Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1921-03-31


mixed up in it,"
"WhO is Dawes?"
"Dawes is a mining man In Portal
City. and. before I'd been an hour in
town yesterday he hunted me up and
wanted me to 20 over to Strathcona
to look Mt some gold prospects he's
trying to finance. said No at first.
because ! was expecting you, and
thought you'd reach Portal City this
morning. When you didn't show IN.
l knew had twelve hours laore on
my hands. and as Dawes was still
hanging on. had our trainmaster
give me a special over to Strathcona,
on a promise that I'd be brought back
early this evening, ahead of the
Flyer from the west-the train YOU
We're on"
Mr.. Norcross nodded. sand the
promise wasn't kept"
"No promise is ever kept on the
Pioneer Short Line" growled the big
mngnate. And then. with beauti-
full disregard for the mixed figures
of speech: "Once in a blue moon the
chapter of accidents hits the bulls
eye whack in the middle, Graham
When HardShaw wired me from Port.
land, knew you couldn't reach Portal
City before this morning. at the very
earliest. That was going to cut my
time pretty short, with the big gun
due to be fired tomorrow morning,
and you cut it still shorter by losing
twelve hours somewhere along tie
road-they told me in the dis
pitchers; office that your train was
behind wreck somewhere up in
Oregon. But 1t has turned out all
right, in spite Of everything. You're
here. and we've got the night before
us" Then l suppose he nodded to-
ward me, for the boss said:
"Oh, Jimmle's all right; he knew
what had for dinner this evening.
and he'll know what I'm going to have
for breakfast tomorrow morning.
With the bride off, the big man
went ahead abruptly, cutting out all
the frills.
"You finished your building con.
tract on the Oregon Midland, Ora
ham. and after the road was opened
for business you refused an offer Of
the general managership. Would you
mind telling me why you did that?"
mot in the least. There is nothing
in 1t. An operating head is now
nothing more than score-keeper for
a national gambling game. The boss
gamblers around the railroad post in
the Stock exchange tell him what he
has to do and where he has to get
off. Stock gambling. under whatever
name it masquerades-b values.
buying and selling margins, reorgan-
izations, with their huge rake-offs for
the underwriters-is the incubus
which is crushing the life out of the
nations industries, especially in the
railroad field. 1t makes me wish I'd
never seen a railroad track"
"Yet 1t is your trade, isn't 1T"
asked the wheat King. {.
1T is; but luckily can build RAIL-
roads as well as operate them; and
there are other countries besides the
United States of America. I'm on my
way home to Illinois for little visit
with my mother and sisters; and after
that l think shall close with an
offer I've had from one of the Ca
madam companies"
"Good boy" chuckled the Chicago
magnate. I'm due time we might
hope to be reading your name In the
newspapers-'Sir Graham Norcross,
D.S.O,' or something Of that sort"
Then. with sharp return to the sort
Of gritting seriousness: you've been
riding over the Pioneer Short Line
since early this morning, Graham:
what do you think of it7"
couldn't see the boss smile, but
could figure it pretty well when he
said: "There may be worse managed,
worse neglected pieces of railroad
track In some Of the great transcon.
tinental lines. but IL there are
haven't happened to notice them.
I suppose it is capitalized to death,
IKE many Of the Others"
Fictitious values doubtless have
something to do with it at the pres
ent stage Of. the game" Mr.. Chad
wick admitted. 1T has always been
q good earning property, being largely,
even yet, without much local COM
petition. But from the day 1t was
completed Its securities have figured
In the market only for their specu-
lative values. The property itself has
never been considered. save as a
means to an end; the end being to
enable one bunch Of the Wall Street
gamesters you speak Of to make
killing and unload on another
bunch"
'"rhe old story" said Mr.. Norcross.
I'VE are humping over the net re-
suit. right now" Mr.. Chadwick went
on. "Pioneer Short Line is practical
~ In the last ditch. The stock has
slumped to forty and worse; Shafter.
the general manager and the only
able man We have had for year., has
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