The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1916-10-16

named Tne MOTEL CELESTIAL.
That a battle would have to be
fought was evident enough. Grid
ley, whose attitude toward the
new superintendent was that of
disinterested adviser. assured
Lidgerwood he was losing ground
by not opening the campaign of
severity at once.
you'll have to take a club to
these hobos before you can ever
hope to make railroad men out of
them" was Gridley's oft-repeated
assertion.
Hallock attended to his duties
and carried out his superiors in
structions with the exactness of
an automaton, but his attitude
was distinctly antagonistic. None
the less Lidgerwood acknowledged
a growing liking for the chief
clerk.
McCloskey, the trainmaster,
who had served under Hallock for
a number of months before the
change in management, confided
to Lidgerwood that .Hallock was
married; that his wife, striking
ly beautiful young woman, had
disappeared, and that since her
departure Hallock had lived alone
in two rooms over the freight sta
ton.
For the first few weeks Lidger-
wood let McCloskey answer the
h
scenes of disaster, but when three
sections of an eastbound cattle
special, ignoring the ten-minute-
interval rule, were piled up in the
Pinon Hills. he went out and took
personal command Of the track
clearers.
He found that the wrecking-
crew had taken a ten-gallon keg
of whisky along wherewith to cell
citrate the first appearance OF the
new superintendent in character
as a practical wrecking boss. The
outcome was rather astonishing.
Lidgerwood' first executive act
was to knock in the head of the
ten-gallon celebration with a strik-
ing hammer.
This was excellent, as far as 1t
went. But later, with the Offend
ing crews before him for trial and
punishment, Lidgerwood lost all
he had gained by being too easy.
Jack Benson, the young en-
gineer whom Vice President Ford
had sent to put new life into the
tracks, happened to be present
when the reckless trainmen were
told to 60 and sin no more.
I'm not running your job. Lid
gerwood," Benson volunteered.
"But you can't hold those fellows
down with Sunday school talk.
The merry jest on the Red
Butte Western ran its course Tor
another week after the three-train
wreck in the Pinons-for week
and a day. Then Lidgerwood be-
gan the drawing of the net. A
new timeeard was strung with
McCloskey's cooperation, and
when it went into effect a notice
on all bulletin boards announced
the adoption of the standard
Book of Rules" and promised
penalties for departure therefrom.
Promptly the horse-laugh died
away and the trouble storm was
evoked. Grievance committees
haunted the Crows Nest, and the
'insurrectionary faction, starting
, with the trainmen and spreading
to the track force, threatened to
involve the telegraph operators
threatened to become a protest
unanimous and in the mass.
In the pandemonium of unto
ward events, McCloskey was Lid
gerwoods right hand, toiling,
shifting, striving, and otherwise
proving himself good soldier.
But close behind him came Grid
ley; always suave and good-nat-
ured, always counseling firmness
and more discipline.
Hallock was the only non-com-
blatant. From the beginning OF
hostilities he seemed to have made
a pact with himself not to let 1t
be known by any act or word OF
his that he was aware of the sud
denly precipitated conflict.
One day McCloskey came into
the private office, hat tilted to
nose, and his gargoyle face por-
fra wing solIb aQOnips