ngineering, especially
as applied to railroad building.

"I hope you lads are going to make good," said Blaisdell earnestly.
"We're in something of a fix on this work at best, and we need
even more than we have, of the very best hustling engineers that
can be found."

"I am beginning to wonder," said Tom, "how, when you have such
need of men of long training, your New York office ever came to
pick us out."

"Because," replied the assistant candidly, "the New York office
doesn't know the difference between an engineer and a railroad
tie. Tim Thurston has been making a long yell at the New York
offices of the company for engineers. Knowing the little that
they do, our New York owners take anyone who says he's an engineer,
and unload the stranger on us."

"I hope we prove up to the work," sighed Harry.

"We're going to size up. We've got to, and that's all there is
to it," retorted Tom. "We've been thrown in the water here, Harry,
and we've got to swim---which means that we're going to do so.
Mr. Blaisdell," turning to the assistant, "you needn't worry
as to whether we're going to make good. We _shall_!"

"I like your spirit, at any rate, and I've a notion that you're
going to win through," remarked the assistant.

"You try out a lot of men here, don't you?" asked Harry.

"A good many," assented Blaisdell.

"From what I heard at table," Hazelton continued, "Mr. Thurston
drops a good many of the new men after trying them."

"He doesn't drop any man that he doesn't have to drop," returned
Blaisdell. "Tim Thurston wants every competent man that he can
get here. Let me see-----"

Blaisdell did some silent counting on his fingers. Then he went
on:

"In the last eleven weeks, Thurston has dropped just sixteen new
men."

"Whew!" gasped Harry, casting a sidelong glance at his shoes,
with visions of a coming walk at least as far back as Denver or
Pueblo.

"Mr. Thurston isn't going to drop us," Tom declared. "Mr. Blaisdell,
Hazelton and I are here and we're going to hang on if we have
to do it with our teeth. We're going to know how to do what's
required of us if we have to stay up all night finding out. We've
just got to make good, for we haven't any money with which to
get home or anywhere else. Besides, if we can't make good here
we're not fit to be tried out anywhere else."

"We're in an especially hard fix, you see," the assistant engineer
explained. "When we got our charter something less th