It was old Glidden who broke in upon the solitude first. He came up the outside stairs in big jumps and burst into the operating room breathless, his eyes agog.
"Hello! H'm! thought something wrong. Up with you, Fairbanks," he shouted, pulling at Ralph and tearing him free from his bonds. "Now, then, out with it, quick! What's up?"
"I guessed it. The double call enlightened me, and you've got headquarters and down lines wild. Out with it, I say!"
Ralph talked about as fast as he had ever done. There was need for urgency, he felt that. The old operator knew his business.
"I'll mend up this mess," he said promptly. "That smashup--get to the superintendent. Do something anyway. Be a live wire!"
Ralph ran down from the relay room. He could trust Glidden to get at work and straighten out the tangle left behind by the fugitive conspirators.
The north branch was cut out and the operator ordered off duty. Ralph trusted to it that Glidden would try some circuitous work to get word around to the other end of the branch.
"Anyhow, the Limited is safe," ruminated Ralph, as he reached the ground.
His first thought was to get to headquarters. He looked for some stray freight or switch locomotive to help him on his way. He made out a live one on a side track. Ralph ran over to it.
"Hello, Roberts!" he hailed, recognizing the fireman, and a jolly-faced, indolent looking young fellow smiled a welcome. "Going to the Junction?"
Ralph, his foot on the step of the tender, drew back disappointedly.
"Waiting for Bob Evers. He's my engineer," explained Roberts. "We're to run to Acton, over the old dumping tracks--north branch."
"What!" exclaimed Ralph eagerly. "Right away?"
"No, any time; so we report at 5 a. m. for a short haul on the north branch."
"Look here, Roberts," said the young railroader eagerly, "you think I understand my business?"
"Know it, Fairbanks," nodded the fireman.
"Two hours?" retorted Ralph. "That won't do at all. I'm going for a special order, and I want you to have steam up to the top notch by the time I get back."
"That so," drawled the fireman in his usual indolent fashion, but he arose from his lounging attitude instantly, and his great paw of a hand grasped the coal scoop with zest. "All right."