La Junta tribune., 1907-06-08
haven't any time to waste In getting
your section ready"

he wnlkeu rapidly uoWh tne WHarI.
oyertakiag the heavily bearded man rs
he was crossing in front OF two pulling
engines To track =. The man looked mt
him and nodded.
"Whcre's your father. Carl:" he ask
ed seems he and are TO be on the
same train this time, ut least MS far as
Corinth. couldn't nsk better man
on rush trip like this is going tn be-"
Fathers sick" answered Carl. Il
came down to sce--to get his place.
I've been watchin. him the last four
or five nights. sleeping "A little when
could. but he's well enough now To
look after himself until | get back"
'Sick:" with some surprise. Why.
hadn't heard. And you're to take
his place on this trip. Amt you pret-
ty young. wouldn't have thought
the company II agree Ia II, they're so
particular, though" hastily. you're
perfectly competent. Carl. know
that. You've been with your father so
many trips You know the ropes as
well = he. And you've got a cool. clear
head That's what counts in rpening
fruit by thermometers. Aud stili--well.
you know yourself how the company Is
about young help. I've got boy OF
your nge that hope TO get into mes
| senger's job some day. but I've never
expected to till he was twenty-five or
more. You're lucky: that's all I've got
to say. If you make this trip all right.
you'll be on the books for steady runs
before the years out"
Carts face had grown hot and I'M
comfortable.
"You don't understand" he explain
ed. "I''
But man down the track was look
| ing toward them and motioning. Mes
senger hurried away.
"Well, | hope you'll have good luck.
as. of course. you WILL" he called back
| over his shoulder. We'll be too busy
to see much of each other on the trip.
take the twenty end cars on account
OF switching or Mt Corinth. Yours'lI be
| forward"
Until that moment Carts head had
been In whirl. Events had followed
each other so rapidly. so apparently
| beyond his personal option In the mat
| ter. that he had allowed himself to be
| borne on the current Now he decided
| to let it go on He had hurried down
| to explain about his father and to see
! If he would not be allowed to fill the
| place. But from what he knew him
self and from what . had just said he
realized how slight was the chance.
Perhaps even his father would be sus-
| pended for time. The company did
not make much allowance for sickness
4 or conyalcsccncc. Their work was too
| important.
| But. rs o had conceded. he under
| stood the work and could probably do
| it just rs well as his father. and just
/ now they We're In special need of en-
! ployment. His younger brother was In
the hospital waiting an operation. and
money must be had to meet the ex-
penses.
SO he hurried down track 3 TO the
end OF his--or rather his father's--sec-
| ton of the train and began a careful
examination of the cars. Then lie set
about seeing that they were properly
treated The mercury was down TO 81
degrees. which was unusually cold Tor
| New Orleans. and l. degrees lower
than the messengers had started out mt
any previous time during the winter.
! Other messengers We're giving their
| cars II little more heat than common,
for it would be twelve to fifteen hours
before the now cool bananas could be-
4 gin to generate warmth of their own. and
the freezing or even chilling OF train
load would mean the loss of IL fortune.
Carl gave his ears several degrees more
than was customary and then had the
| stoves removed and the doors closed.
| Even with an outside low temperature
the carefully built cars would then re-
| tain heat until the fruit began to gen
crate SONG of Its own. An hour later
the train pulled out
A cold wave had been predicted. but
apparently some weather condition had
stayed or swcrved it In another direc-
ton. Before they were beyond the city
limits the mercury commenced to rise.
and when they rumbled through Me-
| r!tlian ii marked GO degrees and con-
tnued to go up.
| Carl began to look anxious. All his
ventlators We're now wide open. but
the air in the cars was moist and
sitting. Instead of being chilled. the
danger was now that the bananas
would overheat. which would be just
as disastrous.
A messengers duty is to see that his
frni, gets into market In just the right
condition. He must retard or advance
the rlpenins by cold or heat. according
to the condition OF the fruit. the length
Of the trip and other circumstances.
He must know from n mere glance mt
a bunch of bananas how many degrees
of heat will be required to ripen it in
a prescribed number of hours. and II
he be n good messenger he must be
able 10 have his fruit in Just the right
condition when he reaches his des-
tinntion, whether 1t be four days or