Argosy All-Story Weekly — "The Purple Limited" — page 20: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Sam “ What’s worrying me, Lark, is the disap pearance of 43. I know it was robbed. We've got the country roused. But what did the two tall men and the short one de with the Purple Limited? Answer that!” Lark’s youthful eyes grew thoughtful. - -He waited for the next roll of the engine. “We'll go back over the line at day- light,” he suggested. J. J. D. snorted and tossed away his half- chewed cigar. ‘* Wait till we get to Tie Siding,” he said. Tie Siding, a lumber spur, proved. very much awake when the wrecking train rolled in and stopped at the platform. A mazskal, with a tin star, followed by the night oper- ator, came running up.to J. J. D. « Did you see anything of her?” they both asked in unison. \j. J. D. looked the marshal squarely in the eye. ‘(She passed over Broad River Bridge,” he said. ‘‘ She was heard in Butte Tunnel. Between Butte Tunnel and here— she’s disappeared. We've examined every siding on the. line.” ' “ That’s kinda spooky,” the marshal re- plied. J. J. D. wiped the snow from his flerid face. “Tl not sleep until 1 find the Purple Limited! She’s somewhere on my divi- sien!” CHAPTER IV. ON THE CARPET. T was noon when the wrecking train re- turned from Tie Siding and the way sta- tions along the second division of the C., M. and W. ~h J. D. , aided by Lark and the wrecking crew, and assisted by every constable, track- walker, and station-agent on that section of the line, had nothing te repert but failure. The Purple Limited, carrying over a million in gold and notes, had vanished in the frosty air. The search that was made extended on every side track from Broad River Bridge to Tie Siding. The section _ Of road between Tie Siding and Cotopaxi Juaction was gone over by a group of de- . ARGOSY-ALESFORY WEEELY. tectives from Cotepaxi. They reperted no sign of the train. = J. J. D. worked out three or four sur- mises and found nothing. The ceal-mines came in for particular attention. It seemed possible that Limited might have been shunted to the tracks leading to the mines, . and dropped down the shafts. There was no evidence of this. a thorough search. Butte Tunnel was examined from ene side of the mountain to the other. The canon, near where the road ran, was un- successfully searched. Two posses, headed by marshals, rode through the back country in a chance hunt for the train-robbers. They were still riding when the wrecking train slowly pulled into the yard at New house The miners promised The trafic manager of the C., M. aad W., tke general superintendent, and the chief ef detectives from the Eastern terminal, were waiting for J. J. D. There was going to be war, and J. |. D. was not prepared for it. He told Lark, the wrecking boss, and the two injured trainmen who had been thrown from the cab of the engine that drew the. Purple Limited to be on the carpet at ene o'clock ‘‘On the carpet” was J. J. B.’s way of saying to come to his office for an investigation. Lark moved across the yard and entered the lunch-wagon. He was famished. The waiter served three helpings of beans and brown bread before Lark looked around the lunch place. He spied a paper en one end of the counter. It was an extra got out by the Newhouse Chronicle. ‘“4 Million Stolen,” ran the head-line. “Crack train on the C., M. and W. dis- appears between Newhouse and Cotopaxi. The Purple Limited was said to have been boarded by train-robbers at the water-tank south of here. No clue to the robbers.” Lark read on—held his cup to his lips, and devoured the items concerning the Pur- . ple Limited. Much of the information was inaccurate. Two cars were said to be lost. The engine crew were supposed to be miss- ing. ‘Did you see the Purple Limited go through here about midnight last night?” Lark asked the hinch-wagon waiter. OO Conn Cc S CO