The San Francisco call., 1908-10-25

want 10 string one that viii beat his
record"
Never mind my troubles, Julius"
was the evasive reply. Just you figure
to keep things out OF my way and give
me clear track Let's see-where
were We? Cheyenne Crossing at 2
a. m. water at Riddle Creek. coal at
Brockton-"
The schedule was completed wnen
Frisbie came back to say that the 1915,
with the superintendent's car attached,
was waiting track six. Ford went
down, looked the gift horse in the
mouth and had the running gear OF the
car overhauled under his own super
vision before he would give Olson the
word TO go. pressing the night car
inspectors into service and making
them repack the truck journals while
he waited.
I'm taking no chances" he said TO
Frisbie; and truly it seemed that all
the hindrances had beeen carefully
forestalled when he finally boarded the
"O1' and ordered his hagman to give
Olson the signal Yet before the one
car train was well out of the Denver
yards there was q jolting stop and the
hagman came In to report that the
engine had dropped from the end OF
an open switch, blocking the main line.
Ford got out and directed the rel
enrailment of the 1915, carefully re-
raining from bullying the big Swede,
whose carelessness must have been ac-
countable. 1t was the simplest Of ac-
cidents, with nothing broken or dis
abled- Under ordinary conditions Is
minutes should have covered the loss
of time. But the very haste with which
the men wrought was fatal. Enrailins
frogs have way of turning over at
the critical instant when the wheels are
climbing, and jackscrews bOttOmed on
the tie ends do not always hold
Eight several times were the Jack
screws adjusted and the frogs clamped
into position; but not until the ninth
trial could the perverse wheels be in
duced TO roll workmanlike up the in
clined planes and into place on the
rails Ford looked at his watch when
mis- special was free of the switches
and Olson was speeding up on the first
long tangent. With the chase still in
It's opening mile Mr.. North's lead had
been increased from seven hours to
eight.
Leaving Denver on the spur Of the
moment. Ford had necessarily left
many things at a standstill. and his
nrst care, after he had assured himself
that the race was fairly begun. was to
write out a handful of kilograms de-
signed to keep the battle alive during
his enforced absence from the firing
line. The superintendent's desk was
Hospitality unlocked and for a busv
half hour Ford filed blank after blank.
steadying himself against the pounding
swing of the heavily ballasted ear with
a left handed grip on the desk end.
When there remained no one else to
remind he wrote out a message to
Adair, forecasting the threatened dis
aster and urging the necessity Of rally-
ing the reconstructionists on the board
of directors
%Ihat ought to stir him up" he said
TO himself, punching Adair's telegram
with the others TO be sent from the
nrst stop where the Western Union
wires could be tapped. Then he whirled
around In the swing chair and scowled
up at the little dial in the end of the
car; scOwled at the speed recorder. ana
went to the door to summon the far-
man.
what's the matter with OIson9s he
demanded. Has he forgotten how to
run since he left the Plug mountafn9
Climb up over the coal and tell him
that 40 miles an hour won't do for me
tonight" '-0
The fiagman picked up his lantern
anu went forward; and in a minute
or two later the index finger OF the
speed recorder began to mount SLOWLY
toward the ffties. At 80 miles to
the hour Ford, sitting in the ebserva
t1on end of the car where he cou1a
see the ghostly lines Of the rails reel
Ing backward into the night. smeIIed
smoke-the unmiStakable odor 81
burning oil. In three strides he
mad reached the rear platform. and
a fourth to the right-hand railing
showed him one of the car boxes bIaz-
ing to heaven
He pulled the cord OF the air whistle
ana a1ter the stop stood by in sour
silence while the crew repac<ed the
hot box. Since he had made the car
inspectors carefully overhaul the truck
gear in the Denver station. there was
no one to swear at. Olson bossed the
Job. did it neatly and in silence. and
no one said anything when the fire.
man. in his haste TO be useful unset
the dope kettle and got it's contents
well sanded before he had ova~taI<en
II In its rolling flight down the en-
bankment
Ford turned away and climbed into
his car at the dope kettle incident.
There are times when retreat Is the
only recipe for self-restraint: ana in
imagination he could see the general
managers special ticking of the miles
10 the eastward while his own men
were sweating over the thrice e-accursed
Journal-bearing under the ''0f''
Now, as every one knows. hot boxes.
o|SAUSS DeihS perVerSely lnCurabIe, are
the sworn enemies of high speed. At
40 miles to the hour the journal was
smoking again. At As it burst into
flames. Once more it was patiently
cooled by bucketings of water drawn
from the engine tank; after which nee
essary preliminary Olson spoke his
mind:
Ay tank We never gets someveres Wit
dat hal-fer-darn brass. Meester Ford.
Ay yust see il Ay can't find 'noder
wone- And he rummaged in the car
lockers till he did find another
Unfortunately, however, the spare
brass proved to be af the wrong pat
tern; Pullman. instead Of a P. S-W.
standard. Olson was trained mechan-s
and man Of resources. and he clipped
and fled and scraped at the misft brass
until he made it serve. But when he
climbed again to the cab of his engine.
and Ford swung up to the steps OF the
car, the white headlight eye Of an east
bound freight, left at siding a full
hours run to the rear. came in sight
from the observation platform of the