New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1921-08-19
CHAPTER XVIII
The Murder Mailman

The Murder Madman
| knew what we were up against
when we headed down TO the railroad
layout, the chief and !. leaving the
good old major thoughtfully putting
his cigar in the club smoking-rOOm.
With a strike due to be pulled off In
a little more than three hours there
were about a million things that would
have to be jerked 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 q little handful OF us
in the headquarters to do the jerking
and propping.
1t was precisely IN "A 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 be-
lieve anybody would ever have sus-
pected that he was a beaten man,
pushed to the ropes In the final round
with the grafters, his reputation as
a successful railroad manager as good
as gone, and his warm little love
dream knocked s~ky-winding forever
and n day.
Luckily, We found Fred May still at
his desk, and he was promptly clamped
to the telephone and told to get busy
spreading the hurry call. In half an
hour every relief operator we had III
Portal City was in the wire-r0om, and
the back breaking job Of preparing a
thousand miles Of railroad for Il 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 ut midnight, but passenger
trains IN route were 10 be run through
to our connecting line terminals east
and west, live stock trains were TO be
laid on only where there were feed
ing c%orrals, and perlshable freight was
to be taken TO Its destination wher-
ever that might be.
The strikers agreed to allow the
mail trains TO run without Interrupt
tion, with our promise that they would
not carry passengers, llosklns and
his committee bucked n little at this,
but got down when they were shown
that they could not afford TO risk a
clash with the Government. This ex-
ception admitted, another followed. as
n matter of curse. II the mail trains
were to be run. some Of the telegraph
operators would have to remain on
duty, nj least 10 the extent OF han
ding train orders.
with these generalities out Of the
way. we got down TO details. Fire
alarm" wires were sent 10 the various
cities and towns on the lines asking
for immediate information regarding
food and fuel supplies, and the strike
leaders were notified that. for sheer
humanity's sake, they would have TO
permit the handling of provision
trains In cases where they were alb
solufely needed.
BY eleven o'clock the tangle was
getting itself pretty well Strengthened
out. Some of the trains had already
been abandoned, and the others we're
moving along to the agreed-upOn des-
tinations. Kirgan had taken hold In
the Portal City yard, and by putting
extra crews was getting the needful
shifting and car sorting into shape,
and the Portal City employees, acting
upon their own initiative, were picket
ing the yard and company buildings TO
protect them from lOoters or fire-set-
tiers. Mr.. Van Britt's special, so the
wires told us, was nj ~Lesterburg. and
II was likely TO stay there; and Mr..
Van Britt. himself. couldn't I've reached.
II was at half-past eleven hat we
the first real yelp from somebody
who was getting pinchei. II came In
the shape of a wire from the Strath-
o night operator. A party of men
mine owners" the operator called
ihem-had just heard of the lmpend-
ing railroad tIe-up. They had been
meaning 10 come IN on the regular
night train, but that had been aban-
loned. So now they we're offering
III kinds of money for a special TO
them to Portal Cit. 1t was
represented that there we're millions
stake. Couldn't we Do something?
Mr.. Norcross had kept IIoskins and
A few of the other local strike lead |
.rs where he could get hole of them,
md he put the request up TO them as
, matter that was now out of his
Would they allow him to run
one-car special from the gold camp !
o Portal City after midnight 1t was
or them to say.
HOskins and his accompllces went
m 10 talk IL over with some of the
,ther men. When the big freight con-
IuctOr came back he was alone and
vas grinning good-naturedly.
~we amt amin 10 make the com
ANY lose any good money that comes
trolling down the hill at IL. Mister
SOrcross.- he said. "Cinch these here
hurrylboys fr all you can
yet out o them. and il you'll lend us
he loan Of the wires. vel pass the
rord to let the special come on
trough
II was sure the funniest strike 1