Omaha daily bee., 1917-04-08

| Trouble on the western DIVISION
was indicated the moment Frost, the
general superintendent, reached his
office in Mountain Springs that morn
ing. If he did not press all his desk
buffers at once, he sank one after
another in very curt succession, CIV
ing his orders rapidly while Wilson,
his secretary, and his subordinates
hurried in and out. The moment he
could get routine matters out of the
way he summoned the chief special
officer of the division, Morton Webb.
With his assistant, Wallace Burke,
Webb in his own Office was already
getting his desk cleared for action.
The repeated looting of cars on the
division and the repeated thefts of
way freight had forced the claim de-
partment to work overtime, and Webb
was called this morning to Frosts Of
fee only to find Davidson, the general
manager, reporting by wire the loss
through the negligence of Arnold,
local agent at Garden City-of two
steers from shipment of the Garden
City Cattle company.
1.-THE fourth complaint from Garden
City" commented Webb grimly, Gin
side month"; And Webb, talking
fast and earnestly to his superior,
made no secret of his suspicion that
Steve Arnold, the Garden City agent,
was responsible for all the trouble at
that point. Frost, casting the evil
dence up, decided it was high time to
investigate Arnold and FIX, once for
all, the responsibility.
At Garden City, Arnold himself was
at that moment entertaining queer
guests. Outside his own home, near
the station, stood group of Panamint
Indians. They came periodically from
the Funeral mountains to trade jerked
beef and baskets for white mans food
Just why the Panamints should be
crazy about canned tomatoes no eth
4 nologist has yet discovered, but Ar
mold knew their weakness we'll and
traded prohtably on it. On this occa-
sion, his supply of tomatoes had run
! short, but loosening, without scruple,
the brake of merchandise car stand
ing partly unloaded on the house
track, Arnold worked the car, with a
pinchbar, down close to his bungalow
To carry over half dozen cases Of
canned goods, billed to local mer.
chants, was the work of moment
and Arnold was soon driving good
trade with the Indians.
The merest accident interrupted
him. The fast freight train now due
was whistling in the east. Arnold hat
unfortunately pinched his merchandise
car too close to the main line switch
The engineer of the freight saw the
danger too late and as the train came
on the heavy Mogul tore a big hole
in the side of the merchandise car
Most unluckily, Frost's private cal
was attached to the hind end of the
freight train; with Webb and Wilson
he hurried forward Arnold, the
brazen agent, was abusing the engi
neer when Frost, coming up, asked
why the wrecked car had been lett te
foul the main line.
"The brakes wouldn't hold it, de
clared Arnold, "and the west WING
blew her way down the track"
i Frost and Webb exchanged glances
| ARNOLD was ordered to check up hi:
way bills. One he tried to destroy
hut too late. Evidence of his crooked
ness accumulated. Webb questioned
the Indians, who were, one and all
smeared with tomatoes, got chance
to look into Arnold's bungalow. To
matoes. everywhere, told the story:
This" declared Frost icily, to Viii
son "calls for nothing but constable
Arrest This man Arnold, and get the
night man here quick to take the day
triek"
| Thu sleepy old constable Of Garder
| civ after much delay, was moved tc
slow action He took Arnold into Gus
| tody. But it was one thing to arres'
| Arnold and another to hold him. A:
the fast freight was pulling out, the