Argosy All-Story Weekly — "The Purple Limited" — page 17: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE PURPLE LIMITED. frgm the cab. A score of rugged round- haquse men and red-shirted track-layers sprawled under whatever shelter they could find on the flat cars. The fast loco cleared the switch points and rolled west through the car-scattered yard. Lark watched Darrah. The superin- tendent was greatly excited. There was a faint chance that the Purple Limited might be. on some siding between Broad River and Cotopaxi Junction. It could be in the ditch or down one of the many canons near Butte Tunnel. Lark, watching the superintendent, and recalling the red mask—the matches—the furtive-looking girl who had asked about the Limited, reached the same conclusion as Darah. The bullion train was in eine hands of bandits who had climbed aboard at the water-tank. © Darrab raised his hand and ordered the engineer to slow the wrecking train. The electric headlight spotted through the snow and brought out the details of the water- tank. Lark climbed into the cab. Darrah turned. “‘ Jump out!” he said. “ You, Ragan and you, Lark, Look around the t Lark ‘swung off the engine—secured a lantern from the first flat car, and followed by the detective, who also carried a lantern, they made a‘careful inspection of the tank ——the snow surrounding the piles, and went some distance down the track. J. J. D. was waiting as he leaned from the cab. ‘ Nothing new,” said Lark. “We'll have to let up until daylight.” “Can't you follow the tracks in the snow?” | “No. It’s too slushy.” _ “All right! Jump aboard! Open her up,” he ordered the engineer. “ Stop at Green Creek. Darrah went over the tender and grasped the shoulder of the wrecking boss, who had worked for the C., M. and W. for thirty years. ' “ Set two lights, = omanded J. J. D. “ Set them so your men can watch both sides of the track. The Purple Limited went into the ditch somewhere. Perhaps we can find the spot.” The lights were set, with tin réflectors worse than the engineer. 583 throwing the rays out on the swift-moving snow that covered the road-bed. Darrah returned to the tender and faced Lark. “Tf that train was robbed,” he blurted, “T’m going to hold you responsible!” ‘I couldn’t get down to the tank any sooner, Mr. Darrah. I saw tramps or some- body striking matches there when I was checking cars. I didn’t think anything of it until you told me about the Purple Limited.”’ “That’s the trouble. You don’t think fast enough! I can’t be everywhere all at once, on the second division!” Lark felt sorry for J. J. D. The super- intendent was an aggressive man—under- paid for the responsibility he assumed, and fair-minded in the midst of his trials. Strikes, wrecks, a coal embLargo—a freight tie-up at the eastern terminal, all had come that winter. And. now, to top these disas- ters, was the crack train in the ditch, or more likely, stuck up by bandits. Darrah Jeaned from the cab to look ahead where the electric light flickered on the gleaming rails. He narrowed his eyes to slits. The snow pelted his ruddy cheeks. He drew back out of the wind. The locomotive engineer shut off steam and fingered the airbrake lever. ‘‘ What are you doing?” growled J. J. D. Answering softly, after the manner of a man who knew his business, the engine- driver said to Darrah: ‘“There’s something lying ‘longside th’ track, sir. See it?” Ragan, Lark, and Darrah sprang from the engine’s step when the wrecking train stopped. They went ahead, slid down a clammy embankment, and gathered around a man in overalls who lay face downward in the snow. Lark turned the man over. It was the engineer of the Purple Limited. A red bruise as large as the lens of a Switch-lantern was upon the engineer’s fore- head. ‘ He’s breathing,” said Lark to Darrah. “He was thrown off the Limited.” “ You and Ragan carry him to the wreck- ing cars. There’s another one over there!” J. J. D. plunged through the snow, and lifted a second man who had fared even His right arm MICLOOKS CO CO