Page:Cy Warman--The express messenger and other tales of the rail.djvu/246

234 the T. E., and at once assured the official that he appreciated the leniency of the management; that they had all been very forgiving, and now he hoped that he might leave the service with the good wishes of the officials.

"Why, you are not going to quit, are you, John? The old man has complimented you repeatedly upon the excellent work you have been doing here on the hill."

"Then I take it that the old man is n't on," said Jones. "That's like you, Frank, to try to save my neck, but it's no use."

Suddenly it dawned upon the mind of the travelling superintendent of motive power that Jones had been fighting. If he wanted to be sure, all he had to do was to ask Jones and he would get the whole truth, so he asked him whom he had fought with.

"The hill crew," was the brief reply.

"All of them."

"Yep—began on the head brakeman and cleaned out the caboose, including the captain," said Jones with no show of pride. The official jumped off the engine and swung into the caboose of an east-bound freight train, and