The Elk Mountain pilot., 1921-06-02
CHAPTER XIV
The DipsomanIac

ever arrogant II may be, has been
taught to go sort of softly. the Hatch
people were careful not to make any
public announcement of the things
they were doing or going to do. But
bad news has wings Of its own. Mr..
Norcross was still in the midst of his
mail dictation to me the morning after
the bottOm-all the different bottoms
fell out, when Mr.. Hornack came
bulging In.
whats all this fire-alarm that's
been sprung about a new elevator
trustT' he demanded, chewing on his
cigar as If it were something he were
trying to eat. IT'S all over town that
G. s. & w. has been secretly reorgan-
lied, with the Hatch crowd In control.
I'm having a perfect cyclone of tele-
phone calls asking what, and how.
and why"
The boss reply ignored the details.
We're in for it again." he announced
briefly. "The local companies couldn't
hold on to good thing when they had
1t. The stock has been swept up.
first into little heaps, and then into
big ones, and now the Hatch people
|
rs that the fact?-or only the way
you are doping it out" queried the
traffic manager.
1T is the fact. Hatch came here
last night to tell me about 1t; also,
to tell me where we were to get off,"
Hornack bit off piece of the chewed
cigar and took fresh hold on 1t.
Does he think for one holy half
minute that we're going to sit down
quietly and let him undo all the good
work that's been done?" he rasped.
He does-just that. He's putting
us in the nine-hole, Hornack, and up
to the present moment haven't found
the way TO climb out of It,"
"But the ground leases?" Hornack
began. "Why can't we pull them on
him?"
eve might, IL we hadn't been shot
dead in our tracks by the very men
who ought to be backing us to win."
said the boss soberly. And then he
went on to tell about the new grip
Hatch had on us.
OF course, Hornack blew up at that
and what he said wasn't for publica-
tion. For minute or SO the air of
the Office was blue. When he got
down to common, ordinary English
again he was saying, between cusses !:
"But you can't let 1t stand at that.
Norcross; you simply can't"
II don't intend to-" was the even
toned rejoinder. But anything we
can do will always lack the element
Of finality. Hornack, while Wall Street
owns us. I've said 1t a hundred times
and I'll say It again: the only hope
for the public service corporation to-
day lies In distribution of its securi-
ties among the people It actually
serves"
Hornack's teeth met In the middle
Of the chewed cigar.
THAT'S excellent logic-bully good
logic. II anybody should ask you'll But
we're fighting condition, not theory.
Nobody wants p. S. L. Common even
at thirty-twO. You wouldn't advise
your worst enemy to buy 1t at that
figure"
II don't know" said the boss, kind
of musingly. You're forgetting the
water that's been put into 1t from time
to time by the spectators and reor-
ganizers; there has been a good deal
of that, first and last Nevertheless.
value for value, you know, and know.
that the property is worth more than
thirty-two. including the bonds What
l mean is that II anybody would buy
the control at that figure,-the con-
troll, mind you. and not merely a minor
ity-and handle the road purely as
dividend-earning business proposition
he wouldn't lose money: he'd make
money-a lot of it."
"All of which doesn't get us any
where in the present pinch" returned
the traffic manager. II suppose Wen
have to wait until Hatch makes his
first move. and I've still got fight
enough left in me to hope that he'll
make 1t suddenly. Punch the button
for me If anything new develops I'm
going back to swing on to my tele-
phone"
Following this talk with Hornack
there was "A try-out with Bllloughby
and Juneman, but as this three cor
nered conference was held In the pr-
vate room of the suite. don't know
what was said. little farther along,
when the boss was once more whiting
at the dictation. Mr.. Vgjl Britt strolled
In. Mr.. Norcross told me to take my
bunch of notes to May and then he
gave Mr.. Van Britt his inning. stnrt-
ing Off with: "Well. how is the gen
eral superintendent this fine morn
ing?"
| Mr.. Van Britt wrinkled his nose.
"The general superintendent is
wondering, one more time. swhy under
the starry. heavens he is out here in
this country that God has forgotten,
scrapping for a living ON this one
horse railroad Of yours when he might
be in good little old New York, liv-
ing easy and clipping coupons In the
safety-deposit room of Broad street
bank"