Robert Barr

“ I've been station-master here for eighteen months, and I never saw that express stop before. Now, I'm not such a fool, but I know that a man who steps off the Greased Lightning is one of two things. He is either a big bug with pull enough on the railway company to get them to stop the Greased Lightning for him, or else he's a tramp who can't pay his fare, and so is put off. ”

“ So a Chicago man can't step jauntily off the express he has managed to stop, and expect to get a train to Bunkerville whenever he chooses."
"Admirably stated," said Jack Steele. "And if you will condescend further to enlighten a beclouded intellect, would you mind explaining what the deuce the little train is doing here at this hour? If I follow your argument, it should have returned to Bunkerville after the nine o'clock local came in, and should not have arrived here until just before three o'clock."
"Your befogged brain is waking up," said the station-master encouragingly. ”

“ The moment Dunham's name caught Jack Steele's eye in the lawyer's letter, he knew he had to deal with the most unscrupulous man in the railway business, which is saying much. Dunham was in the employ of the Rockervelt system, and, as far as money was concerned, could outbid him a thousand to one.
When the Greased Lightning Express stopped at Slocum Junction on this occasion, John Steele had ample time to reach the platform, because the express detached itself from a sumptuous private car before it pursued its journey further west. ”

“ What is the second proviso?"
"I am told you have a great deal of influence in railway circles in Chicago."
"Yes, I have."
"Can you get a good place for a capable and deserving young man?"
"I think so. Does he understand railroading?"
"Yes, he is the station-master at Slocum Junction."
"Oh, the station-master! Certainly. I should be delighted to offer him a good position. He is a splendid fellow, and I like him exceedingly." ”

“ If I have followed your line of argument as unerringly as the farmers' train follows the Farmers' Road, his nibs the engineer must take the train back to Bunkerville so that he may return here on his regular trip to meet the three o'clock western local. ”

“ When the Wheat Belt Line, by which you came here from Chicago, was surveyed through this part of the State, those interested in the neighbourhood expected that it would ran through Bunkerville, which would become a large town. The railway people demanded a large money bonus, which Bunker county refused, because Bunkerville was in the direct line, and they thought the railway must come through there, whether a bonus were paid or not. ”

“ His nibs, as you call him, is engineer, conductor, brakesman, and freight handler. When he came in, he had to carry that freight from his car to the platform where you see it. That takes time, even if the day were not so oppressively hot as it is. So, instead of keeping up his fire under the boiler, and burning useless coal, he banks the furnace as soon as he arrives. Then he takes his time bringing the boxes to the platform. If he returned to Bunkerville, they would give him something to do there: here he is out of reach ”

“ The next nearest railway line was forty-five miles away, and two years after the Wheat Belt Line began operations, it was proposed to organise a local company to construct a railway from Slocum, through Bunkerville to Jamestown, on the other line. Bonuses were granted all along the route, and besides this the State legislature gave a subsidy, and, furthermore, passed a Bill to prevent competition, prohibiting any railway to parallel the Farmers' Road for sixty miles on either side. ”

“ Well, I have in my mind exactly the man to do the trick with discretion, and his name is Hazlett. I will lodge in the bank here five thousand dollars in your name, and I depend on you to get me at least one share over the fifty thousand, although, to be on the safe side, you may purchase at least a thousand in excess. Send the shares to me in Chicago as fast as you get them, and I'll take care of them. ”

“ Are you prepared to pay as much?"
"Yes."
"I imagine Mr. Dunham would never have come all the way from New York to see me if he were not prepared to pay a much larger sum. I have therefore two further provisos to make. You will pay me ten thousand down. Proviso number one is that you will give me ten per cent. on the profits you make in this transaction. Of course, in spite of Mr. Hazlett's caution, I know there is something very large going on, and naturally I wish to profit by it." ”

“ Some farmers in the outlying districts refuse to sell, thinking the price of the stock will rise, which of course it won't do. Nevertheless, I imagine there should be no difficulty in collecting the fifty-one thousand shares. ”

“ Anywhere between three and five thousand dollars—all depending, as I said, on the thing being done circumspectly, for in these rural communities the wildest rumours get afloat, and so, if it became known that someone was in the market, prices would go up. ”

“ Joe starts his rickety engine going, then leaves it to jog along as it likes, and comes through the car to collect the fares. They have no tickets, and perhaps that's why the road has never paid a dividend."
"Oh, you mustn't say that!" protested the girl. "Poor Joe has not got rich out of his occupation, any more than the shareholders have made money on their shares. If you will permit me to pay my fare to Joe, Mr. ”