Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1917-03-03

Instantly disastrous.
The men took their cue from the
sheriffs attitude, and had arranged to
tar and feather Foster the very next
time he opened his mouth in condem-
nation of the new regime. This they
now proceeded to do, and. not content
with treating the. man so ignomini-
ously, rode him on q rail past a corner
where they knew the sheriff was then
lounging.
The autocrat saw them coming. He
promptly produced a red bandanna,
bound it tightly across his eyes and
smiled broadly as the procession
passed. Foster was so maddened with
rage and real physical suffering that
he never noticed the presence of the
law, but one of the men was moved to
be jocose.
Whats wrong with your eyes, sher-
iff?" he inquired.
Shove along, you sucker - came the
answering growl "Don't you know
that justice is blind?"
well, chew on this" said the man,
and he stuck a cigar between the sher-
ifs teeth.
Bill Foster was deposited at the out
skirts of the township, and was never
seen any more in Garden City. The
incident showed, at any rate. the rela-
lions which had been established be-
tween masters and men in the new
cardboard box industry.
But there were other influences at
work. The president of the trust be-
gan operations with a dangerous SUI
avity. He sent the following telegram
to Burton:
Your plan appears to be a good one. If
you are willing to sell out to US we will
pay you fair profit on your investment.
ELWOOD HAMER.
The two partners discussed the offer
fully. They were not deceived as to
it's real nature, so Burton wrote a
civil answer, the gist of which lay in
one sentence:
"Our people are contented and our
profits are fair We have no desire to
SELL
A fortnight later came the first shot
of real warfare. One of their biggest
customers in the East put the matter
in a nutshell when they wrote:
We regret to be compelled to cancel our
orders Your competitors offering us
a similar product at cut rate OF 80 per
cent We recognize that this sort of thing
is unfair and cannot last, but in own
interests must take advantage of the
market This matter is serious, and we
respectfully advise that you deal with it
promptly.
These people mean wel1,r comment
ed John thoughtfully.
MY father is a bitter man." NUT
tered George Hamer. 'It would be fol-
ly on my part to try and conceal the
truth. Rich as you are, Mr.. Burton, the
trust can break you. Though I am
intensely disappointed, it is only fair
to you that I SHOULD say your best
plan is to come to terms.''
Now, John realized the utter folly
of sacrificing great fortune in fan
tastic endeavor to carry out an impos-
sible dream, though it went against
the grain to yield without struggle.
81 had better consult my lawyer" he
said 81 shall do nothing in a hurry.
If forced to sell, shall certainly in
sist that the factory is conducted on
the exact conditions already in exist
ence. You and your wife need not wor-
~, George. If your father and you
do not bury the Ratchet, which is the
one thing / am hoping for, I'll fix you
in some other way, and it will at least
be a feather in our cap if we force the
trust to treat its employees decently.
Don't you see, once the principle is es-
tab1ished it must spread? They can
not run the Garden City factory on
our lines and maintain the bad old con-
ditions elsewhere"
But Hamer was not to be comfort
ed. He sensed disaster, and he and his
wife passed an evening of gloomy fore
boding, since their schemes for the
regeneration of labor seemed to be on
the verge of collapse.
They were not mistaken The
shrewd legal adviser whom Burton had
learned to consult in every important
affair advised him to reopen negotia-
lions with the trust. He did so, and
found Elwood Hamer quite concilia-
tory.
The cardboard box magnate agreed
to maintain all the terms laid down by
his young competitors for the working
and management of the Garden City
plant. But, like the good business
man that he was, he decided to visit
the factory before concluding the deal.
AS the weather was phenOmenally
fine, and Garden City lay some 40 miles
from the city, he brought with him his
younger son, the little boy, William,
whom his elder brother had not seen