ree
miles along the track and into his store. I don't know what happened
then, but I heard that there were traces of a pretty lively scuffle."

George laughed, but his companion continued more gravely:

"Then we have had a number of small disturbances when the men from the
new link line came into town--they've graded the track to within a few
miles now--and I hold Beamish responsible; they haven't encouraged
these fellows at the Queen's. In fact, I mean to walk over and try to
get a few words with them as soon as I leave you."

"One would hardly think Saturday evening a very good time," George
commented.

His train came in shortly afterward, and when it had gone Hardie went
home for a rubber coat, and then took the trail leading out of the
settlement. He was forced to trudge through the tangled grass beside
it because the soft gumbo soil stuck to his boots in great black lumps,
and the patches of dwarf brush through which he must smash made
progress laborious. After a while, however, he saw a long trail of
black smoke ahead, and sounds of distant activity grew steadily louder.

There was an angry red glare on the western horizon, though the light
was beginning to fade, when he reached the end of the new line and
found a crowd of men distributing piles of gravel and spiking down the
rails which ran back, gleaming in the sunset, lurid, straight and
level, across the expanse of grass, until they were lost in the shadowy
mass of a bluff. Near the men stood a few jaded teams and miry wagons;
farther on a row of freight-cars occupied a side-track, a little smoke
rising from the stacks on the roofs of one or two. Their doors were
open, and on passing, Hardie noticed the dirty blue blankets and the
litter of wet clothing in the rude bunks. As he approached the last
car, which served as store and office, a man sprang down upon the line.
He wore wet long boots and an old rubber coat stained with soil, but
there was a stamp of authority upon his bronzed face.

"How are you getting on, Mr. Farren?" Hardie inquired.

"Slowly," said the other; "can't catch up on schedule contract time.
We've had rain and heavy soil ever since we began. The boys have been
giving me some trouble, too."

"You won't mind my having a few words with them?"

"Why, no," said Farren. "Guess they need it; but I'm most afraid
you'll be wasting time. The Scandinavians, who're quiet enough and
might agree with you, can't understand, and it's q