Ranching For Sylvia Volume-554 by Harold Bindloss (chrome ebook reader .TXT) 📕

Something To His Fireman And Added: "Get Hold; We'll Take Him Along."

It Looked As If The Outbreak Had Not Met With General Approval, For A

Number Of The Bystanders Offered Their Help And The Injured Man Was

Carefully Carried To The Locomotive.

"I'll Run The Cars Along As Far As The Gravel Pit; Then I Can Book The

Journey," The Engineer Said To Hardie.  "But As I Can't Get Off At The

Other End, You'll Have To Come Along."

Hardie Wondered How He Would Get Back, But That Was Not A Matter Of

Great Consequence, Though He Had To Preach At Sage Butte In The

Morning, And He Climbed Up When Farren Had Been Lifted Into The Cab.

Then He Sat Down On The Floor Plates And Rested The Unconscious Man's

Head And Shoulders Against His Knees As The Engine Began To Rock

Furiously.  Nothing Was Said For A While; The Uproar Made By The

Banging Cars Would Have Rendered Speech Inaudible, But When They Had

Been Left Behind, The Engineer Looked At Hardie.

"In A General Way, It's Not The Thing To Interfere In A Row With A

Boss," He Said.  "Still, Four To Two, With Two More Watching Out For A

Chance To Butt In, Is Pretty Steep Odds, And Farren's A Straight Man.

I Felt Quite Good When I Hit One Of Those Fellows With A Big Lump Of

Gravel."

Hardie Could Understand His Sensations And Did Not Rebuke Him.  So Far

As His Experience Went, The Western Locomotive Crews Were Of An

Excellent Type, And He Was Willing To Admit That There Were Occasions

When The Indignation Of An Honest Man Might Be Expressed In Vigorous

Action.

"It Was Really Four To One, Which Makes The Odds Heavier," He Said.

"I Guess Not," Rejoined The Engineer With A Smile.  "You Were Laying

Into One Of Them Pretty Lively As I Ran Up."

Hardie Felt A Little Disconcerted.  Having Been Partly Dazed By The

Blow He Had Received, He Had No Clear Recollection Of The Part He Had

Taken In The Scrimmage, Though He Had Been Conscious Of Burning Anger

When Farren Was Struck Down.  It Was, However, Difficult To Believe

That The Engineer Had Been Mistaken, Because The Locomotive Lamp Had

Lighted The Track Brilliantly.

"Anyway, One Of Them Put His Mark On You," Resumed His Companion.  "Did

You Notice It, Pete?"

"Sure," Said The Grinning Fireman; "Big Lump On His Right Cheek."  He

Fumbled In A Box And Handed A Tool To Hardie.  "Better Hold That

Spanner To It, If You're Going To Preach To-Morrow.  But How's Farren?"

"No Sign Of Consciousness.  The Sooner We Can Get Him Into A Doctor's

Hands, The Better."

"Stir Her Up," Ordered The Engineer, And Nodded When His Comrade Swung

Back The Fire-Door And Hurled In Coal.  Then He Turned To Hardie.

"We're Losing No Time.  She's Running To Beat The Imperial Limited

Clip, And The Track's Not Worked Down Yet Into Its Bed."

Hardie, Looking About For A Few Moments, Thought The Speed Could Not

Safely Be Increased.  There Was A Scream Of Wind About The Cab, Though

When He Had Stood Upon The Track The Air Had Been Almost Still; A

Bluff, Which He Knew Was A Large One, Leaped Up, Hung Over The Line,

And Rushed Away Behind; The Great Engine Was Rocking And Jolting So

That He Could Hardly Maintain His Position, And The Fireman Shuffled

About With The Erratic Motion.  Then Hardie Busied Himself Trying To

Protect Farren From The Shaking, Until The Scream Of The Whistle Broke

Through The Confused Sounds And The Pace Diminished.  The Bell Began To

Toll, And, Rising To His Feet, Hardie Saw A Cluster Of Lights Flitting

Back Toward Him.  Shortly Afterward They Stopped Beside A Half-Built

Row Of Elevators.

"Guess You'll Have To Be Back To-Morrow," The Engineer Said.

Hardie Nodded.

"I've Been Rather Worried About It.  It Would Take Me All Night To

Walk."

"That's So," Agreed The Other.  "All You Have To Do Is To See Farren

Safe In The Doctor's Hands And Leave The Rest To Me.  I've Got To Have

Some Water, For One Thing."  He Turned To His Fireman.  "We'll Put In

That New Journal Babbit; She's Not Running Sweet."

The Clergyman Was Inclined To Believe That The Repair Was Not Strictly

Needed, Though It Would Account For A Delay; But One Or Two Of The

Station Hands Had Reached The Engine And, Following Instructions, They

Lifted Farren Down, And Wheeled Him On A Baggage Truck To The Doctor's

House.  The Doctor Seemed To Have No Doubt Of The Man's Recovery But

Said That He Must Not Be Moved Again For A Day Or Two; And Hardie Went

Back To The Station, Reassured And Less Troubled Than He Had Been For

Some Time.  The Attitude Of The Engineer, Fireman, And Construction

Gang, Was Encouraging.  It Confirmed His Belief That The Lawless

Element Was Tolerated Rather Than Regarded With Sympathy, And The

Patience Of The Remainder Of The Community Would Become Exhausted

Before Long.  Though He Admitted The Influence Of A Bad Example, He Had

Firm Faith In The Rank And File.

On The Evening That George Left For Brandon, Edgar Drove Over To The

Grant Homestead.

"It's Saturday Night, My Partner's Gone, And I Felt I Deserved A Little

Relaxation," He Explained.

"It's Something To Be Able To Feel That; The Men Who Opened Up This

Wheat-Belt Never Got Nor Wanted Anything Of The Kind," Grant Rejoined.

"But As Supper's Nearly Ready, You Have Come At The Right Time."

Edgar Turned To Flora.

"Your Father Always Makes Me Feel That I Belong To A Decadent Age.  One

Can Put Up With It From Him, Because He's Willing To Live Up To His

Ideas, Which Is Not A Universal Rule, So Far As My Experience Of

Moralizers Goes.  Anyhow, I'll Confess That I'm Glad To Arrive In Time

For A Meal.  The Cooking At Our Place Might Be Improved; George, I

Regret To Say, Never Seems To Notice What He Eats."

"That's A Pretty Good Sign," Said Grant.

"It Strikes Me As A Failing For Which I Have To Bear Part Of The

Consequences."

Flora Laughed.

"If You Felt That You Had To Make An Excuse For Coming, Couldn't You

Have Made A More Flattering One?"

"Ah!" Said Edgar, "You Have Caught Me Out.  But I Could Give You A

Number Of Better Reasons.  It Isn't My Fault You Resent Compliments."

Flora Rose And They Entered The Room Where The Hired Men Were Gathering

For The Meal.  When It Was Over, They Returned To The Smaller Room And

Found Seats Near An Open Window, Grant Smoking, Flora Embroidering,

While Edgar Mused As He Watched Her.  Dressed In Some Simple,

Light-Colored Material, Which Was Nevertheless Tastefully Cut, She Made

An Attractive Picture In The Plainly Furnished Room, The Walls Of Which

Made An Appropriate Frame Of Uncovered Native Pine, For He Always

Associated Her And Her Father With The Land To Which They Belonged.

There Was Nothing Voluptuous In Any Line Of The Girl's Face Or Figure;

The Effect Was Chastely Severe, And He Knew That It Conveyed A Reliable

Hint Of Her Character.  This Was Not Marked By Coldness, But Rather By

An Absence Of Superficial Warmth.  The Calmness Of Her Eyes Spoke Of

Depth And Balance.  She Was Steadfast And Consistent; A Daughter Of The

Stern, Snow-Scourged North.

Then He Glanced At The Prairie, Which Ran West, Streaked With Ochre

Stubble In The Foreground, Then White And Silvery Gray, With Neutral

Smears Of Poplar Bluffs, To The Blaze Of Crimson Where It Cut The Sky.

It Was Vast And Lonely; At First Sight A Hard, Forbidding Land That

Broke Down The Slack Of Purpose And Drove Out The Sybarite.  He Had

Sometimes Shrunk From It, But It Was Slowly Fastening Its Hold On Him,

And He Now Understood How It Molded The Nature Of Its Inhabitants.  For

The Most Part, They Were Far From Effusive; Some Of Their Ways Were

Primitive And Perhaps Slightly Barbarous, But There Was Vigor And

Staunchness In Them.  They Stuck To The Friends They Had Tried And Were

Admirable In Action; It Was When, As They Said, They Were Up Against It

That One Learned Most About The Strong Hearts Of These Men And Women.

"Lansing Will Be Away Some Days," Grant Said Presently.  "What Are You

Going To Do Next Week?"

"Put Up The New Fence, Most Likely.  The Land's A Little Soft For

Plowing Yet."

"That's So.  As You'll Have No Use For The Teams, It Would Be A Good

Time To Haul In Some Of The Seed Wheat.  I've A Carload Coming Out."

"A Carload!" Exclaimed Edgar In Surprise, Remembering The Large

Carrying Capacity Of The Canadian Freight-Cars.  "At The Price They've

Been Asking, It Must Have Cost You A Pile."

"It Did," Said Grant.  "I Generally Try To Get Down To Bed-Rock Figure,

But I Don't Mind Paying It.  The Fellow Who Worked Up That