The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1920-08-05

.
/ fears"
Il happen TO know. Colonel. that the
big mogul kicked those fats In to load
/ the rails !"
Il know II. And what happenedf
E Why. that old frestle squeaked and
shook and gave every evidence Of be.
I ing about 20 buckle In the center. My
engineer threatened 10 quit II sent
him In again"
every well. suppose I'll have 70
wait until the switch-engine comes
out OF the shop" Bryce replied re
signedly. and hung up. He turned
troubled face 10 ogilvy. Check
mated" he announced. Whipped 20
q frazzle. The colonel Is lying. Buck,
and I've caught him al II. As y mat
ter OF fact. the mogul didn't kick those
fats in al all. The switch-engine did
--and / know H. Now I'm going 10
send man over to snoop around Pen
nington's roundhouse and verify his
report about the swltch-engine being
I in the shop"
He did SC Half an hour later the
messenger returned with the informa-
tion that not only was the switch
gine not In the shop but her fire.
box had been oyerhauled the week be
fore and was reported 10 be In ex-
ceIlent condition.
That settles H." Buck ogilvy
m0urned. "The Colonel Is as suspicious
as a rhino. He doesn't know anything,
but he smells danger just the same"
Exactly. Buck So he is delaying
the game until he can learn something
definite" He drummed idly on his
desk for several minutes. Then:
"Buck. can you run a locomotivey'
"with one hand, old man"
"Fine' business Well, l guess we'll
put in that crossing tomorrow night.
The switch-engine viii be in the round
house at Pennington's mill tomorrow
night, so we can't steal that; but we
can steal the mogIl. I'll just send
word up to my woods boss not TO
have his train loaded when the mogul
comes up late tomorrow afternoon TO
haul II down to our log landing. OF
course, the engine crew won't bother
TO run down 20 Sequoia for the night
that is, they won't run the mogul
down They'll just leave her at our
log landing all night and put up for
the night at our camp"
"But how do you know they viii put
up At your camp all night. BryeeT
my men will make them comfort
able, and IL means they can lie abed
until seven o'clock instead of having
10 roll out at FIVE o'clock. which would
be the case II they spent the night at
this end OF the line There Is slight
grade at our log landing. know
that because the air leaked out OF
the brakes on a log train | was on n
shorts time ago. and the train ran
away with me. Now, the engine crew
will set the airhrakss on the mogul
and leave her with steam up to throb
all night: they'll not blow her down.
for that would mean work firing her
in the morning. Our task. Buck, will
he TO throw off the airbrakes and let
her glide silently out OF our log land
ing. About a mile down the road
well stop. get up steam. run down to
the junction with the main line. back
in on the Laurel Creek spur, couple
onto fhose fiat cars and breeze mer-
rily down to Sequoia with them.
They'll be loaded waiting for us: our
men win be congregated In our dry |
yard Just of Water street near II.
waiting for us 10 arrive with the rails
and bingo-we go 10 II. After we |
drop the fats. wen run the engine |
back TO the woods. leave II where we
found II. return a-hylng You can get |
back in ample time to superintend the
cutting Of the crosslngi"
spoken like msni' quoth Buck
Ogilvy. You're the one man in this
world for whom I'd steal a locomo-
tive 'Af-a-boyi"
Had either Of the conspirators
known Of Pennington's plans to enter
tain Mayor Poundstone at dinner on
Thursday night. Il is probable they
would not have cheered until those
fat cars were out Of the woods.
Ito be continued)