RAILROADING
When we got to the Ozone Valley station, there wasn't anything there,
but the ozone and a couple of milk cans. The men searched all around in
the woods and under the freight platform, but they couldn't find the two
fellows.
"Don't you get discouraged," Pee-wee told them; "often I couldn't find
things and then later they'd turn up."
"Oh, they'll turn up," the sheriff said; "and they'll _go_ up, too. Just
give us a chance to get those films developed."
Pretty soon the train came along, going toward Skiddyunk. It was a way
train and I guess it stopped every now and then to change its mind. It
had a couple of baggage cars and a couple of freight cars and a
refrigerator car and one passenger car at the end. There were only a few
people in the car.
The sheriffs searched the whole train, but they couldn't find the two
fellows anywhere. They even searched the refrigerator car, but I didn't
think they'd be there, because they were fresh enough without going on
ice.
The conductor was a big fat man; he was awful nice. When the sheriffs
told him about us, he laughed and said, "That's funny; I have a bill for
that car; I'm going to pick it up to-night."
I said, "We heard there wasn't a freight on the Slopson Branch till
Tuesday morning. We don't exactly want to go back yet."
He said, "Well now, Sonny, you see I haven't got any say about it. I get
a bill and that's all there is to it. There might be a freight out of
Slopson to-morrow or the next day, and then again, there might not. You
could come near sending the whole of Slopson by Parcels Post. I've heard
about you kids and I've got word to look after you. You're mighty lucky
you didn't all go kerflop into the lake."
"How soon is there another train through here?" the sheriff asked him.
"Twelve-fifteen, if she's on time," the conductor said; "she's a through
from Buffalo."
"Believe me," I said; "that's one town I know something about--Buffalo.
I'll never forget Buffalo, 398 Mls." They all laughed.
"She doesn't stop here, does she?" the sheriff asked.
"Stops at Skiddyunk for water," the conductor said. "She passes us down
at Red Hill siding."
The sheriff said, "I guess two of us had better watch the station here
and be on the safe side in case she slows down, and the other two will
go down in one of the machines and keep an eye out at Skiddyunk. They
might get on there. We'll probably beat you to Skiddyunk, but if we
don't, nab 'em if they get on. They're going to try to get away from
these parts, I know that."
I was just thinking we'd have to hike back along the road to our little
Home Sweet Home, when the conductor said, "Hop on, you boys."
* * * * *
When we got to Skiddyunk, the sheriff and one of his men were already
there. But there wasn't any sign of the two fellows. Then the train
started backing up along the Slopson Branch and the two sheriffs stayed
on it. Pretty soon we were back almost to where we had started from.
There wasn't any station at Ridgeboro, but the sheriffs looked all
around the closed-up store, in the wood-shed and under the platform.
Then the train backed down the siding and very gently bunked into the
Brewster's Centre car. There were men swinging lights and shouting to
each other, while one coupled our car to the train. Then there was a lot
more shouting and swinging lights and then we started.
We stood on the back platform of our own car and I could see the moon
just beginning to shine on the part of the lake that we were moving away
from. The wheels rattled, rattled; and it seemed kind of as if the car
was saying _so long, so long, so long_----
Pretty soon, away across the lake, we could see a light and we knew it
was the fire at _Camp Smile Awhile_. Then we passed the store that was
all closed up tight and I said, "so long, store. So long, _Camp Smile
Awhile_." And while we stood out there on the back platform, the wheels
kept saying, "S'long, s'long, s'long, s'long, s'long...."
Gee whiz, I was sorry.