Page:Frank Spearman--Whispering Smith.djvu/149

 was like the surge of many waters, and the snow had whitened into storm. They were ten miles from a habitation, and, but for the single track they were travelling, might as well have been a hundred miles so far as reaching a place of safety was concerned. They were without food, with a caboose packed with men on their hands, and they realized that their supply of fuel for either engine or caboose was perilously slender.

“Get your men ready with their tools, Pat,” said McCloud to Mears.

“What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to turn the train around and put the nose of the engine into it.”

“Turn the train around—why, yes, that would make it easy. I’d be glad to see it turned around. But where’s your turntable, Mr. McCloud?” asked Mears.

“How are you going to turn your train around on a single track?” asked Stevens darkly.

“I’m going to turn the track around. I know about where we are, I think. There’s a little stretch just beyond this curve where the grade is flush with the ground. Ask your engineman to run back very slowly and watch for the bell-rope. I’ll ride on the front platform of the caboose till we get to where we want to go to work. Lose no time, Pat; tell your men it’s now or never. If we are 127