Page:Harold Titus--Timber.djvu/230

222 up behint an' over th' way car ontil railroad, train an' everythin' 's junk.

"Now that air railroad she was Paul's first big failure; gettin' rid of this here cornstalk 's th' other. So he natterly thinks 'bout both, an' that gives him 'n idee. He goes over to this here junk pile an' commences pullin' her apart.

"Quite a job, with them quarter-mile rails, but by-an'-by he gits a few pulled loose an' straightened out an' puts 'em over his shoulder an' walks back to camp.

"That evenin' atter supper he takes a look at th' cornstalk, which is a right good-sized stalk by then. He takes these here rails an' knots 'em together, strings 'em aroun' th' stalk, ties 'em up tight in a knot an' stands back an' says: 'There, durn ye, pinch yerself off!' Which the stalk perceeds to do."

Harris relighted his cigar with a hand that trembled.

"Well she pinches all right. They can hear her crackin' over in Wisconsin.

"Then Paul he thinks to hisself, what 'll happen when she comes down?

"So he sends fer his surveyor an' puts him out 'n th' brush with his transit to watch th' top of this here cornstalk. They strings a telephone line out to th' place an' th' surveyor camps there. Th' stalk keeps growin' an' snappin' an' atter a while th' surveyor he telephones an' says she's commencin' to sag.

"Paul he sends his men out into th' clearin' to warn th' settlers an' gets 'em all outen th' way. Everybody's pret' much excited.

She's commencin' to sag somethin' bad,' telephones th' surveyor. Everybody gits away back—an'