rough the first night without actually killing anybody,
but his train sheet the next morning resembled a man with a very bad
case of measles; there were delays on everything on the road, with very
few satisfactory explanations. There was the fast mail twenty-five
minutes in going six miles. Cause? None was given. But a perusal of the
order book showed that Krantzer had made a meet for her with a freight
train, and had hung her up on a blind siding for fifteen minutes.
Freights that had been out all night were still out, tied up in all
kinds of shapes. Meets had been made for two long trains at a point
where the passing track was not large enough to accommodate either one
of them, and the result was thirty minutes lost by both of them in "raw
hiding" by. Many other discrepancies were noticeable, but these
sufficed to show that Krantzer's abilities as a despatcher were of a
very low order. However, I reflected, that it was his first night, and I
remembered my own similar experience not many years ago, so I simply
submitted the sheet to Mr. Antwerp without comment. He wiped his
glasses, carefully adjusted them on his aristocratic nose, and after
glancing at the sheet for a few moments, said, "Ah! humph! Well! Well!
Well! Not a very auspicious start, to be sure; but the boy will pick up.
Just jack him up in pretty good shape, Bates; it will do him good." I
jacked him up all right to the queen's taste but it was like pouring
water on a duck's back.

The second night was not much of an improvement, and I made a big kick
to Mr. Antwerp the following morning, but it did no good. The third
night was a hummer. I was kept at the office pretty late, in fact until
after eleven o'clock, and before going home I wrote Krantzer a note
telling him to be very careful as there were many trains on the road.
Our through business at this time was very heavy, and compelled us to
run many extras and specials. I was particular to inform him of two
extras north, that would leave Bradford, the lower end of the division,
some time after 12:30 A. M., and directed him to run them as special
freights having the right of track over all trains except the
passengers. Each train was made up of twenty-five cars of California
fruit bound for New York, and they were the first of their kind to be
run by us. We had a strong competitor for this class of business in the
Valley Route, a line twenty miles away, and were making a big bid for
the trade. The general