Iron County record. [volume] (Cedar City, Utah) 1893-1982, 1917-03-23

from Capitol City was made up of bet
ter class material than the rest of the
crew, but just as on all construction
works, certain percentage of the
men drank too much nftcr cushing
their pay checks, and failed to show up
on the grade for days.
| But there was more than that pros
pect TO worry about this pay day, as
Dawson was soon to realize. Like a
wireless message caught out of the air
rumor had reached camp that the
Dawson bank was about to suspend
payment or had already done SO.
Mike Mcguire, head of one Of the
scraper gangs, demanded to know of
Dawson whether there was any pros
pect OF the banks failing, and was
assured 10y the contractor In all sin
certify, that the institution was solid.
Hardly had the words left his lips
than word was brought by arrivals .on
the noon train from the south that a
| run had been started on the bank and
hundreds of depositors were congre-
gated In line waiting for their money.
Quick" gasped Helen, "the big cur.
This is Holmes work. We've got to
get to that bank and see what can be
done. If the doors close we are
ruined"
When the automobile reached the
bank mob was congregated before
its doors that reached for half a block
and nearly filed the street. What had
hn .l,ln
and his employees to the number of
several hundred had drawn out all
their deposits and the specie reserve of
the bank had been depleted to the
vanishing point.
Helen and Tom Dawson made their
way into the institution through n
rear entrance. Mooney, the president,
sat in his office, the picture of despair.
what Is to be done?' demanded
Helen, when the situation had been
made plain to her, haven't you any
plan by which the run may be
checkedw
well, there's plenty OF cash I'm the
other bank ut MERGED" grouned the
banker, "but can't get I'm engine to
20 after it--thats Holmes doing, too.
| can't understand why he wants to
break u.s."
1T isn't you he's after, It's the in
dependent lumbermen." said Helen
''Ile proposes to tie up our cash so
that we can't finish the lumber road
How much money is there In cash ut
MercedT
Something like 100000" replied
Mooney, plenty TO do the trick with
If we had 1t here"
"Write me an order on the MERGED
bank for as much cash as you need"
snapped Helen, 'I'll get 1t here
Tom," she added, Ego out and talk TO
those people"
On her way into town Helen had no.
ticed Il light engine standing on the
track near the junction. Her plan
was to seize this and make the run.
Helen left the bank by the rear and
made her way swiftly to the junction.
To her delight the engine was already
fired up. She slid the big machine out
on the main track-slowly at first and
then, as 1t gathered momentum, opened
the throttle wide.
The engine hadn't gone mile be-
fore Holmes agents discovered its alb
sence. Behrens cursed long and loud
A few minutes later he was burning
the wires TO one of his henchmen,
Annis, at Bar Siding.
Throw the lower switch and ditch
No. 40, running wild north-bound," was
the message that Annis picked of the
wire.
Dawson had figured out like flash
that the switch would be Helen's dan
ger point. While he hardly believed
Holmes would order the engine
ditched, he determined to take no
chances and ran the car to Bar Sid
Ing as fast as he could go.
The lumberman arrived only just In
time. Two of Behrens' men were
throwing the switch as he reached II
dense patch of timber beside the main
track, from which point the switch
track ran into pine forest.
Dawson heard the singing of the
rails. He knew that Helen was
pounding along at fifty miles an hour
and that If she ever took the switch
at that clip 1t would be sure death.
Unheeding of the shouts from Beh-
rens' gangsters, who were scattering
into the timber near the railway, Daw-
son rushed for the switch. A bullet
whizzed past his ear.
With one determined effort he closed
the switch, giving Helen clear track,
just as two Of the gangsters stepped
out from behind tangle of down
timber and began firing at close range.
Good enough" yelled Dawson, "Ill
do little shooting on my own account
now" and turning loose a pair of au-
tomatoes he drove his assallants to
cover in less than minute.
AT that instant the grinding of the
rails became so loud that Dawson
knew the engine was just around the
bend, and he was determined TO cover
Helen's flight past the danger point
with all the ammunition In his
weapons.
Round the curve swept No. 40, "hit-
ting only the high spots" as Dawson
afterwards declared.
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