The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1910-09-01
CHAPTER XVI.

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consequence of the sudden shutdown
But day or two later, when rumors
Of threatened violence began to trickle
in over the telephone wires. Tribune
man called, in passing, at the general
offices in the Coosa Building, and was
promptly put to sleep by the astute
Dyckman, who, for reasons of his own,
was quite willing to conceal the true
state of affairs. Yes. there was sus-
pension of active operations at Gordon
Ia. and he believed there had been some
hot-headed talk among the miners. Bat
there would be no trouble. Mr.. Farley
was at present in London negotiating
for English capital When he should
return, the capital stock O. the COM
pany would be increased. and the plant
would probably be removed to South
Tredegar and enlarged.
All of which was duly jotted down TO
be passed into the Tribunes archives;
and the following mornir Tom, doing
guard duty with his father. the two
Helgersons and a squad of the yard
men at the threatened plant, read
pointless editorial in which misstate-
ment of fact and sympathy for the abb
sent and struggling Farleys were
equally and impartially blended.
Look at that" he growled, wrath
fully. handing the paper across the Of
fee desk to Caleb. "One of these fine
days I'm going to land that fellow
Dyckman In the penitentiary."
The iron-master put on his specta-
Giles and plodded slowly and conscien-
tiously through the editorial. turning
the paper. at length. to glance over
the headings on the Geographic page.
In the middle of it he looked up sud-
denly to say:
Son. what was the name o. that In
diany town with the big water-pipe
contract?''
Tom gave It In a word. and Caleb
passed the paper back, with his thumb
on one of the press disr atches.
Read that" he said.
Tom read and the wrathful scowl
evoked by the foolish editorial gave
place TO a fitting smile of triumph.
There was trouble in the Indiana city
over the awarding of the pipe contract.
In some way unknown to the press re-
porter, II had leaked out that a much
lower bid than the one accepted had
been ignored by the purchasing COM
mittee. a municipal election was
pending, and the people were up in
arms Rumors OF a wholesale indict-
ment of the suspected officials We're
rife, and the city offices were In a state
OF siege.
Tom put the paper down and smote
on the desk.
IT thought perhaps / could give them
a run for their money"
"You?" said Caleb, removing his
glasses. "How's that?"
1T was a shot in the dark, and L
didn't want to brag beforehand" lie
explained. Il wrestled 1t out Satur-
day night when / was tramping The
hills after Doc Williams had brought
mother around. One member or the
purchasing committee was ready 20
dodge: he gave me pointer before !
left Louisville. | didn't see anything
i'm IT then but revenge; but afterward L
saw how we might spend some money
to a possible advantage"
IT reckon I'm sort O. dull. Buddy;
what-all did you do?"
..yyired the disgruntled one that
there was a letter and a check In the
mail for him to be followed by another
and a bigger one IL his pole proved
long enough to reach the persimmons.
The cd on-master left his chair
and began to walk the floor. six steps
and a turn. After a little he said:
tom. is that business
.It ia the modern definition Of g."
whats goin' to happen up yonder
in Indiany?"
."rf 7 knew, I'd be a good bit easier
IN nv mind. What I'm hoping is that
tho rumpus will be big enough to make
'em turn the contract out way"
where's your heart, Buddy? Would
you take the chance of sendin' these
Fellows to Jail for the sake of gettin'
that contract!
aC,heerfully," said Tom. They're ras-
oals. could have bought them If ia
had money enough; and the other fell
low did buy them"
The old man resumed his monoton-
ous tramp up and down the room. The
hardness in Toms voice unnerved him.
After another interval of silence he
spoke again.
dirty Job, any way you look at It."
Norman says It's a condition. not a
theory: and he is right. We are liv-
inc under a new order of things, and
:, we want to stay alive. we've got to
conform to It. II gagged me at first.
T reckon there are some traces of the
cbristian tradition left. But. pappy,
I'm going to win. That Is what I'm
here for. There is nothing for us to do
hut 70 sit tight and wait. If we get a
telegram from Indiana before these
idiots of ours lose their heads and go
N rioting and burning, we shall still
have a fighting chance. If not, we're
smashed"
"You mustn't be too hard on the
men. Buddy. They've been mighty pa
tent"
IF / could do what I'd like to, I'd
/ fire the last man Of them. 1t makes
me savage to have them turn up and
knock us on the head after we've been
sweating blood to pull through. Have
you seen Ludlow
Yes: I saw him last night. He's
/ right ugly; swore he wouldn't raise a
/ hand even IL the boys took kerosene
and dynamite to u.s.
well. IL they do. he'll be tire first
man to pay for It," said Tom; and he
/ left the office and the house to make
| the round of the guarded gates.
Ludlow was as good as his word. On
/ the night following the day of sus-
/ pense an attempt was made to wreck
+ the inclined railway running from the
! mines on Lebanon to the coke yard.
\ 1t was happily frustrated; but when
/ Tom and his handful Of guards got
back to the foot OF the hill they found
a fire started in a pile of wooden TASKS
heaped against the end of the foundry
building.
The fire was easily extinguishable
by a willing hand or two, but Tom
tried an experiment. Steam had been
kept up In a single battery OF boilers
against emergencies. and he directed
iHelgerson TO throw open the grell
gates while he ran TO the boiler room
and sent the frecan of the huge sirea
whistle shrieking out on the night The
experiment was only meageriy success
full Less than a score of the strikect
answered the call, but these worked
with a will. and the fire was quickly