Argosy All-Story Weekly, June 27, 1925 — page 30: what you’re looking at

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

SN never stirred. Zeb added his voice _ of the other and they both tried to awaken him. He slept on, serenely un- cunscious to the combined effort of the call bey and Zeb to arouse him. After ten min- utes of pounding and pulling at his limp figure, the call boy left. Zeb heard him cursing fervently as his footsteps beat a diminishing tattoo down the stairs. Fifteen minutes later the caller returned with another man, the chief caller who was € past master in the art of waking sleepers. Without a word, he reached across Zeb. There was a quick salvo of sharp slaps. Jim half arose. One hand on each side of his head, the caller rubbed Jim’s ears in a swift rolling movement. “Ouch! Leggo!” Jim yelped in an agonized cry, and sat bolt upright, holding a hand over each smarting ear. “You're called for the local. It’s wait- ing now. Stagger up and get into ’em!” ordered his tormentor. “Tell with the local! T’ell with you!” cursed Jim. “I’m off to-day. I’m sick. Call some one else.” “ There’s no one else to call. Everybody’s marked up. You gotta go,” Jim turned a disgusted look upon the Other, “ Nothing doing. Absolutely noth- ing doing. I ain't gotta do nothing but die and you can’t make me do that.” As an afterthought he added: « If you want some one so bad, take me frien’ here. He'll go. T’ll see you so far in hell, an asbestos postal ’ul] be scorched black be- fore you get it, before I fire a damn bit to- day. I'm all in. I'm sick. Mark me off.” his back on the pair and wen . t to slee again. The caller Stamped out, clawimed the door and Zeb, wide awake, wondered What would happen Next, @ vague fear that Jim Was due for trouble assailing him. Ten ——o Passed when the caller Teappeared. ae an into he room he questioned voice: “Ki an tehn te Kid, can you keep Without a minute’ itati plied: re Sure, I can” hesitation Zeb Te- ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. “All right,” was the reply. “I'm go. ing to get in dutch, I guess, for a aning you, but you're my one chance. [I Can't get any one else. Get a curve on you. The local’s’a half hour late now, Waiting in the yards. Step lively. While yoy dress, I’ll go down to Ring’s and have him put you up some grub. You can eat after you get out on the rails.” With another muttered threat at Jim’, Jax figure on the bed, the caller vanisheq Zeb hurried into his clothes and fairly running made his way up the yards, in a frenzy at the thought that he was delaying a train. When he reached the engine out of breath, the crew was waiting and the engineer, John Deering, was firing. He climbed aboard, took the shovel and the Jocal was soon under way. The first question the engineer asked was: “ Whattenhell’s matter with Jim?” “Oh, he’s sick this mawnin’.” The engineer nodded his head wisely, “Sick? Yeh, I guess he’s knocked out. I know. I saw him racing past the depot about ten o’clock. He had a wild party last night. But the old man razzles him Tagged.” Then regretfully: “ Jim’s a good fellow, but he’s pulling his horn too hard. I’m afraid he’s about due for the grand bounce, and if he gets it, he’s through railroadin’ on this division for a long time. Well, kid, it’s up to you to keep her hot to-day, and If you do, I'll sign you his heart Pounding, watched and Stoked the ! her hot, all right, he proudly Promised himself, for to-day he wn. ° ss CHAPTER VII. WORD FROM HOME. 7 had little time for conversation, ror . discovered that his fire had not been Cleaned. A heavy layer of half burned Coal and Cinder covered the ae eh bed of coals below. It was just € fire tenders in the roundhouse had Comuicboooks. com