AN HOUR IN HAND

Evening Star, Issue 19712, 12 November 1927, Page 21

AN HOUR IN HAND

A SHOT STORY [■Written by Tal. J.oiixstok, for the ' ‘ Evening Star.’] Old Man Edam sat in the office shanty, hands on knees and massive head craned forward towards the roaring log fire, as if he sought a solution to his problem in the leaping flames. > Chill mountain winds buffeted the heavy sod chimney and whistled nastily through the few narrow chinks in the rough hut. Once again ho road through the terse note that had como by the weekly post to make sure that he bad not misunderstood No. There was no doubt at all. Beneath the impersonal business phraseology ran a threatening note, and from the time limit mentioned ho was aware that the writers had not intended him to comply with tho terpis. They well knew how long it would take him to reach tho city. He crumpled the note and consigned it to the hungry fire, at tho same time wishing upon the heads of those responsible a somewhat '.similar fate. He had done his best, but the big fellows with their rapacious appetites for gold had been too many for him in the finish. “Oh, well!” ho thought resignedly, “ 1 ‘suppose it means making another start.” Then he thought of Morrissey, A week before, just when the men had left the gushing sluices for the night, a battered piece_ of mechanism had clanked its precarious way over the boulder-strewn trail into the valley and pulled up at the collection of shacks on tho hillside whore the personnel of the Longrace Mining Company lived in the intervals of washing precious motal from the old river bod below. From it had stepped, or more correctly, unfolded, about sis feet of red Irishman, who lost no time in informing the world in general that he had come for a job, the nature of which ho did not specify, and a meal by way of a starter Questions elicited tho fact that his name was Pat Morrissey, that he would undertake work of any nature whatsoever, and that the machine in which he had braved the mountain trails was the product of a famous American. It was a reliable steed with appearances against it. During the brief wait for the evening meal the newcomer discovered that the cook’s stove chimney drew badly. In a short five minutes he had clipped a piece of kerosene tin to shape, scrambled on to tho roof, and fitted the contrivance to tho chimney top so that the offending draught drew the smoke full and clear from the flues, thereby gaining the friendship of that allpowerful person the cook. As he proceeded, in response to a shouted invitation, to the messroom, he gathered up in his capable hands a sharp edged slab of bard stone which he drove edgeways into the ground before the door, scraping his mud-en-crusted boots thereon by way of example to the less careful miners. With certain types of men a boobscraper offers irresistible attractions, and soon the sight of tho hungry men pausing to remove tho clinging dirt from their heavy boots gladdened the heart of tho youngster whose job it was to clean the shacks. At the table Pat Morrissey proved his prowess with knife and fork in such a manner as to gain the respect of all present, including the cook,_ who took it as a compliment to his culinary abilities. So it came about that Morrissey worked himself into a job with the Longrace Company, and in very short time proved one of the best men in the camp. To say that Old Man Ellam thought suddenly of Morrissey is not altogether correct; perhaps it wcnkl bo bettor to say that Morrissey’s car ..occurred to him as a possible solution of the immediate difficulty. He considered the matter for a moment, then, making up his mind, sent for tho gentleman in question. “Sit down, Morrissey,” he invited, when the big man entered the hut. Before ho could broach the subject in mind bis visitor got under weigh. “Sluiro, Mr Ellam, now, phwat have Oi been doin’ aginst tlr regulations that Oi should be throated in this way? Haven’t Oi worked wid th’ hist av thiin down there below?” For a moment Ellam was puzzled; then it dawned on him that the Irishman was not in the habit of being called into the boss’s quarters but for the purpose of receiving his dismissal. Ho could puite easily understand that Morrissey’s free and easy manner and Habit of practical joking would not endear him to some of the more serious employers of labor. Ho laughed. “ Hold your_ horses, man. I’m not sacking you, if that’s what you thought.” Morrissey subsided with a relieved but slightly puzzled expression. Work was hard to get, and as long as he was not to, bo turned adrift to look for another job he cared; little what . was in tho wind. “Will that—er—car of yours,sfand up to a run to town?” Ellam asked sharply. “Mo carr? Av coourse ut will!” This with emphasis tinged with indignation. “Could you make sure of delivering a parcel in town not later than three o’clock to-momnv afternoon ? ” Morrissey drew_ himself up. “Sor!” 'he intoned, “ Oi’ll admit tliot th’ .machine is not a Ilolls-lloycc, but she is geared for speeds between, that av an airyplane to’ so’mewheres in the ragion av wan mile to th’ hour. Ut depinds to an extint on whether th’ crature foinds herself thravelliug up or down, but to rack town.in th’ toime ye mention is no undertaking at all.” The mine owner looked hard at him for a moment, suspicious of an illtimed joke, but finally deciding that the man was serious, leaned forward end spoke- earnestly for some minutes. He told tho wondering Morrissey of the Motherlodo Mining Corporation and its efforts to put him,.Ellam, out of business,. with the object of securing the several promising claims owned by Ellam «nd his family, who were the other members of the company. Of how the bank had always allowed liim a considerable overdraft without question, and of the cheques ho had but recently diawn to meet accounts for mining materials and sundry other matters. Then, the night before, had como the terse letter from the bank demanding that funds be lodged before 3 o’clock on _ the morrow to mobt the cheques which had been presented for payment. It was obvious that by seme means his enemies had been successful in undermining his credit with the bank. Somehow they had acquired a power sufficient to control the hank officials. That was made plain in the letter. The manager of tho bank knew quite well that the letter would lie for some days awaiting transportation into,, tho, hills ■to the Longrace claim; ahd that ho could not possibly ride fast enough to reach the town in time,, Even had he_ received the letter a day earlier he might not have had the necessary funds handy.

However, it had transpired that the last wash-up had been ah unusually good one, and at the moment the safe m the shack held hue gold to-the value oT eomething over three thousand sterling More than enough to meet the cheques and leave n little in hand, . ■ All that was required was to 'get that gold to the bank doors before closing time on the coming day, which was no light task considering the distance and the nature of tho country that had to bo traversed. When he had finished, Ellam turned from his contemplation of the firt) and looked inquiringly at the other.

11 Well, Mom;-soy : ” ha asked, “What do yo. think about it?”. _ Morrissey spat emphatically, into the flowing embers and slapped one horny and into the palm of the other. '“Th'. durty bastes!” ho . growled. “ Oi’ll have, great pleasure in lookin’ some av thim up afther Oi’ve delivered th’. gowld, if ye’ll be givin’ me th addresses av a few ov thim.” Ellam. laughed grimly. “ I’d like to my lad,' but I’m afraid there’d; he trouble of a nasty kind if we started anything like that. Deliver the gold —that’ll be a big enough shock to them. I’d send another man with you, but I think you’d travel faster alone, and I’m willing to take a chance on you with the gold.” The slight smile was wiped from Morrissey’s hard face at the words. “ Oi’ve a wife an’ ; childer in th’ town, an’ fits little enough money they’ve had from me these last few months, Ellam, but divil a ininit would Oi stay on this job if Oi thought ye meant what yor worrda said. Oi’m no thafe to need someone to watch over me.”

Ellam laughed outright and extended a hand to the bristling man. “I’m not worrying over the risk you dam spitfire. I’ve seen enough of your sort to know when I’m safe.” Ho turned to the table that served him for desk and dining. “I’ll give you a note to the manager of the bank to be delivered with the gold, and I’ll give you your wages to date eo that you needn’t go empty-handed to vonr wife. You might like to spend a day in town, anyway.” « ♦ * ■* It was impossible for the wild Irishman to start on his hurried trip in the darkness, but the first pearly lightening of the eastern sky saw him Misily winding away at the starting bundle of his antiquated machine, the gold all snugged down in the tonneau, and Ellam fussing about anxiously, fearing that the old engine would not come to life. Finally, after a lot of priming and bad language, she went off with a roar that bid fair to ending the car’s career in a disintegrated heap of scrap iron. No such calamity occurred, however, and long before the sun had shown above the rugged ridges Morrissey and his precious burden went clanking up the rise like a perambulating boiler factory, made the final pinch with alarming jerks, and vanished over the crest in a flurry of dust as the driving wheels took the easier going. Morrissey dropped down from the last foothills in good order and going strong. All the worst of the going was behind him, and nothing remained but to plug away as fast as the old engine would turn over and eat up the long tally of miles that lay between him and his goal. At a stream he pulled up to put some water in the radiator and to calculate the average speed he would have to maintain to get to town on time. His watch was a good, timekeeper, and ho had checked it with the clock at the mine, so he had no fear of discrepancies in that respect. The time was just a quarter to eleven; the distance to he covered, roughly, 100 miles, and no possibility of shortening the trip by intercepting the trains on the main line some miles away across country. Allowing quarter of an hour for eventualities, Morrissey had to urge his rattletrap along at an average of twenty-five miles per hour. _ For a modern car of any power, a trip of that nature would be a mere trifle, but for the obsolete, clanking old tea-kettle which was by courtesy called a motor car, it woud be no mean feat. With throttle open to the last notch, steam hissing from the radiator, and the footboards hot beneath his feet, he drove furiously along the dusty roads for three and a-half hours, until a sharp bend brought him onto the highway with twelve miles to go and three Quarters of an hour to do it in.

Morrissey was jubilant as he saw success looming in the immediate future, and allowed his thoughts to turn from the worry of the undertaking and dwell on the pleasant surprise his appearance would cause in his own little family. Ahead a bond showed in the road. Without slowing down, ho tooted his horn and swung the car to the curve on two wheels. Ho had a momentary vision of a cumbersome farm wagon, slewed sideways across the road in the act of turning into a gate, and jammed hard down on his foot brake in an endeavor to pull up. He was too late; the car jerked and bumped as the brakes bit, skidded, then sidled crab-fashion in a cloud of dust and crunched hard against the wagon wheel. Morrissey was shot sideways by the impact, half of his body being swayed outwards so that his head came into violent contact with something a trifle harder even than his own tough skull.

It was ten minutes before he again took ,an intelligent interest in events, and then ho found himself laid out on the roadside in the centre of a group of sympathetic faming people. ! His first movement convinced them that he had been more seriously injured than they had thought, for he reached for his watch, took one look at the time, and jumped to his feet. As they recoiled from him in uncertainty, 1 ho staggered to his battered car and'swung furiously at the starting handle. Nothing happened. He swung again, more vigorously, without avail, and by the time ho had coaxed_ the_ shocked machinery to get on with its work all but fifteen short minutes of his time had flown. Quarter of an hour for over ten miles! Ho turned to the gaping farmers and demanded to know the exact distance to town. Their replies were not helpful, as individual opinions varied qiril'i throe iuiles. ■Determined to do his best till the last moment, he started off, and got out of that car every ounce of speed its engine could run to. It was wasted effort. His watch showed three o’clock when he was still a mile from the bank, so tho disappointed man swung his machine down a side turning and ran up to tho gate of his house, knowing that it was useless to push through the town to the bank, as the Mothorlodo Corporation would ho on the lookout to see that Ellam had no chance of depositing funds after tho legal closing hour. His head ached furiously from tho bump ho had received, and ho was too full of his own troubles to notice the worried look on his wife’s face as she ran to meet him in tho passage. “ Nonib, mo dear,” he said miserably, “Divil a bit ay use_ am Oi to yerself or anywan. Oi’vo lift you an’ the childer t’ stbniggle as bist ye might widout money, an’ unw_ whin Oi’vo got meself a job, haven’t Oi gone an’ mint mo employer so that Oi haven’t th’ harrt t’ go an’ look him in th’ face ? ”

Norah placed a tired band on his dusty sleeve, and tears started to her eyes. “Faith, but we’ve throiible an’ to spare av our own, me man. Here’s us wid twinty pounds t’ foiud fer back rint be to-morrow at tin o’clock, or out we go into tbe struto wid no roof over the. heads ay ns an’ little t’ ate fer tli’ childer, Th’ poor blessed angels.” She placed a protecting arm around her little brood and swept’them in close to the sturdy .legs of their father. An angry, flush came to her pretty cheeks at an unpleasant memory. ’ Arfali, : Pat, but OiTu > thankful ye’re home to woipe; th’ smile off th’ pig’s face av th’ baste* Whin he told me he would be takin’ th furniture an’ t’fowin’ us out he laughed an’ made fun av ut. ‘ An extry hour ye’ll be gottin’ fer.nothin’, missus,’ he says, ‘ fer they puts tb’ clocks back an hour on Sund’y, bein’ th’ end av Summer Time, an’ by th’ Toosd’y yo’ll have .made up an hour I can’t, charge for,’ he sez, an’ Oi flit loike t’rowin’ th’ dish water on . Where aro yo rusliin’ to, ye mad gossoon? Saints protect us, but th’ poor darlint’s gone crazy I ” she cried, as Morrissey dashed

from tUo..room and grabbed the controls of his car. Ho arid all the others at the mine had altered their clocks on Sunday, November 6, of the previous year, but not a jnan had remembered in that isolated spot that Sunday, March 4, should have given them back the stolen hour., . . , . Ha’ was ushered into tho bank manager’s room with a good twenty minutes to spare, and sank back into a fat armchair with a sigh of satisfaction as the official took charge of the gold and the accompanying letter. There was silence for a while, as tho manager read Ellam’s note and examined tho enclosure. At last he turned to Pat.

“ Will you cash this now, Morrissey, or deposit it to draw on later?” he asked, holding out a cheque. “Will Oi cash plnvatr” he demanded, puzzled. For answer, the manager handed him a cheque for one hundred pounds made out to Patrick Morrissey and signed by Ellam, also tho letter, which he folded over at a certain place. “Road!” he commanded. “ and should Morrissey deliver the gold intact before three o’clock on Tuesday, please hand him the enclosed cheque, for he will have well earned it by saving my credit with the big firms and so enabling me to carry on. . .