The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1920-01-01
The Wreck Of the Limited.

rom : curiosity ObtItuAlt
his discretion. He jumped from the
cab of the giant Atlantic-type lOcomO-
tive and ran over toward the disuseC
freight shed beside the L%ordsburg sta.
ton. Five minutes before he had been
an i-rreprOachable, w%ell-p0ised railroad
passenger engineer; but the suspicious
oft-repeated trips of a diminutive,
sepia-colored man carrying milk be-
tween the station restaurant and the
old she'd excited him to q pitch where
rules, regulations and even dement's
counted for nothing.
There IVES something peculiarly fur
tive and wary about the little brown
mans stealthy look around-a mysteri-
GUS, unexplained air of watchfulness-
as if guarding some secret, the nature
of which Davenport could not imagine.
why should that sneaky-looking
little devil be carrying milk into that
shed?" Tom asked himself at the first
trip. "Why don't he drink it in the
restaurant if he's Sc ALFRED fond of
it, or go back in the diner and guzzle
it down until he busts-if that's his
gamer"
The second journey between the two
points was even more myStifying to
the engineer. AS the door to the ram
shackle structure closed behind the
m~ilk-bearer Tom itched to follow him.
I'll bet a 'dObe dollar to a centavo
he amt drinking it himself" he grunt-
ed, sliding from his seat to the roomy
gangway between the boiler and the
tender. "But somebody's drinking it
that's a cinch. He amt buying milk
down in this desert country to spill it
around promiScuous like. But if he
amt drinking it himself, who is? And
If somebody else is drinking it, why
Is he hiding out in that old shack?"
The stoical figure was padding back
again toward the restaurant, evident
ly intent on procuring still more lac
teal fluid. Then it was that Tom
dropped to the ground and shot over to
the disused building.
He popped his head into the open
door and withdrew it with a celebrity
which would have made his train on a
straightaway two-per-cent down-grade
resemble a handcar climbing a hill pro-
PEELED by a lone section hand.
His fireman, Patrick Mahoney, from
the opposite side of the great machine
observed Davenport's action with pro-
found amazement. 1t was not only
against the rules-it was unprecedent-
ed, ~unheard-of.
whats matter?" demanded Ma
honey, as his obese chief climbed back
into the cab with a speed as marvel
u as unwonted.
Davenport swung to his seat without
deigning a reply. His face was very
pale. He did not look toward his run
ming mate-instead, his Mortified gaze
might be said to have been frozen to
the door of the old freight shack, al
lowing, of course, for the intervening
distance.
He ~intently watched the return of
the brown-skinned atom of humanity
with something between apprehension
and W and studied him intently as
he again entered the ~tumble-down
building for the third time.
The conductor emerged from the
telegraph office, clutching a train or
der simultaneously with the reappear-
of the ~sepia-colored gentleman I
from the former freight house. Tom
saw that he was now carrying a small,
round, covered basket of odd shape.
Not until then did the engineer seem
to rouse from the fascination which t
the little brown man had thrown over c
him, and even as he waited the start
ing signal he leaned from the cab win b
dow so far, as he followed the stranger O
with his eyes, that Mahoney feared he f
would fall out. b
AS he turned to look across the cab r
the fireman Davenport did not have
the appearance of a man who is still v
possessed Of curiosity; but what he h
seen he evidently had no intention n
If revealing. il
"Give her the gun, Paddy" said he C
n a harsh. unnatural voice. "We're Il
fifteen minutes late now, and If we
ion't want to be dancing on the carpet e
n the super's office In FL Paso we've d
lot to make up that time If we burn
tut a crown sheet to do it," A
Mahoney nodded as he reached for C
be firing-valve and shot another pow a
,rful Jet of oil against the sides of W
he "wrinkle-belly" frebox, while be
pened the blower to its fullest capac. II
ty. He was debating what had come 81
yer his phlegmatic superior. b
The thick. black smoke roared out p
f the short stack as Tom leaned again e.
rom the window, wondering why he
i'd not get the starting signal. The g
onductor was standing expectantly on W
be platform fdgeting with his watch. hi
Impatiently the engineer was reach. to
for his detention card to note the
loss Of time as a partial measure til
f self-prS ection, when a tall, 1.-the
thletic young man rushed across the tn
latform and leaped up the steps OF
ne Pullman. simultaneously the air tn
-histle sounded, and Tom yanked his tn
lrottle-lever with obvious disgust. hs