o back them up
and to retard matters generally, we are in for a siege to which
purgatory, if we ever go there, will seem restful, Richard my son. Our
one weapon is my present ranking authority over the general manager. If
he ever succeeds in breaking that, you fellows in the field would better
hunt you another railroad to build."

"It's a comfort to know that you _are_ the big boss, Stuart. North can't
knock you out of that when it comes to a show-down."

"I don't know," said Ford, whose night ride had made him pessimistic. "I
am Mr. Colbrith's appointee, you know--not an elected officer. And what
Mr. Colbrith has done, he may be induced to undo. Adair has been my
backer in everything; but while he is the best fellow in the world, he
is continually warning me that he may lose interest in the game at any
minute and drop it. He doesn't care a rap for the money-making part of
it--doesn't have to."

"Wouldn't Adair be a good safety-switch to throw in front of Mr. North
and MacMorrogh in New York?"

Ford nodded. "I thought of that last night, and sent a wire. We'll hear
from it to-day."

Frisbie ate through the remainder of the breakfast in silence.
Afterward, at the pipe-lighting, he asked if Ford's wire instructions of
the night before still held good.

"They do," was the emphatic reply. "We go on just as if nothing had
happened, or was due to happen. You say your man Crapsey will be in this
morning: gather up your laborers and turn the Plug Mountain into a
standard-gauge railroad while we wait. That's all, Dick; all but one
word--hustle."

"Hustle it is. But say: you were going to give me a pointer on that
broad-gauging. I've been stewing over it for a day and a night, and I
don't think of any scheme that won't stop the traffic."

"Don't you? That is because you haven't mulled over it as long as I
have. In the first place, you have no curves to straighten and no
cross-ties to relay--our predecessors having set the good example of
using standard length ties for their three-foot road. String your men
out in gangs as far as they'll go, and swing the three-foot track, as a
whole, ten inches out of center to the left. You can do that without
stopping trains, can't you?"

"Sure."

"All right. When you swing, spike the right-hand rail lightly. Then
string your gangs again and set a line of spikes for the outside of the
standard-gauge right-hand rail straight through to Saint's Rest. Got
that?"

"Yes; I guess I've