Charlevoix county herald., 1921-06-10

1tlcS anu Senu tileiH shittViihS uV"h
the toboggan slide i'm spite of anything
Uncle Breckenridge could do to stop
them; down 10 where they could be
safely and proftably picked up by the
dear public. Unfortunately, those
things don't happen outside of the
story books. If they did, If the EARTH
quake should happen along our way
Just now, | don't know but I'd be dis
loyal enough to get out and help 1t
shake things up bit"
After Mr.. Van Britt had gone, the
boss put I'm the remainder of the day
luncheon as he sometimes did when
the work drive was extra heavy. Mean
while, as you'd suppose, rumOr was
plentfully busy, on the railroad, and
also I'm town.
BY noon II was we'll understood that
there had been a radical change In
Ithe management of G. 8. & W., and
that there was going to be general
strike I'm answer to the slashlsg cut I'm
wages. l slipped uptown to get a
bite, and / heard some of the talk
It was pretty straight most Of it
which shows how useless 1t Is to try
to keep any business secrets, nova
days
For example: the three men at my
table In the Billiard grill-room-they
didn't know me or who / was-knew
that council of war had been called
in the railroad headquarters, and that
Ripley had been pulled In by wire
from Lesterburg, and that we were
rushing along hurriedly to provide
storage room for the wheat shippers
in case of tie-up, and that we were
arranging to distribute railroad CON-
pany coal I'm case the tie-up should
bring on a fuel famine-knew all these
things and talked about them.
They were facts. as far as they
went-these things. The boss hadn't
been idle during the forenoon, and he
kept up the drive straight through to
quitting time. Word was brought In
during the afternoon by Tarbell that
the Hatch people were wiring the
Kansas City end Omaha employment
agencies and placing hurry orders for
strike-breakers. The boss asswer to
this was a peremptory wire to our
passenger agents at both points to
make no rae concessions whatever, Of
any kind, for the transportation of
laborers under contract. 1t was
shrewd little knock. Labor of that
kind is mighty hard to move unless
II can get free transportation or q low
rate of fare, and could see that Mr..
NOrcross was hoping to keep the strike
breakers away.
When six o'clock came. the boss
asked May to stay and keep the Office
open while I could go downstairs and
get my dinner in the station restaurant,
and he went off up-town-to the club,
| suppose. After I'd had my bite,
let May go. Everything was moving
all right go far as anybody could see
We had five extra fuel trains loading
and the dispatcher was instructed to
work them out on the line during the
that had reported shortages. They
were not to be turned over to the reg
ular coal yards; they were to be side
tracked and held for emergencies.
Mr.. NOrcrOss came back about eight
o'clock, and l gave him my report of
how things were going on the line.
A little later Mr.. Cantrell dropped in,
and there was a quiet talk about the
situation, and what it was likely to
develop. The Mountaineer editor was
given all the facts, except the one
big one about Hatch's death-grip on
us, and in turn Mr.. Cantrell promised
the help of his paper to the last ditch
though, Of course he had no idea Of
how deep that last ditch was going to
be. l had q lot of filing and indexing
to do, and / kept at work while they
were talking wondering all the time
If the boss would venture to tell the
editor about the depth Of that last
ditch He didn't. l guess he thought
he wouldn't until he had to.
1t was pretty nearly nine o'clock
Norcross was just saying to me that
he guessed we'd better knock off for
the night, when we both heard step
I'm Mays room. A second later the
door was pushed open and a man
came in, making for the nearest chair
and flinging himself into 1t as If he'd
reached the limit. 1t was Colling-
wood. He was chewing on a dead
cigar and his face was like the face
of corpse. But he was sober.
Naturally. / supposed he had come
to make trouble with the boss on Mrs.
Sheilas account, and l quietly edged
open the drawer of my desk where
/ kept Fred Mays automatic, so as
to be ready. He didn't waste much
time.
81 saw you as I was coming away
from Hendricks last night" he be-
gan, with pickering rasp In his voice.
"Did you go up against the gun l had
loaded for your
Mr.. Norcross cut straight through to
the bottom Of that little complica-
ton at single stroke.