The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-03-27

the remaining hour OF the afternoon, if done in IN
hurry and with all the fifteen men clipping viii
out aepause The company was under "rusbo
contract Tomorrow the steel workers would ba.
gin at day-break and the forms must be out Of the
way. The rain had held them back nearly dav.
the men must make up for the time the elements
had stolen from the work; the job had to be COM
pleted by shutdown.
The wires were to be cut.
For two days the men had been looking for
ward to that part of the work, and had ALREADY
solved the problem of doing it safely. It would
take one or two hours longer, but it might pre-
vent the loss Of one or more human lives The
idea had evolved out of the fertile brain Of Helm
rich, the German; he suggested that a. heavy son
rod be wired to each pinch bar. Ten. of thesekxI
tended bars would be. sufficient and the men Hhd
used them could stand safely above the forms.
OF course, the men had not preached the idea
to the foreman; that would be presumptuous.
Besides, they were not sure but that he himself
had some such plan in mind, and they would
wait until the wires had to be cut before talking
further thought about it. But now the time for
the work had arrived and the men had been or.
dered down into the passage, with no attempt on
the part of the foreman to devise a safer method.
THE international group stood tense, their
glances passing back and forth to the fore.
man, and to this Swede who somehow had become
their spokesman. They liked this uneducated
workman with the narrow shoulders No matter
how recently laborer had arrived, he had a kind
of involuntary respect for this silent, shutting
ben figure who minded his own business and at
the same time was able to divine the thoughts Of
others.
"Get your pinch bars, all Of you, and cut those
wires" the foreman roared, and spat out all the
tobacco in his mouth. He clenched his fists and
thrust his huge body toward the group of mem
'I'll be damned if / don't fire anyone who isn't
down that hole in three minutes Take your
choice, damn you! Cut those wires or walk to
town."
Rusten stood gazing into his angry face. The
other men remained with Rusten. The foreman
was holding his watch.
1.-TWO minutes leftp' He let fly string Of
curses. "Tll fire the bunch of you! I'll have
men here who'll take orders if / have to hold
the whole job up I'll call out all the stihs in
Casper, and you can hoOf
it eighty miles if you're able! Once for all! Are
you goin' to cut them wiresw
"Boss," Ted slowly responded, somebody wiz
get hurt down there If we wire" 4, 4
"Wire He'll! Why should / wire anythHhJ
Who's goin' to get hurt at that baby play! Noa
damned, low-down Swede, the sun is goin' down,
and you stand there talkin about wiringl Once
for all! Get your pinch bars!"
BOSS, been th1nkln' things over for about
twenty-five years, an l kinda got couple of pic
lures"
The foreman's face became purple with rage.
de lifted his huge fist and held it as though ready
to crush the head of the bowed workman.
Pictures he roared through lips twisted by
fury "Picturesl What the hell has pictures got,
to do with cuttin'-w eaGa4lga5, es ore~F
Ted raised his hand. q~t We
II gotta couple of pictures, boss, and kinda
| thought IL"
HWell? Spit it outi Get done with itw
Il could cut dem wires tonight alone Tlhyre
easy to find in the dark, an can work stu pght
through till daylight"
The eyes of the foreman stood out in his amaze
ment and his mouth sagged half open. The Ia
borers turned their astonished gaze upon their
companion, and Heinrich Gerhardt pushed his
way to his side and exclaimed:
mo! MOI Vot do you mean! Dose walls, dey
fall on you You get kilt, sureE"
BY this time the foreman had recovered his