Kirk Munroe

“ The train had hardly stopped at the well-remembered station before there was a commotion at the car-door, and a little man, whose presence seemed in a moment to pervade the whole car, rushed in, elbowing his way with remarkable dexterity through the crowd of passengers who were leaving it. They growled at him, but they gave way and made room for him to pass, as all crowds will before any one who has the self-assurance to push himself forward. In a moment he caught sight of Myles, and called out:
“Good enough, old man! You’re a trump to come back and face the music. Now we will have some fun.” ”

“ Then Myles sat down and told her the whole miserable story, beginning with the day he went to Mountain Junction and ending with the moment of his present disgrace and wretchedness.
“You poor, poor, dear boy!” exclaimed Kate, as he finished, and with her eyes full of sympathetic tears. “I never in my life heard of so much trouble coming to one person all at once. There is one splendid thing about it all, though.” ”

“ When the operator—much against his will, for he had taken a fancy to Myles, but compelled by the rules of his office to do so—had sent it flashing over the wires and received an “O. K.” in answer, his hand lay listlessly on the key for a full minute. He was thinking what a mean, contemptible thing had just been done, and was wondering if in any way he could undo it or avert its consequences. Yes, he believed something could be done! At any rate, he would try. The frank, pleasant face of the young reporter rose up before him. A fellow with such a face as that must be all right. ”

“ As the train rolled into the station and he stepped from it he wondered if people would stare at him and point him out to each other. He wished he could meet some acquaintance who would call him by name; for, of course, everybody had read the account of his doings and would recognize the Myles Manning [240] at once. How strange that people should be going about their every-day business as if it were the one thing in the world of importance, and great events, worthy of record in the newspapers, were not happening! ”

“ Once more the car was ready for its onward flight. As it started Myles heard shouts, and, looking back, saw men running and beckoning to him. At the same moment he heard the far-away whistle of a locomotive ahead of him. He bent to the crank, and in another minute his pursuers lost sight of the car and the one straining figure that it bore.
Now it approached the Horseshoe curve. Yes, Myles remembered the place perfectly. The track looked all right. The sun had risen and he could see the line plainly. ”

“ He struggled to his feet bruised, breathless, hatless, with clothing torn and covered with dust, but with unbroken bones and undaunted spirit.
“Who are you? and what do you mean by making such a row?” demanded the roundsman who led the charging party, as he laid his hand heavily on Myles’ shoulder.
“A reporter from the Phonograph, who was ordered to ride on that car, and means to if he can fight his way to it,” was the answer.
“I might have known it,” said the officer, with a resigned air. “You reporters do beat the world for getting us cops into trouble. ”

“ Myles had so completely lost control of himself by this time, that he would have answered this taunt by something much more forcible than words, and undoubtedly Ben Watkins would have had cause to regret arousing the wrath of the young athlete before whom the best men in the X—— gymnasium had been unable to stand up; but just then a soft hand was laid on the young reporter’s shoulder, and Billings’ languid voice drawled out:
“Let the poor fellow go, Manning. He will hurt himself more than you can hurt him in the long run.” ”

“ But to be only a reporter! Why, the mere thought of such a thing was humiliating.
“Why not?” asked Van Cleef, in reply to Myles’ question, and in surprise at his tone. “A first-class, well-trained, reporter is one of the brightest, smartest, and best-informed men in the city. He knows everybody worth knowing, and every thing that is happening or about to happen. He is as valuable to his paper as the editor-in-chief, and he often earns as much money. ”

“ They have no use there for a fellow who lets liquor get the best of him.”
“Nonsense!” exclaimed Ben. “Don’t try to make out that your own office is any better than any other. All newspaper men get drunk every now and then; everybody knows that.”
“Look here, Ben Watkins!” cried Myles, stopping short and turning upon his companion, while an angry flush mounted to his face, “you may be speaking from ignorance, and I hope you are. At any rate, I want you to understand that what you have just said is not true. I know a good deal more about newspaper men than you do. ”

“ But the door-tender had just been relieved and gone home, while the boy who acted in his place of course knew nothing of who had come or gone before he went on duty.
“Well, that is good,” laughed Van Cleef, when Myles returned and, with a crestfallen air, announced that he could not discover the name of the person for whom he had just consented to act as proxy. “The old gentleman has shown himself to be a better reporter, or detective, which is much the same thing, than you, Manning. He has gained a full knowledge of you and your plans, while you have learned absolutely nothing about him. ”

“ As the officer looked around to see who would be the next to claim the privilege of speaking with his prisoner, the gentleman who said he was a lawyer, but who wore the uniform of a soldier, stepped past him and held out his hand to Myles.
It was Captain Ellis, of the 50th Regiment, the one who had been with him when he sent back that key.
“Yes,” he said, laughing at Myles’ bewilderment, “I am your lawyer, or, rather, I am four lawyers all in one, for I have already received four retainers to act as your counsel. ”

“ Why, the very brightest men in the city are on the Phonograph, as you will soon discover. As for a raise of salary—well, you will have to write many and many a story better than this little screed of mine before that happy event takes place.”
“Then mine will continue to be fifteen per week for the rest of my natural life, or, rather, for as long as they will let me hang on down there, I’m afraid,” sighed Myles.
“Not a bit of it, my dear fellow. A year from now you will be ’way up, probably on space, and looking back with infinite pity upon yourself as a salary man at fifteen dollars a week. ”

“ And I should think you’d be the proudest boy in New York City at this minute. Why, just because I am your sister I am the proudest girl in it.”
“I suppose I was just a little proud before I went to the office this morning,” said Myles, gently disengaging himself from his sister’s embrace; “but I guess it was the sort of pride that goeth before a fall. At any rate, I got my fall, and a pretty serious one it was too.”
“Oh, nonsense!” cried Kate, “What’s one fall? [251] A man ought not to mind such a thing as that. Do as you did when you were a little boy, pick yourself up and run on again.” ”

“ I am an officer, and have a warrant for your arrest on the charge of robbing a safe in the office of the A. & B. Railroad Company at Mountain Junction.”
“I—charged with robbing a safe!” repeated Myles, slowly, and with a face so colorless that he looked as though about to faint. “Who dares bring such a charge against me?”
“The charge is made, I believe, by Mr. Ben Watkins, assistant division superintendent at Mountain Junction. My instructions and the warrant for your arrest were forwarded by his uncle, the division superintendent at that place,” answered the detective. ”

“ As a space man you will reap an instant pecuniary reward from every successful effort you make, exactly as any man does who is in business for himself. You also occupy the curious position that I do not believe exists except among newspaper reporters on space, of being under [285] orders and at the same time able to render yourself absolutely independent of them.”
Myles was so happy, and the future seemed so bright and secure to him, surrounded as he was by friendly faces, that he read Billings’ telegram with only a vague wonder as to what it could mean, and without a trace of anxiety. ”

“ The President’s private secretary, who is called the ‘power behind the throne,’ was a reporter. A late Secretary of the Treasury was once a reporter. I have a personal knowledge of six members of Congress who used to be reporters. All the foreign correspondents, who are really the men controlling the destinies of nations, are nothing more nor less than reporters. Stanley was a reporter, and so were hundreds more who are now world-famed. Oh, I tell you what, Manning, there is nothing to be ashamed of in being a reporter, though I will admit that most people seem to think there is. ”

“ It is so good to see you bright and happy that we hadn’t the heart to interrupt you with our sorrows.”
“Sorrows!” exclaimed Myles, in a bewildered tone. “What do you mean, mother? Is any one dead? or is father worse?” ”

“ At length Myles and the operator boarded their car to go back to town, to which they promised, in return for the favors shown them, to carry the news of the expected coming of the New York regiment. The return journey was a hard one. Both of them were sleepy and tired out. They were no longer borne up by the excitement that attended their outward trip, and their hands were blistered by the crank-handles. The car grew heavier and heavier as they forced it slowly up the long grades, while the miles seemed to stretch to infinity. ”

“ Walking on a railroad track is by no means easy work, and before he had accomplished more than half the distance to the town the young reporter wished that a train, or, at least, a hand-car, would come along and give him a lift. The sun had set, it was rapidly growing dark, and Myles was as rapidly growing very hungry. ”

“ I tell you, gentlemen, you want men of experience in affairs of this kind, not a lot of toy soldiers like those New York chaps. We don’t need any help here, even if they were the fellows to help us. I and my command are perfectly well able to attend to all the strikers in this part of the country. Why, we have cleared the town of them already, arrested their ringleader, and to-morrow, or rather to-day, I propose to run a train over the Western Division, and see that it goes through, too! ”

“ Then they discussed plans for the future, and Kate said:
“Why not be your own city editor, Myles, and give yourself interesting assignments to work up? I’m sure there are lots of things people want to know about, and if you would only write them up some of the papers would be certain to take your articles—and pay you well for them too.”
“The trouble is there are so many fellows doing that very thing,” answered Myles.
“Well, that is the trouble with every thing. There are quantities of people doing the same thing in every kind of business. ”

“ It’s no wonder you look tough after what you’ve gone through; but it’s an honorable toughness, and every splotch of mud on your face is honorable mud. You just wait till I tell the boys of the 50th what a Phonograph reporter has done for them. If they don’t give you three fizz-booms and a Bengal tiger, then I’m a brass monkey, that’s all.”
“Oh, no,” protested Myles, “don’t tell them. It isn’t any thing to make a fuss about.”
“Isn’t it? Well, we’ll just give the boys a chance to express an opinion about that,” laughed Billings, with a touch of his old drawling manner as he left the car. ”

“ A foreman of the locomotive works was to act as engineer, and Ben Watkins was to be fireman. Lieutenant Easter found a seat in the locomotive cab, where Myles would have liked to join him but for the presence of Ben, with whom he wished to hold no communication. The two cars of the train were well filled, for the town was so quiet and so absolutely deserted by the strikers that the lieutenant did not think it necessary to leave more than half a dozen of his men in charge of a corporal to guard the jail and the railroad buildings. ”