The L'Anse sentinel., 1922-10-20

ordinary circumstances, ana the work
that was being pushed had left no time
for anything else.
Backfring was impossible, for the
wind came up the cleared road from
the muskeg with hurricane force. Will
ton posted his men along the near side
of the way, to beat out the patches OF
flame that would spring up from the
burning brands carried over It by the
wind.
The conflagration came roaring
down on them before many minutes
had passed. It seemed to gather force
as It advanced. The smoke was sd-
fling. They could see one another
only dimly In the swiriing fog.
The line of fire shot through the
cracking ferns and underground be-
fore them, and reached the edge OF
the cleared way. Then the workers
found themselves surrounded with
ring of flame. The trees and grass
were alight behind them. And along
the muskeg edge the confiagration had
thrust out gripping tentacles of flame
that edged round and in toward the
engine-sheds.
Shouting to those nearest him to fol-
low, Wilton ran down toward the
swamp. But when the grade came
into sight he saw something that
caught his cry and killed 1t on his lips.
OF a sudden his veins seemed to run
Ice for blood. The fire had caught the
/ trestlng and was running along the
timbers, eating its way toward the
east bank.
| But what made him catch his breath
and clench his fists was this: the fire
was moving eastward and yet 1t could
not have started on the west bank, foI
here the trestling was completely hid
den under the foundation. over which
the flames could not pass. The fire
had started In the middle of the mus
keg, and had been started there Of
design.
1t was the end of everything. Big
Muskeg would remain unspanned after
all. when Bowyer assumed control.
The engine-houses were fire-red ru
ins, belching up a black. sticky smoke
that clogged the fighters lungs and
settled In fine particles of black dus,
all over them. Drums Of oil and gaso
line exploded with the salvoes Of ar
tillery, shooting up streamers of flame
sky-hgh. Rivulets Of fire broke forti
and streamed through the camp
spreading the destruction.
The encircling arms of the confla
grafton had thrust their fingers al
about them through the forest, whicl
was ablaZe in every direction. Blu
In the open space itself the fire ha'
been stayed, though hardly anything
was left except the kitchens an,
bunk-houses. The sheds and engine
houses had gone up in few minutes
and now glowed fiercely with an In
tense heat, but without flame.
The fighters had done all the
could do, and that was nothing. The
could do nothing more now, except {
guard the bunk houses from the river
,, of blazing oil. Wilton found fey
men and told them to take spades an
, throw up mounds along the courses Q
these torrents, in order to divert then
The Hunkies. mad with drink, gait
q cred in clusters at the doors OF tn
bunk-houses and jeered at the me
who fought to save them; and thes'
, too disconsolate to care, having
last secured the remaining structure
!. flung down their spades and drew OF
of their way. Everyone knew this wa
: the end.
!. Out of the smoke came the fgur
: Of McGee, the head locomotive eng
4 neer. His hair was crisped like a n
gro's-he was as black, and the teal
2 had furrowed white channels down n
, cheeks.
: "It's all gone!" he shouted. "Notl
a ing but scrap-iron and. junk. We
: have bargain -salep y He recognize
!, Wilton and seized him by the arr
I "who set that blazer he screame
i, "Man, there was gasoline, gallons
= II. soaking the sheds before ever Il
:. fire come there. They were soakt
with 1t. Who did It? Show me Il
;, d-n skunk I" he shouted, half besit
a himself.
y TT doesn't matter now," said w
A. ton.
MCGEE raved, cursing and sobbin
and suddenly rushed away Into u
smoke and was lost to view.
Wilton was making his way towa
his shack before 1t occurred to nj
that he would not find it. Yet the
was the safe. He would stay qua
over that. To his immense surpris
however, he discovered that the sha
had escaped the confagrntion. thouI
nothing remained of Kitty's but fe
blackened beams. A backfire HI
been set successfully. The grass W
burned all about the place, and sor
of the timbers were scorched, but tn
was all. The shack was an oasis
the devastation of cinders. Jul
hai stuck to his post.
Wilton knew there had been tread
cry. He knew that Bowyer's apes
ance at the portage had not be
chance. Bowyer had not driven mil
from Cold junction by coinciden
wilton had no doubt that the fire "
Of his making.
And even that did not matter.
| "a ~ ~. .lxh h<. otA