The St. Charles herald. [volume] (Hahnville, La.) 1873-1993, 1917-06-02

words as they ran, they had both of
them learned what he would be at.
They both realized that they were the
fOrlOrn hope, that if they could not
save the dam nobody and nothing
| could. And there was trace of the
! age-lOng rivalry between the Celt and
the Roman. The scion of the legionary
and the son Of the barbarian who had
fought together in the dawn of history
We'd with each other then. Again and
again Meade had to order them back.
He WAS keenly sensible Of his danger.
He knew that if he fell, if the dyna-
mite struck the ground violently, it
might explode. He knew that the I'M
stable illuminate of mercury in the
decorators might 90 off at any time
/ perhaps that was the greater danger
but he never checked his pace or hest
tated in a leap or sought an easy way
for second. His soul was rising and
his heart was beating as they had
never risen or beaten in his life. And
the hearts of his men beat with his
own
He knew. of course, if the dam went
out the railroad, the bridge, the town,
the citizens. the women and children,
and everything and everybody would
go. If he could save them, his act
might be set off against the loss of the
International. But whether that were
true or not, whatever the cOnSe-
QuenceS 70 him. he was bound to save
them. The weight of every man, the
weight of every woman. the weight of
every child in the valley, the weight
of all the business enterprises of the
town, the weight of the great viaduct
of steel, the weight of the huge dam
itself. was on his shoulders as he ran.
He carried the burden lightly, as Atlas
might have upbOrne the world with
laughter. For, despite his determine
ton and haste he had in his heart the
| great JOY that comes when men at
4 tempt grandly and dare greatly for
their fellOw-men. If he could only by
and by see his hopes justified by sue
cess, his happiness would be complete.
And there were thoughts personal as
well as general. If he died, whether
successful or not, men would tell about
his endeavor. She would hear. It
came to him afterward, when he
learned how she had looked down upon
him as he ran, that he had somehow
felt her presence, not a presence i'm
polling him to look up. but presence
| Ir;, IL L. /, l. H.
off his long coat and threw it aside
as he plunged on with his precious bag
! in his hand. He did not dare to look
at his watch, he did not stop for any
thing, but it seemed that he must have
spent hours in that mad scramble over
I the water-cOvered rocks. He heaved q
/ deep breath of relief when he rounded
the mesa and struck the trail. Bad as
was the going. it was nothing to what
! they had passed over.
Presently he broke out into the open
slope and there before him was the
rounded curve of the hOgback, to gain
which he had riSked SO much. Were
they in time? Yes, the water in the
lake was not flowing, it was only ris-
ing. Evidently the dam still held. He
ran along it till he reached the mar
rowest part of it, twenty feet wide
| between water-cOvered valley and
sharply descending ravine. The short
est separation between Picket Wire
and the Kicking Horse! The water in
the lake was within three feet of the |
crest. The rain was coming down
| steadily. He could realize by the wa
ter level where he stood that 1t must
be tapping the top Of the dam now,
or little above it. He had five min |
uteS-ten at most. He was still in |
time. The thoughts came to him as he
ran. And as he saw the place again |
he made his instant plan.
He laid the dynamite down Just as
Murphy and FunarO reached him and |
stood painting, their heavy breathing, |
the sweat mingling with the rain in
| their wet faces, evidencing their ex-
haustion. From Murphy, who had been |
the faster, Meade took the two tripod /
| legs stout oak slaves about an inch
and a half thick, with sharp metal |
points. He jammed them down into !
the ground about five feet from the |
edge of the Kicking Horse rayine and !
about fifteen feet apart.
'Holes, there" he shouted, deep |
enough for five cartridges"
Funaro nodded. He knew exactly
what to do. Murphy had often seen
the explosive gang at work. He was
quick-witted and he had only to follow
the Italians actions. The work was
simple. Selling their spades, the two
men cut into the sod, using the pick |
to dislodge small powders and break
I'D the earth. The soil was light and /
porous, and it had been well soaked |
by the rain. After they had made an .
excavation about two feet deep, they /
laid aside their shovels, and with the I
iron range pole as starter and the I
bigger tripod stakes to follow, they
made two deep holes in the ground, .
forcing the pole and then the stake
into the earth, which the continuing
rain tended to soften more and more.
They made these holes about four feet /
deep below the excavation, driving in I
and twisting and churning the stakes .
by main strength