The San Francisco call., 1908-11-01
GOOD eopr SAN KENNETH. , IT'S A MURDER

run this far. But l thought yours did,
Why don't you fire 'em bodily; tell
EN- their number is 23-skiddool Aren't
you the sublime porte-the court OF
last resort-the big boss-over :here?'
Ford pulled his horse. down to walk.
Kenneth, let me tell you: behind
those bar keepers are the contractors
behind the contractors is Mr.. North
behind Mr.. North, the president: Ny
little level isn't long enough to turn
the world over" :.
"Pshawi" said Kenneth. Mr. Cot
BIRTH wouldn't stand for anything like
that! Why, he's a perfect fanatic on
the whisky question:"
That's all right. said Ford acidly
'Tt doesn't go as far as Mr. Colbrith
in the matter of the debauching par
ticulars. 1t stops in Denver; and Mr..
:Colbrith approves Denver in the lump
signs the vouchers without looking at
them. as Evans would say. 1 tell you
what 1 believe-what. am compelled
to believe: These individual saloon
keepers are supposed: to be In here. on
their own hook, on sufferance. They
are not; they are merely. the employees
of a close corporation. Among the
profit sharers you'll find the MacMor-
roghs at the top, and Mr.. North,s little
ring Of Denver officials close seconds
DO you honestly believe that, Ford ?'
CO.. L can L prove IL, OF course.
If could I'd go to New York and fight
it out. And the. whisky isn't all of it,
even the worst; there are women in
some Of these camps, and there would
be more If Leckhard didn't stand guard
at Saints Rest and turn them back"
'Heavens-what .cesspoolp said
the attorney. Does a laboringman
ever get out of here with any. of his
earnings?' T..
Not If the MacMorroghs can help it.
And you. can figure for yourself what
the moral atmosphere must be, We
are less than. two: months. old on the
work, but already the Western Exten-
sion is. streak of. crime; crime ufl-
punished and at times. tacitly encour.
aged. You may say that my. depart
ment isn't responsible-that this is the
contractors day and game. II that is
true now-which it isn't--it will no
our own employees, the track layers
BH now Kenneth was shaking his
head
"I can't believe 1t. Ford You're blue
because Mr.. Colbrith has thrown Mr.
North into your boat as ballast.
don't blame you; but you mustn't let
it make you color blind"
Ford said nothing. The day was yet
young, and the long journey was still
young. 1t was at the noon halt, made
at a subcontractor's camp near a great
earth cutting and a huge fill, that Ken
meth had his object lesson.
They were standing at the door of
the time keepers shanty-they had
been the time keepers guests for the
noon meal--and the big gang of Ital-
ians, with its inevitable Irish foreman,
was already at work Out at the head
of the great fill a dozen men were
dumping the carts as they came in an
endless stream from the cutting. Sud-
denly there was a casting down of
shovels, shrill alteration. clinch,
flash of steel in the August sunlight.
and one of the disputants was down,
his heels drumming on the soft earth
in the death agony.
Good God;". said Kenneth. Its q
murdert" and he would have rushed in
IL Ford and the time keeper had not
held him back.
The object lesson was sufficiently
shocking, but its sequel was still more
revolving. Without one to kneel be-
side the dying man; indeed, without
waiting until the drumn ing heels were
STILL the men callously put their
shovels under the body, slid it over the
lip of the dump and left it to be COW
cred by the tumbling cataract of earth
pouring from the tip carts, whose or
derly procession had scarcely been in
f~oo