Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-10-20
CHAPTER XII.
The Pleasurers.

The freight wreck in the Crosswater
hills, coming fortnight after Rufford s
arrest and deportation to Copah and the
county Jail. rudely marked the close of
the short armistice in the conflict be-
tween law and order and the demoraliza-
ton which seemed to thrive the more
Justify in proportion to Lidgerwood's ef-
forts to stamp it out.
Thirty-two boxes, gondolas and flats
racing down the Crosswater grades in the
heart OF q fawless, crystalline summer
afternoon. at the heels Of Clay's big ten
wheeler. suddenly left the steel as a unit
TO heap themselves In chaotic confusion
upon the right-of-way, and to round out
the disaster at the moment OF impact by
exploding shipment Of giant powder
somewhere in the midst Of the debris
Lldgerwood was on the western division
inspecting. with Benson, one Of the sew
eral tentative routes for a future extern
sion OF the Red Butte line to a connec-
ton with the Transcontinental at Lem
phi, beyond the Hophras. when the news
OF the wreck reached Angels. Where
fore, 1t was not until the following morn
ing that he was able to leave the head
quarters station, on the second wreckins
train. bringing the big 1OO-ton crane to
reinforce McCloskey, who had been on
the ground with the lighter clearing
With a slowly smoldering fire to fight
and no water to be had nearer than the
tank-cars At La Guayra,- the traiAmaster
had wrought miracles. BY 10 O'Clock the
ing for working base had been laid,
and McCloskey's men were hard at work
picking up what the fire had spared when
Lidgerwood arrived.
Pretty clean sweep this time, eh,
Mac? was the superintendent greeting.
when he had penetrated to the thick OF
things, where McCloskey was toiling and
sweating with his men.
so clean that we get nothing much
but scrap iron out of what's left" growl-
ed McCloskey. climbing out of the tangle
of crushed cars and bent and twisted
ironwork to stand beside Lidgerwood on
the mainline embankment Then to the
men who were making the snatch-hitch
for the next pull: "A little farther back,
boys; farther yet, SO she won't over
balance on YOU; that's about it. Now.
wig it,
you seem to be getting along all right
with the outfit you've got, was Lidger-
woods comment. IF you can keep this ul
we may as we'll go back to Angels
NO, DON'T protested the trainmaster.
I'VE can snake out these scrap heaps
after fashion. but when it comes to
resurrecting the 195-did you notice her
as you came along? We kept the fire
from getting to her. but she's dug her.
self into the ground like q dog after
Lidgerwood nodded. II looked her over"
he said. IF she'd had little more time
and another wheel-turn or two to spare,
she might have disappeared entirely-like
that switching engine you can't hnd: I'm
taking it for granted that you maven
found it yet-or have yOu?'
NO. 1 haven't" grated McCloskey. and
he said 1t like man with a grievance.
Then he added: II gave you all the
pointers 1 could find two weeks ago.
Whenever Won get ready to put HallOCk
under the hydraulic press, YOU squeeze
what you want to know out OF him..
This was coming to be an old subject
and a sore one. The trainmaster still in
sisted that Hallock was the man who
was planning the rObberies and plotting
the downfall of the Lidgerwood manage
ment, and he wanted to have the chief
clerk Systematically Swallowed. And 1t
possession for Hallock that was still
keeping him from turning the matter
over to the company's legal department
this in spite of the growing accumulation
of evidence all pointing TO Hailock trea-
son. Subjected to rigid crOss-examna-
ton, Judson had insisted that part. at
least. OF his drunken recollection was real
that part Identifying the voices of the
two plotters in Cat Biggs back room as
those of Rufford and Halloek. Moreover.
il was no longer deniable that the chief
clerk was keeping in close touch with
the discharged employees. Tor some pur-
pose best known to himself; and latterly
he had been dropping out or MS once
without notice, disappearing somelimes
for q day at time.
Underwood was recalling the last OF
these disappearance when the SECOND
WreckinE train. having backed 10 the
nearest siding to admit OF reversal or
n. makeup order and the placing of the
crane in the lead, came up to go INTO ac-
ton. McCloskey shaded his eyes from
the suns glare and looked down the hne'