The L'Anse sentinel., 1921-04-29

they came tramping over to the side
track. But Mr.. Norcross had dlf-
ferent think coming.
"Out of sight-quick, Jimmie!" he
whispered, and I'm another second he
had whipped the young woman over
the big footing timber to standing
place under the tank among the
braces and l had done the same for
the girl.
What followed was as mysterious
as chapter out of an Anna Katherine
Green detective story. After doing
something to the switch Of the unused
spur track, the four men separated. One
of them went back to the auto. and
the other three walked down the main
track to the lower switch of the short
siding, which was on the same side OF
the main line as the spur. Here the
fourth man rejoined them, and the
girl at my elbow told us what he had
gone back to the car for.
"He has lighted a red lantern" che
whispered. ~ saw 1t when he took
1t out OF the auto"
guess II was pretty plain to all Of
us by this time that there was some
thing decidedly crooked on the cards.
but II we had known what 1t was, we
couldn't very well have done anything
to prevent II. There were only two
of us men to their four; and besides,
there wasn't any time. The lantern
carrying man had barely reached the
lower switch when we heard the whis-
tie Of locomotive. There was train
coming from the west. and few Sec
onds later an electric headlight showed
yp on the long tangent beyond the
siding.
1t was bandit hold-up, air right.
One of the men stood on the track
waving the red lantern; we could see
him plainly In the glare of the head
light. There wasn't much Of scrap.
There we're two or three pistol shots,
and then, as near as we could maze
out, the hold-up men, or some of them.
climbed into the engine.
Before you could count ten they had
made flying switch with the single
car, kicking 1t i'm on the siding. Before
the car had come fully to stop, the
engine was switched In behind ii, cou-
pied on, and the reversed train. with
the engine pushing the car, ratified
away on the old spur that led Off into
the hills; clattered away and was lost
to sight and hearing in less than a
minute.
1t was not until after the train was
that two of the bandits had been left
behind. These two reset the switches
for the main track, leaving everything
as they had found 1t, and ther
| crossed over to the auto.
was just thinking that all this
mystery and kidnapping and gun play
must be sort of hard on the young
woman and the girl, but, though m!
half of the allotment was shiverin.
a little and smuggling up just graiI
closer to me, she proved that sh'
hadn't lost her nerve.
did you see the name on that ca
when the engine went past to get II
behind i'll" she asked.
NO" said the boss; and I~hadn't
either.
II did," she asserted, showing thai
her eyes. or her wits, were quicker
than ours. II had just one little
glimpse of 1t. The name Is 'A-l-e-x-a.'
spelling 1t out.
Mr.. Norcross started as II he had
been shot.
"The Alexa? That Is Mr.. Chad
wick's private car-they,ve kidnapped
himi" Then he whirled short on me
Jimmie, are you man enough to &c
with me and try a tackle on those
fellows over there in that auto?"
l said I was; but didn't add what
thought-that It, would probably be
a case of double suicide for us two tC
go up against pair of armed thugs
with our bare hands. The young wo
man put In her word.
you mustn't think of doing such q
thingl" she protested: and she wa'
still Yelling him all the different rea
sons why he mustn't. when we heart
the creak and grind of the stolen en-
CINE coming back down the old spur
After that there was nothing to d.
but to walt and see what was goinl
to happen next. What id-happen wai
as blind as all the rest The engine
was stopped somewhere in the gulcl
back of us and out Of sight from on
hjding-place, and pretty soon the tw'
men who had gone with her came hur
rying across out of the hill shadows
making straight for the auto. A min
ute or two Inter they had cllmbe,
Into the machine. the motor had sput
tered, and the car was gone.