The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1921-12-19
cAApTER ~.
Hioh Explosives.


have suggested itsel1, much sooner
The steam supply pipe for driving the
big centrifugals at the shaft-mouth
came through the wall over our heads.
and 1t was the sight Of this pipe.
steaming even on the outside Of It's
thick insulating jacket Of asbestos IN
der the wetting from the water Jet.
that had set me thinking.
A spinning twirl OF the engine
throttle valve set oui. machinery In
motion, and when / had thrown the
pump clutch In, we criouched again In
the least-wet corner to watch the index
OF the tell-tale steamgauge connected
into the supply pipe.
We knew that the centrifugals were
vOracious steam-eafers we had proved
that when we were running them in
the week-1ong fest t had notion
that maybe Fullerton had fired only
one of the battery of three boilers to
run his .shower-ba3h machine, and the
result speedily confirmed this assump-
ton. In a few minutes the steam
pressure had dropped to q point at
the pumps, either ours or the one out
side, and the window cataract stopped.
'aThIs viii be only a breathing
space" | prophesied, getting up to
squeeze some of the sIIperfiuous water
out Of my clothes. FULLERTON will do
one of two things fire the other two
boilers. or disconnect this steam pipe
OF ours"
Reckon SOP said DADDY.
you'll see In minute or so"
The attack began even while we
were speaking, sundry fammerings
and tWistings that shook the pipe over
head proving that the besiegers were
going to stop the leak by cutting us
or from the boilers
"Take your whirl al the inventions,
this time. Daddyl" | urged. when
they get this supply pipe cut out, we'll
be In for another ducking--and one
that we can't stop"
Daddy was shaking his head and
wrfnging the moisture-and mud-out
OF his beard
"Jerusalem-tO-gOsh, Stannie, we got
TO take a chance Y he muttered "Any-
ways, I'd about as lief die as be
drowned to death. Wen have to muss
that blacksmith shop UP and get 1t out
o. the way, somehow Gimme a match
out o. that tin box o. your'n-if they
amt all soaked to a jiz-whizzlin' sop"
found the matches. which, luckily,
we're still dry and handed him one.
Before I fairly realized what he was
going to do, he had taken one Of the
dynamite cartridges out of its bucket
hiding place and was splitting the fuse
with his pocketknife
"Open that there door into the shop,"
he commanded; and when | obeyed
mechanically. out Went the bomb, flz-
zing and sputtering, to land in heap
OF scrap iron piled on the farther side
OF the stone-built forge. The sight Of
IL smoking and splitting sparks In the
heap of scrap half hypnotized me, /
guess. for stood gaping at 1t, with
the door held open. until Daddy Hiram
jerked me away, slammed the door and
yelled to me to help him bar 1t.
We had barely time to get the door
closed and fastened with the heavy
wooden bar and to throw ourselves
fat on the floor behind the hosting
machinery before the crash came. As
have previously said, the blacksmith
shop was a rather fimsy. shed-like
affair, rooted with corrugated iron,
and IL seemed to us ais lie broken tim
bers and pieces of sheet metal were
raining down for a full minute after
the blast went off.
The shock to everything In the vicin-
ity was, of course, tremendous and
the stout old shaft-house itself rocked
and swayed like tree in a hurricane.
But the walls still stood intact, and
when we got up and peeped through
. hole which piece of the flying
scrap had torn in the door. we could
see what we had done. 1t was a-plen-
ty. The blacksmith shop had disap-
peared. leaving nothing but scatter
Ing of wreckage. The heavy anvil had
been thrown from it's block and the
forge looked as If giant had kicked
II. Out by the boiler-shed a rack OF
c0rdwood had been tonpled over and
under it a man was struggling to free
himself. When he saw the imprisoned
enemy that mild-mannered. s0ft-spokeI
old soldier that was shut up witt
would have opened the door and shot
the struggler If | hadn't stopped him
This blowing up of the shop settled
the showef-bath business for us def
initely With the impeachment out o.
the way we had a clear view on thi:
third side; could command the row
Of miners cabins. as well as the boil
ers in their open shed. When | go
through persuading Daddy Hiram tina
we couldn't afford TO murder tht
wounded. the fellow who haA heeI
wrestling with the wtlodpile hid mad,
his exit ard there was nobody Ii
sight Shortly afterward 4 bullet
fred from somewhere In the fnres
background. whanged upon our roof
and there were several TO follow; bu
-s-s-is e,-.s ..sf,es.EsStss- 4s,s. ssssa hs,la,
u me IRON they did no narln.
'Iooks like the Hercules is the on
thing they're most sikeered Of" sal
Daddy, with his queer little stutterin
chuckle. Now maybe they'll leave u
have time to get ourselves dried on
Q mite"
Totting up the results of the shower
-