AN INTERRUPTED SLEEP
"Right at this point," said the traveling salesman impressively, "a
train left the track and plunged into that ravine down there."
"Any loss of life?" questioned Tom Gray.
"A great many. I was in that wreck myself. I was shaken up a bit, that's
all. You see I know how to take care of myself. We commercial travelers
have to or we should soon be out of business. Nearly the whole train
went into that ravine, and the car in which I was riding stood on end. I
clung to the air-brake cord and thus was miraculously saved."
"Humph!" muttered Stacy, hunching his fat shoulders forward. "You don't
look to be light enough to perch on an air-brake cord."
The Overland girls glanced amusedly at Chunky and the traveling
salesman. The entire party was enjoying the late afternoon mountain air
from the rear platform of the observation car on the transcontinental
train known as the Red Limited. Just inside the door sat other
passengers, who had been enjoying the frequent passages-at-arms between
Stacy Brown and Emma Dean. The train had been rumbling over bridges and
lurching through narrow cuts, affording the passengers brief views of a
swiftly moving scenic panorama of interest and attractiveness.
"As I was saying, the rope, in all probability, saved my life, as I was
the only person in the car that came out alive," continued the traveling
salesman. "I'm in ladies' fine shoes, you know."
Stacy and Emma regarded the speaker's large feet, glanced at each other
and grinned.
"I'll bet you couldn't transmigrate them," whispered the fat boy.
Emma elevated her nose, but made no reply to the trivial remark.
"I mean that I am selling ladies' fine shoes, young man," added the
salesman, he having observed the fat boy's grin. "My card." He passed
business cards to those nearest to him, and from them the Overlanders
learned that he was William Sylvester Holmes, traveling for a Denver
shoe firm. "My trade call me 'Bill,'" he explained.
"Hello, Bill!" muttered Hippy, nudging Nora.
"May I ask what car you were in?" questioned a tall, bronzed passenger
in a mild, apologetic voice.
"The same as this one."
"Hm-m-m! That's odd. I do not recall having seen you. However, I was in
the other end of the car, which perhaps accounts for it," said the
stranger in a more humble voice.
William Sylvester flushed. Instead of being overcome, however, he
shifted his conversation to another train wreck that he said had
occurred a few miles further on at a place called Summit.
The faces of the Overland Riders expanded into discreet smiles at the
mild way in which the tall man had rebuked the loquacious traveler.
Grace and Elfreda, in particular, found themselves much interested in
this big man. Grace asked a fellow passenger who the man was, and
learned that he was Bill Ford, for some years sheriff of Sonora County.
Ford had been observing the traveling salesman through mild blue eyes in
which there appeared an expression of more than casual interest.
"It was that Summit wreck that nearly did me up," resumed Holmes. "We
went over an embankment there. Being in a berth in a sleeping car I was
unable to grab hold of anything. The car played football with me, but I
came off with nothing more serious than a broken arm. Oh, I have had my
experiences! Were you in that wreck, too?" he asked, turning quickly to
the sheriff.
"Never heard of it," answered Ford carelessly.
"All that saved us was the fact that the cars were made of steel. We'll
pass Summit within the hour, and I'll show you where we went off the
rails that time."
"Tell us about something that happened when the train didn't leave the
rails," urged Stacy.
"With pleasure. I remember, some two years ago--it was this very train,
I do believe--when a party of bandits held up a train on this line. That
occurred between Summit and Gardner. They uncoupled the express car and,
after compelling the engineer to haul it up the track a short distance,
dynamited the car and robbed it of the treasure it was carrying."
"They've been cutting up that same kind of caper quite lately," nodded
the sheriff.
"Di--id they rob the passengers?" stammered Emma Dean.
"In some of the cars, yes. In my car they did not. I held them off with
my revolver. I----"
"That was very careless of you. Why, sir, you might have shot yourself,"
cried Stacy.
Mr. Holmes gave the fat boy a withering glance and resumed his story.
"After my display of courage the other passengers got brave, and with
their assistance I drove the bandits off. However, I should not advise
it. For the average person, the safe course is to sit still and take his
medicine. Gentlemen, never offer resistance when a gang of bandits
orders you to put up your hands, but put them up as fast as you can and
let them stay put," he added, fixing his gaze on Tom Gray who smiled and
nodded.
"Yes, sir," agreed Chunky. "That's the way I always do."
"Were you ever held up?" questioned the salesman.
"Many times. I put up my hands too, but there was a gun in both of 'em,"
answered Stacy amid much laughter.
At this juncture a passenger asked the storyteller to tell them more
about the hold-up, which he did without urging.
"The train in question was carrying a treasure, just as this one no
doubt is. The bandits had obtained information of this fact from a
confederate. They were right on the job when the train came along. After
stopping the train they placed men at the car door to take up a
collection from the passengers. All submitted tamely, as they should
have done, except in the car where I was, and--we are approaching Summit
now. From that point we go down grade for twenty miles or so, then we
begin to climb again. We stop at Summit."
"Isn't it terrible, all that banditry. I'm afraid," shivered Emma when a
little later the party had gone to the dining car for supper.
"For one who can transmigrate as well as you can, there should be no
fear," suggested Hippy. "Just transmigrate the bandits to some other
train."
"I think we should transmigrate ourselves in the event of such a thing
occurring," vouchsafed Elfreda Briggs.
Sheriff Ford came into the dining car shortly after the train had left
Summit, and nodded at the party in a friendly fashion.
"What has become of our story-telling friend, sir?" asked Grace.
"I saw him go into the smoking car ahead as the train was leaving
Summit. He sent two telegrams before leaving. This shoe business
requires a lot of telegraphing, it appears," added the sheriff dryly.
"How do you know it was about shoe business?" demanded Stacy.
"Because I happened to see the last telegram."
Tom Gray eyed the sheriff inquiringly, but the mild blue eyes of Mr.
Ford conveyed nothing to him.
After a pleasant evening, during which they saw no more of the traveling
salesman, the Overland party retired to their berths for sleep. Forward,
near the express car, rode the Overlanders' ponies in as much comfort as
is possible to provide for animals en route. At every stop during the
day one of the men of the party had run forward to look over the car of
"stock," as the riders called their saddle animals. Now, however, all
were too soundly asleep to think of ponies, and above the rumble of the
train might be heard the rasping snores of Stacy Brown and Hippy
Wingate.
It was shortly after one o'clock in the morning when many of the
sleepers were awakened by a sudden disconcerting jolt caused by an
abrupt application of the air brakes. The train slowly settled down to a
slow crawl, the hiss of the air from the brakes being plainly audible to
those who had been awakened.
The train stopped. Nothing of an alarming nature seemed to have
occurred, so the nervous passengers again settled down into their
blankets, for the night air was chill and penetrating. Others lay awake,
but there was nothing to hear except the snores which continued without
interruption.
A few moments of this and then a subdued murmur of voices was heard just
ahead of the Overlanders' car. A brief period of silence followed the
murmur, then a man's voice, agitated and full of alarm, was raised so
high that almost every person in the car was awake on the instant.
"What is it?" cried a woman's voice from behind berth curtains.
"We're held up! The train is held up!" cried the man.
"Robbers! Robbers!" screamed the woman who had asked the question; and a
chorus of frightened voices took up the refrain.