Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1921-04-29

"They Had Ne Trusssd Up Like q
Christmas Turkey"
key, and loaded into the cab Of the
engine. From that on, II was all plain
sailing"
Then they took you to the old lum.
Der camp"
AS fast as the engine could be made
to turn her wheels. Arroyo has no
night operator, and when we sneaked
through the Banta yard and past the
station, the operator there was asleep.
] saw him, with his head In the crook
OF his arm. at the telegraph table In
the bay window as we passed.
I'VE ran out TO the Timber Noun.
tain ~ and from that on up the old
saw-miIl line. The rail connections
were all In place. and knew from
this that preparations had been made
beforehand. They wouldn't tell me
anything except that ! was to be
locked up for few days"
You knew what that mesntf"
Perfectly. Ny drop-out would be
made to look as II l had jumped the
job, and Dunton would appoint q new
man. After that. I could come back,
II ] wanted to. Whatever ! might do
or try TO do would cut no figure. and
no explanation could make would be
believed. / had most obligingly dug
my own Official grave. and there could
he no resurrection"
What then?" pressed Ripley, keenly
interested. as anybody could see.
When they took the clOthes-line
from my arms there was another
scrap. 1t didn't do any good. They
got the door shut on me and got
1t locked. After that, for four solid
days, Ripley. was made to realize
how little Ii takes TO hold q man.
had my pocket-knife, but I couldn't
white my way out. The floor punch.
cons were spiked down, and I couldn't
dig out They had taken all my
matches, and ] couldn't burn the place.
l tried the stick-rubbing, and all those
things you read about: they're fakes;
! couldn't get even the smell of smoke"
'The chimney
There wasn't any. They had heated
the place, when II was q commissary,
with a stove, and the pipe hole through
the ceiling had q piece Of sheet iron
nailed over II. And / couldn't get to
the roof at all. They had me-"
Ripley nodded and said, snappy-
like: well, we've got them now-any
time you give the word. Tarbell has q
pinch on one Of the Clanahan men and
he will turn states evidence. We can
railroad every one of those fellows
who carried you on"
And the men higher upr queried
the boss.
"No; not yet"
"Then wen drop II right where Il Is.
l don't want the hired tools: no one
Of them. unless you can get the devil
that crippled Jimmie Dodds, here"
They went on. talking about my
burn-up. Listening In. I learned for
the first time just how It had been
done. Tarbell, through his hold upon
the welshing Clanahan striker. had
got the detail: at secondhand. A lead
had been taken from a power wire
at the corner of the street and hooked
over the outer door-knob. And inside
I had been given a sheet of copper to
stand on for q good ground" the
copper itself being wired to q water
pipe running up through the hall. Tar
bell had afterward proved up on all
this. II seemed nndlng the insulated
wire and the copper sheet with its
connections hidden In q small rubbish
closet under the hall stair, Just where
q fellow In q hurry might chuck them.
'Tarbell IL q striking success" Mr..
Norcross put In, along at the end Of
things. "We'll keep him on with us,
Ripley"
Past this there was q little moro
talk about the G. 8. & w. deal, and
about what the Hatch crowd would be
likely to try next; and when II was
finished, and Ripley was reaching for
his hat. the boss said. There IL no
change In the orders: we've got 'em
going now. and well keep 'em going
Drive II. Ripley; drive II for every
ounce there 10 In you. Never mind the
election talk or the stock quotations
This railroad Is going to be honest, II
Il never earns another net dollar.
Well win !"
ITS beginning to look q little that
way. now" the lawyer admitted, with
his hand on the door knob. -Just the
same. Norcross. there 10 safety 10 num-