The Ordway new era., 1921-08-12
.AApreR XVII
The Murder Madn,an

good Old major thoushtfully putting
his cigar in the club smoSins-room.
With q strike due 10 be pulled of in
little more than three hours there
were about a million things that would
have TO be jerSed around into shape
and propped up 50 that they could
stand by themselves while the Shore
Line was taking q vacation. And
there was only little handful Of Us
in the headquarters 10 do the jerking
and proppins.
Ii was precisely in crisis like this
that the boss could shine. From the
minute we hit the tremendous job he
! WAS all there. carrying the whole map
| OF the Short Line in his head, think
ing straight from the shoulder, and
never missing q lick; and don't he
I lieve anybody would ever have sus-
/ pected thar he was beaten man,
pushed to the ropes in the final round
with the grafters. his reputation as
l 4 successful railroad manager rs good
| as gone. and his warm little love
| dream knocked sky-windins forever
I and 4 day.
Luckily. we found Fred May still at
his desk, and he was promptly ciamped
10 the telephone and told 70 get busy
I spreading the hurry call. In half an
hour every relief operator We had in
Portal City was in the wire-roon. and
the back-breaking job Of preparing
thousand miles of railroad for sud
den tie-up was in full swing. Mr..
Perkins, as division superintendent,
was in touch with the local labor
leaders PerSuading and insisting by
turns, Mr.. NOrcross fought out the
necessary compromises with the
unions. All ordinary traffic would be
suspended at midnight, but passenger
trains en- route were TO be run through
10 our connecting line terminals east
and west, live stock trains were 10 he
laid out only where there were feed
ing corralS. and periShahle freight was
10 be taken TO its destination wher-
ever that might he.
The strikers agreed TO allow the
mail trains to run without Interrupt
rion, with our promise that they would
not carry passengers. HoSkins and
his committee bucked a little at this,
. bAAA -N- 1tN Il ~ LAAFr NFsE ---N a
I that they could not afford 10 risk q
. clash with the Government. This e1-
ception admitted. another followed. as
matter or course. II the mail trains
were TO be run. some of the telegraph
Z operators would have to remain on
duty at least 10 the extent OF han
ding train orders.
With these generalities out OF the
way, we got down 10 details. Fire
7 alarm" wires were sent TO the various
/ cities and towns on the lines asking
for immediate Information regarding
I food and fuel supplies. and the strike
leaders were notified that. for sheer
humaniiy's sake, they would have 10
/ permit the handling OF provision
trains in cases where they were ab-
solutely needed.
BY eleven O'Clock the tansIe was
getting itself pretty welI Strengthened
out. Some OF the trains had already
been abandoned. and the others were
moving along to the agreed-upon des-
tinaiions. kIrsan had taken hold in
/ the Portal City yard. and by putting
I on extra crews was getting the needful
shifting and car sorting into shape.
I and the Portal City employees. acting
/ upon their own Initiative. were picket
ing the yard and company buildings to
protect them from looiers or fre-set-
I ters- Mr.. Van Britt's special. so tile
{ wires told Us. was al Lesterburc. and
il was likely to STAY there: and Mr.
Z Van Britt, himself. couldn't BE reached.
II was az half-past eleven that we
Z got the first real yslp from somebody
( who was getting pInched. II came in
the shape OF e wire from the Srrath-
I coma night operator. 4 party of men
mine owners the operator called
them-had just heard Of the impend-
ing railroad tie-up. They had been
meaning 10 come in on the regular
I night train. bur that had been abau-
/ doned. So now they were offering
I all kinds OF money for a special TO
bring them 10 Portal City II was
represented that there were millions
at stake Couldn't We do s0merhing7
Mr.. Noreross had kept Hoskins and
few OF the other IoeaI strike lead
ers where he could get hold Of them.
and he put the request up to them as
matter that was now out OF his
hands. Would they allow him TO run
a one-car special from the gold camp
to Portal City after midnightz II was
for them TO say
Hoskins and his sccomplices went
of TO talk ii over with some Of the
other men When the big freight con
ductor came back he was alone and
was grinning good-naturedIy.
We amt aimin' TO make the CON-
pany lose any good money that comes
a-rolling down the hill ct il. Mister
Norcross." he said "CiEch these here
Strathcona hurry-boys rr all you can
get. ont o. them. and IL yoiITI lend us