Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1921-04-22

soon after she went away. our one
and only millionaire came in. He
looked as he always did; Just as if
he had that minute stepped out Of q
Turkish bath where they shave and
scrub and polish man till he shines
How are you. Jimmief" he raped
out. GLAD 10 see you on earth again
Feeling a little more fit, tonight"
/ told him | didn't think it would
take more than half dozen fellows
Of my size to knock me out, but was
gaining. Then he sat down and put
me on the question rack. | gave him
all iad-except that thing about the
undelivered kilograms and two or three
others that l couldn't give him or any
body.
"Wsre in pretty bad shape. aren't
WEI" l suggested.
1--WE couldn't be in worse shape"
was the way ne put It. Then he told
me little more than Maisie Ann had !;
how President Dunton had wired to
stop all the betterment work on the
Short Line until the new general man
ager could get on the ground; how the
local capitalists at the head of the
new Citizens Storage & Warehouse
organization were scared plumb out of
move; and how the newspapers all
over the state were saying that 1t was
just what they had expected-that the
railroad was crooked In root and
branch. and that good man couldn't
stay with it long enough to get his
breath.
"Then the new general manager has
been appOinted?" l asked.
He nodded. "Some fellow by the
name of Dismuke. don't know him,
and neither does Hornack. He is on
his way west now, they say"
"Mr. Norcross hasn't shown up at
Mr.. Chadwick's Chicago officesT
ventured.
"No. The telegraph people have
been wiring everywhere and can't get
any trace of him."
"Tell them to try Galesburg. That's
Wnere MS people llVe.
II know" he said; and he made
note Of the address on the back Of an
envelope Then he came at me again.
on the direct" as lawyer would
say.
you've been closer to Norcross in
an intimate way than any Of US, Jim
mie: haven't you seen or heard scme-
thing that would help to turn little
more light on this damnable blow-up?"
I hadn't-outside of the one thing
I couldn't talk about-and told him
so, and at this he let me see a. little
more of what was going on in his
own mind.
you're one Of .us, In way, Jim
mie, and can talk freely to you.
Mrs. Macrae insists that there has
been foul play of some sort You say
you weren't present when Hatch called
on Norcross at the Office that nightY'
"No; / came In just after Hatch
went away"
did Norcross say anything to make
you think there had been a fight?"
"He told me that Hatch was abusive
and had made threats-in a business
way"
I'm business way3 What do you
mean by that?"
l quoted the boss own words, as
nearly as l could recall them.
$50 Hatch did make threat, then3
Can you add anything more?"
/ could, but didn't want to. Mr..
Van Britt didn't know anything about
the Sand Creek siding hold-up, or I
supposed he didn't, and I didn't want
to be the first one to tell him. Besides,
the whole business was beside the
mark. Maisie Ann knew, and knew.
that the boss, strong and unbreakable
as he was in other ways, had simply
thrown up his hands and quit because
somebody had told him that Mrs.
Sheila had husband living. So ]
just said:
Nothing that would help out" and
after he had talked little while
longer our only millionaire went down.
stairs again.
It's so funny how things change
around for person just BY giving
them time to sort of shake down into
place and fit themselves together,
After a while the chin edge Of the
wedge that Mrs. Sheila had been try
ing to drive into me began to take
hold, just a little. in spite Of what
knew-0r thought I knew. Was II
barely possible. after all, that there
had been foul play of some sort?
In the first place. something had
been done to me by somebody: 1t was
A. LII