Page:Ralph on the Railroad.djvu/1045

Rh pass by, and then told the engineer the trip was ended and he was satisfied."

"He didn't explain" began Ralph in wonderment.

"Not a word. He just waved his hand grandly good-by to the engineer, and passed out of sight. It was a queer go—wasn't it, now? The engineer and fireman were dumfounded. They looked into the car out of sheer curiosity."

"And found?" pressed Ralph.

"Nothing."

"What!"

"No—empty."

Ralph was bewildered, and said so. The dispatcher acknowledged the same sentiment, so had the engineer and the fireman, he said.

"There you have it," he remarked. "Queer go, eh?"

"The strangest I ever heard of," confessed Ralph.

"You see, there's no motive to trace," observed the dispatcher in a puzzled, baffled way. "Think of the cost of it! Think of the mystery about the whole affair! What is Dallas up to, and why the spur?"

"I don't know," admitted the young engineer, equally perplexed, "but I'm going to find out, make sure of that."