and
another. Men at Santiago put up no
stouter fight than they made that Sun
day morning In the canyon Of the
BlackWood. Once and twice more they
went In. and the second time che
humping drummed more deeply. The
drivers held, pushed, painted and gain
ed against the white wall, heaved and
stumbled ahead. and, with yell from
Sinclair and Sankey and the fireman,
the double header shot her nose into
the clear over the Blackwood gorge
As engine after engine few past the
divided walls each cab took up the
cry. 1t was the widest shout that
ever crowned victory.
Through they went and halfway
across the bridge before they could
check their monster catapult. Then
at half full they shot it back at the
cut. It worked as well one way as
the other
'The thing is DONE" declared San
key. Then they got into position up
the line for final shoot to clean the
eastern cut and to get the head for a
dash across the bridge into the west
end Of the canyon, where lay another
mountain Of snow to split
"Lo0k the machines over close,
boys" said Sankey to the engineers
'If nothing's sprung wen take a full
carry anything-and buck the west
cut. Then after we get No. through
this afternoon Neighbor can get his
baby cabs in here and keep 'em chas-
ing all night. But it's done showing, y
he added. looking into the leaden sky.
He had everything figured out for
the master mechanic-the shrewd,
kindly old man. There's no man on
earth like a good Indian and, for that
matter. none like a bad one. Sankey
knew by military instinct just what
had to be done and how to do it. If he
had lived no was to have been assist
ant superintendent. That was the
word which leaked from headquarters
after he got killed
And, with volley of jokes between
the cabs and a laughing and yelling
between toots, down went Sankey's
double header again into the Black
wood gorge.
At the same moment, by an awful mis-.
understanding Of orders. down came
the big rotary from the West End
with dozen cars Of. coal behind il.
Mile after mile 1t had wormed east to-
ward Sankey's ram. hurrowed through
the western cut of the Blackwood,
crashed through the drift Sankey Eas
aiming for and then whirled out into
the open, dead against him, at forty
miles an hour. Each train. in order TO
make the grade and the blockade. was
straining the cylinders.
Through the swirling snow which
half hid the bridge and swept between
the rushing plows Sinclair saw them
coming. He yelled. Sankey saw them
| a fraction OF a second later, and. while
! Sinclair struggled with the throttle ind
the air, Sankey gave the alarm through
the whistle to the poor fellows III tho
blind pockets behind. But the track
!! was at the worst Where there was
no snow there were whtskers. Oil il
self couldn't have been worse to stop
on. 1t was the old and deadly peril Of
| fighting blockades from both ends on
! single track.
The peaaf rams af ste,sl aud Hra had