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Page 29
"Aren't you afraid, Reade, that these discharged men will hasten to join
our enemies?"
"That is very likely, sir," Tom answered. "These missing men, however,
have shown their willingness to become our enemies by leaving camp and
seeking their pleasures in the strongholds of the scoundrels who are
fighting to break us up."
"That's another way of looking at the matter," assented the general
manager.
"I'd much rather have our enemies outside of camp than inside," Reade
continued. "If we took these absentees back after they've been in the
company of rascals, then we wouldn't have any means of knowing how many
of the absentees had agreed to do treacherous things within the camp.
It would hardly be a wise plan to encourage the breeding of rattlesnakes
within the camp limits."
It was nearly noon when the first batch of laborers, some American and
some Mexican, returned to camp. These men started to go by the
checker's hut at a distance, but keen-eyed Superintendent Hawkins saw
them and ordered them around to the hut.
"You'll have to wait here until your foremen are called," declared the
checker.
"Say, what's the trouble here!" demanded one American belligerently.
CHAPTER VIII
READE MEETS A "KICKER" HALF WAY
"Who's your foreman?" asked the checker, a young fellow named Royal
"Payson--if it's any of your business." replied the workman roughly.
The others, seeing him take this attitude, were willing to let him talk
for all. Superintendent Hawkins had rounded up the foremen, and now
sent them to the checker's hut to deal with the men.
"Some of you are my men," said Payson, looking the lot over. "You're
discharged."
"What's that?" roared the same indignant spokesman, a big, bull-necked,
red-faced fellow.
"Discharged," said Payson briefly. "All of you who belong to my gang.
Checker, I'll call their names off to you."
While Payson, and then the other foremen, were calling the names, the
workmen stood by in sullen silence. When the last name had been entered
the same bull-necked spokesman flared up again.
"Have we no rights?" he demanded. "Is there no such thing as the right
of appeal in this camp, or are we under a lot of domineering, petty
tyrants like you?"
"I'm a poor specimen of tyrant,"' laughed Payson good-naturedly. "All
I'm doing, Bellas, is following orders. Any man who feels that he was
justified in being away, and that he ought to be kept on the pay rolls
here, may make his appeal to Mr. Hawkins, Mr. Hazelton or Mr. Reade."
"I'll see Reade!" announced Bellas stiffly. "That youngster is doing
all the dirty work here. I'll go to him straight."
"I'll take you over to his office," nodded Foreman Payson.
"I'm going, too," announced another workman.
"So'm I," added another.
"One at a time, men," advised Payson. "I think Bellas feels that he's
capable of talking for all of you."
The other foremen restrained the crowd, while Mr. Payson led Bellas over
to the headquarters shack.
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