Down the Slope Page 3

  CHAPTER II

  THE WARNING

  On the second morning Fred did not present himself at the dingy oldbuilding until nearly time for the whistle to sound, and those whom hehad good cause to look upon as enemies were already at their places bythe chute.

  "I heard some of the fellers served you out last night," Chunky said,much as if such proceedings were a matter of course.

  "They'd better not try it on again," Fred replied, in a tone ofdetermination.

  "Are you goin' to fight?"

  "I'll protect myself, if nothing more."

  "It won't do any good to try."

  "Why not?"

  "Because there are too many of 'em, an' Skip Miller can down any fellerin this breaker."

  "Who is Skip Miller?"

  "The boss of the crowd who laid for you."

  "Then I'll settle matters with him, and when he gets the best of me itwill be time to pay my footing; but not before."

  "He'll chew you all up."

  "I ain't so sure of that. Did you know what they were going to do?"

  "I had a mighty strong s'picion."

  "Why didn't you tell me?"

  "Then I'd got a thumping. I wanted you to hurry out with me?"

  By this time the work had begun, and the noise was so great thatconversation could be indulged in only at the expense of considerableshouting. Fred's hands, sore from the previous day's labor, were cutanew in many places, and more than one piece of slate was marked withhis blood as he threw it among the refuse.

  The "gang," as Fred termed his enemies, gave no sign of carrying thethreat previously made into execution. The watchful eyes of the breakerboss prevented them from idling, and nothing occurred to arouse the newboy's suspicions until just before the noon-day whistle sounded, when apiece of board, thrown while Donovan was not looking, fell at Fred'sfeet.

  At first he believed the intention was to hit him with the missile; butwhen the stream of coal ceased to flow through the chute, Chunky said ashe picked up the board:

  "The warnin' has come."

  "What do you mean by that?"

  For reply Chunky handed his mate the piece of lumber on which wasprinted in scrawling characters with red chalk:

  "PAy OR SkiP. WE MEAN BiSNEss. No SNEAkS LoWED HEAR. ToNiTE iS THE LASt CHANcE. THE BREAkER REGulATERs."

  "So they call themselves regulators, eh?" Fred said, half to himself, ashe deciphered the message after considerable difficulty.

  "That's some of Skip's doings. He's started a reg'lar s'ciety, an'fellers what don't join have to step round mighty lively sometimes."

  "Do you belong?"

  Chunkey hesitated an instant as if ashamed of the fact, and thenreplied:

  "It don't pay to keep out, 'cause they run things to suit therselves,an' a feller can't hold his job very long when they're down on him."

  "According to that I shan't be here a great while unless this command isobeyed?"

  "That's what I'm afraid of. Why not come up with a little treat, an'settle the whole thing that way? You can't do anything by fightin', forthere are so many."

  Fred hesitated an instant as if considering the matter, and then repliedangrily:

  "I won't be forced into anything of the kind! If you belong to the gangtell them that I shall protect myself the best I know how, and somebodywill get hurt when there's another row."

  Chunky had an opportunity to repeat the message at once, for Fred hadbut just ceased speaking when Skip beckoned for him to come to the otherside of the building, and a command from the chief of the regulators wasnot to be disobeyed with impunity.

  Fred was watching the movements of his enemies narrowly when Donovanapproached on his way to the water casks.

  "Have the boys been tryin' to make you pay your footing?" the breakerboss asked.

  "Yes, sir, and it looks as if they didn't intend to let me stay verylong," Fred replied, as he held up the notification to quit.

  "What are you going to do about it?" and the man looked curiously at theboy.

  "Stay where I am until they get the upper hand. I can't treat, for Ihaven't the money, and I may be able to show that the regulators are notthe bosses here."

  "I like your pluck, my lad, and can, perhaps, give you a lift. Skipshall have a flea in his ear before the whistle sounds again; but, ofcourse, it's none of my business what happens after working hours."

  "I don't expect any assistance, sir, and if they down me it can't behelped."

  "You've taken a pretty big contract; but between us both I reckon it canbe carried out."

  Then Donovan continued on, and, looking up, Fred saw that all hisenemies had been watching the interview closely.

  "They may conclude it isn't best to tackle me, if he is going to take ahand," he thought, and at this moment Chunky returned.

  "Now you have got yourself in a scrape!"

  "How so?"

  "Skip and all the fellers saw you talkin' to Donovan, an' they know youshowed him the message from the regulators."

  "What of that?"

  "They don't 'low anything of the kind, an' you've got to take athumpin', even if you do treat."

  "So I'm to get a double dose, eh?"

  "That's about the size of it. Skip says you'll be laid up for a weekwhen the s'ciety gets through with you."

  "I'm much obliged for the promise; but don't believe quite all he says."

  Chunky shook his head as if to intimate that the case was a desperateone, and then the nooning had come to an end. The clouds of coal dustwhich had but just settled rose again as the machinery was put inmotion, and all was activity once more.

  Although Fred had spoken so bravely he felt seriously disturbed, andduring the remainder of the day his mind was fully occupied withthoughts of how he might successfully resist his enemies.

  When night came he had arrived at no satisfactory conclusion, and at thesignal to cease work Chunky ran swiftly away thus showing that while hewould not join with the society as against his mate, he did not intendto take sides with him.

  Donovan's promise of assistance was not a vain one. When Fred emergedfrom the breaker a few paces behind Chunky he saw the boss waiting forhim, and the latter said in a friendly tone:

  "It don't do you much good to be seen talkin' to me, for both men an'boys hate what are called bosses' pets; but we'll stave off this rowtill you get used to the ropes, when it's a case of taking care ofyourself."

  Under the protection of Donovan, Fred walked to his home, feeling a bitashamed of thus avoiding the meeting with the regulators, and more thanone jeering cry did he hear before reaching the house.

  "Be careful of yourself now," Donovan said, as they arrived at thecottage. "This won't make the lads any better disposed toward you, an'it isn't safe to move 'round very much in the dark."

  "I'll come home alone to-morrow an' have it out."

  "Don't be rash. Wait for a chance, an' if Skip gets hurt pretty badnobody here'll feel sorry."

  Then Fred entered the house, and after a bath, a hot supper, duringwhich his mother spoke many encouraging words, and a long consultationto his best course, he felt little fear of the regulators.

  Mrs. Byram had good news for her son. The wife of the superintendent hadintroduced her to several other ladies who promised to give heremployment, and the prospect of earning money seemed better than wasanticipated when the question of moving to the settlement had been underdiscussion.

  "We shall get along famously," she said, "and, perhaps, it won't be manymonths before it will be possible to get enough ahead so we can ventureto the city. I am going to open an account at the store in your name,for what little cash we had is very nearly exhausted."

  "When are you going?"

  "Now. I shall be busy to-morrow, and you must have a hearty supper."

  "I'll go; the store isn't the nicest place possible during the evening."

  "But the boys who are watching for you?"

  "They won't dare to do anything when the men are arou
nd," Fred replied,carelessly, and taking the memorandum which his mother had prepared, heleft the house.

  The one street of the settlement was almost deserted, for it was yet tooearly to see the toilers who would spend the short time of rest in theopen air near the store, and Fred's business was soon transacted. Thedesired credit was readily granted, and with his arms filled withpackages he started toward home once more.

  For the first time in the past twenty-four hours he had forgotten theexistence of the regulators, and the fact that Skip Miller with half adozen companions was waiting for him never came into his mind until ahand was suddenly pressed over his mouth, as a hoarse voice whispered:

  "Catch hold his legs an' arms, fellers! Never mind the stuff now."

  In a twinkling Fred was lifted from the ground by a boy at each limb,while the one who had spoken kept a firm hold upon his mouth, and inthis fashion he was carried swiftly along in the direction of thebreaker, as he thought.

  "We'll have to fetch them bundles so's to make it look as if he fellin," some one said, and a voice, which he recognized as Skip's, replied:

  "That's so. You fellers what ain't doing anything pick 'em up."

  "Who's got the rope?"

  "I have."

  "Why not throw him in an' run the chances? It's too bad to lose whatcost half a dollar."

  "There's time enough to fix that after we've got him to the shaft."

  "Hold your tongues, or somebody will hear us!" Skip whispered, angrily,as his companions thus discussed the preliminaries.

  Then came a long time of silence broken by the footsteps of the party,or the loud breathing of those who were carrying the burden.

  Several times Fred tried to give an alarm; but his mouth was held sofirmly that not a sound could escape his lips, and after a while hecontented himself with simply trying to form some idea of the directionin which he was being taken.

  When the party had carried him for ten or fifteen minutes a halt wasmade, and then his captors took the precaution of enveloping his head ina coat, which shut out every sound, save the loudly uttered remarks ofthe regulators.

  He heard Skip berating one of the party, because some reference was madeto their destination, and then ensued a noisy discussion as to whatshould be done with him.

  "If he don't turn up to-morrer mornin' old Donovan will swear we tookhim off, an' there'll be a heap of trouble for all hands," one of theboys suggested.

  "What of that? Nobody can say we did it, an' after he's had one night ofit, I reckon he'll be willin' to do as we say."

  "But how'll he get out?"

  "That's for him to say. We'll show him what it is to go agin our crowd,an' the rest is his business."

  Then Fred was borne forward again until it seemed as if fully half amile had been traversed, when the regulators halted for the second time.

  The wrappings were removed from his head, and as nearly as the prisonercould tell he was some distance from the breaker; at the mouth of whatappeared to be an abandoned shaft.

  "Now, look here," Skip Miller said, as he stood before his prisoner."You've taken it into your head that us reg'lators don't 'mount tonothin'; but by to-morrer mornin' you'll think different. What we say wemean an' don't you forget it. If you'd been man enough to do like everyother feller it would 'a been all right; but instead of that you gobabyin' to old Donovan, an' we don't 'low sich funny business."

  "What are you going to do now?"

  "Show what the reg'lators 'mount to. When you come out of this I reckonyou'll be willin' to pay up like a man, an' join us."

  "It will have to be a pretty stiff dose to make me do anything of thekind," Fred said, angrily.

  "That's jest what this is goin' to be. We're lettin' you off of apoundin' so's to show what can be done, an' if you say so much as aword to old Donovan we'll pretty near kill you."

  "I shall talk to whoever I please."

  "Not after you come out of this. Don't think we'll allers let you off socheap, an' at the first show of tellin' what's been done to-night we'llgive you another lesson."

  Fred realized that it was useless to bandy words with those who held himso completely in their power, and understanding also that he could donothing to better his condition, held his peace.

  Skip showed himself to be an adept in the business of subduingrefractory breaker boys, by giving his orders promptly, and in such amanner as would soonest accomplish the work. Under his energeticdirections Fred's hands were soon tied behind his back, a gag wasfastened in his mouth, and the rope placed under his arms.

  "Now raise him up, an' you needn't be careful about lettin' him drop.The sooner he gets to the bottom the quicker we can go back to thestore. Put the bundles near the mouth of the shaft, an' in a couple ofdays somebody will find him."

  "It'll go rough with us if he tells who left him here," one of the partysuggested.

  "There's no danger of that. Before he gets out he'll know what it meansto fool with us."

  Fred remained passive. He could not believe these boys would dare to doanything very serious. And to attempt resistance would accomplish nopossible good.

  "Raise him up!" Skip shouted, and in another instant Fred was hangingover what appeared to be a deep hole, to be dropped with a suddennessand force which, for the time being, deprived him of consciousness.

  While he lay at the bottom of the shaft the regulators placed theparcels taken from the store, in such a manner as to make it appear thathe had fallen in by accident, and when this had been done they wentswiftly toward the settlement, regardless of whether their victim livedor died.