The Poisoned Pen(Fiscle Part-3) by Arthur B. Reeve (the little red hen ebook .TXT) 📖
- Author: Arthur B. Reeve
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Motion Which Will Give Us A Pretty Good Line On What Is Taking
Place In A Day Or So."
Orton's Face Fell, But He Said Nothing. He Bit His Lip Nervously
And Looked Out Of The Sun-Parlour At The Roofs Of New York Around
Him.
"What Has Happened Since Last Night To Increase Your Anxiety,
Jack?" Asked Craig Sympathetically.
Orton Wheeled His Chair About Slowly, Faced Us, And Drew A Letter
From His Pocket. Laying It Flat On The Table He Covered The Lower
Part With The Envelope.
"Read That," He Said.
"Dear Jack," It Began. I Saw At Once That It Was From Miss Taylor.
"Just A Line," She Wrote, "To Let You Know That I Am Thinking
About You Always And Hoping That You Are Better Than When I Saw
You This Evening. Papa Had The Chairman Of The Board Of Directors
Of The Five-Borough Here Late To-Night, And They Were In The
Library For Over An Hour. For Your Sake, Jack, I Played The
Eavesdropper, But They Talked So Low That I Could Hear Nothing,
Though I Know They Were Talking About You And The Tunnel. When
They Came Out, I Had No Time To Escape, So I Slipped Behind A
Portiere. I Heard Father Say: 'Yes, I Guess You Are Right, Morris.
The Thing Has Gone On Long Enough. If There Is One More Big
Accident We Shall Have To Compromise With The Inter-River And
Carry On The Work Jointly. We Have Given Orton His Chance, And If
They Demand That This Other Fellow Shall Be Put In, I Suppose We
Shall Have To Concede It.' Mr. Morris Seemed Pleased That Father
Agreed With Him And Said So. Oh, Jack, Can't You Do Something To
Show Them They Are Wrong, And Do It Quickly? I Never Miss An
Opportunity Of Telling Papa It Is Not Your Fault That All These
Delays Take Place."
The Rest Of The Letter Was Covered By The Envelope, And Orton
Would Not Have Shown It For Worlds.
"Orton," Said Kennedy, After A Few Moments' Reflection, "I Will
Take A Chance For Your Sake--A Long Chance, But I Think A Good
One. If You Can Pull Yourself Together By This Afternoon, Be Over
At Your Office At Four. Be Sure To Have Shelton And Capps There,
And You Can Tell Mr. Taylor That You Have Something Very Important
To Set Before Him. Now, I Must Hurry If I Am To Fulfil My Part Of
The Contract. Good-Bye, Jack. Keep A Stiff Upper Lip, Old Man.
I'll Have Something That Will Surprise You This Afternoon."
Outside, As He Hurried Uptown, Craig Was Silent, But I Could See
His Features Working Nervously, And As We Parted He Merely Said:
"Of Course, You'll Be There, Walter. I'll Put The Finishing
Touches On Your Story Of High Finance."
Slowly Enough The Few Hours Passed Before I Found Myself Again In
Orton's Office. He Was There Already, Despite The Orders Of His
Physician, Who Was Disgusted At This Excursion From The Hospital.
Kennedy Was There, Too, Grim And Silent. We Sat Watching The Two
Indicators Beside Orton's Desk, Which Showed The Air Pressure In
The Two Tubes. The Needles Were Vibrating Ever So Little And
Tracing A Red-Ink Line On The Ruled Paper That Unwound From The
Drum. From The Moment The Tunnels Were Started, Here Was Preserved
A Faithful Record Of Every Slightest Variation Of Air Pressure.
"Telephone Down Into The Tube And Have Capps Come Up," Said Craig
At Length, Glancing At Orton's Desk Clock. "Taylor Will Be Here
Pretty Soon, And I Want Capps To Be Out Of The Tunnel By The Time
He Comes. Then Get Shelton, Too."
Part 3 Chapter 6 (The Sand-Hog) Pg 67
In Response To Orton's Summons Capps And Shelton Came Into The
Office, Just As A Large Town Car Pulled Up Outside The Tunnel
Works. A Tall, Distinguished-Looking Man Stepped Out And Turned
Again Toward The Door Of The Car.
"There's Taylor," I Remarked, For I Had Seen Him Often At
Investigations Before The Public Service Commission.
"And Vivian, Too," Exclaimed Orton Excitedly. "Say, Fellows, Clear
Off These Desks. Quick, Before She Gets Up Here. In The Closet
With These Blueprints, Walter. There, That's A Little Better. If I
Had Known She Was Coming I Would At Least Have Had The Place Swept
Out. Puff! Look At The Dust On This Desk Of Mine. Well, There's No
Help For It. There They Are At The Door Now. Why, Ivian, What A
Surprise."
"Jack!" She Exclaimed, Almost Ignoring The Rest Of Us And Quickly
Crossing To His Chair To Lay A Restraining Hand On His Shoulder As
He Vainly Tried To Stand Up To Welcome Her.
"Why Didn't You Tell Me You Were Coming?" He Asked Eagerly. "I
Would Have Had The Place Fixed Up A Bit."
"I Prefer It This Way," She Said, Looking Curiously Around At The
Samples Of Tunnel Paraphernalia And The Charts And Diagrams On The
Walls.
"Yes, Orton," Said President Taylor, "She Would Come--Dropped In
At The Office And When I Tried To Excuse Myself For A Business
Appointment, Demanded Which Way I Was Going. When I Said I Was
Coming Here, She Insisted On Coming, Too."
Orton Smiled. He Knew That She Had Taken This Simple And Direct
Means Of Being There, But He Said Nothing, And Merely Introduced
Us To The President And Miss Taylor.
An Awkward Silence Followed. Orton Cleared His Throat. "I Think
You All Know Why We Are Here," He Began. "We Have Been And Are
Having Altogether Too Many Accidents In The Tunnel, Too Many Cases
Of The Bends, Too Many Deaths, Too Many Delays To The Work. Well--
Er--I--Er--Mr. Kennedy Has Something To Say About Them, I
Believe."
No Sound Was Heard Save The Vibration Of The Air-Compressors And
An Occasional Shout Of A Workman At The Shaft Leading Down To The
Air-Locks.
"There Is No Need For Me To Say Anything About Caisson Disease To
You, Gentlemen, Or To You, Miss Taylor," Began Kennedy. "I Think
You All Know How It Is Caused And A Good Deal About It Already.
But, To Be Perfectly Clear, I Will Say That There Are Five Things
That Must, Above All Others, Be Looked After In Tunnel Work: The
Air Pressure, The Amount Of Carbon Dioxide In The Air, The Length
Of The Shifts Which The Men Work, The State Of Health Of The Men
As Near As Physical Examination Can Determine It, And The Rapidity
With Which The Men Come Out Of The 'Air,' So As To Prevent
Carelessness Which May Cause The Bends.
"I Find," He Continued, "That The Air Pressure Is Not Too High For
Safety. Proper Examinations For Carbon Dioxide Are Made, And The
Amount In The Air Is Not Excessive. The Shifts Are Not Even As
Long As Those Prescribed By The Law. The Medical Inspection Is
Quite Adequate And As For The Time Taken In Coming Out Through The
Locks The Rules Are Stringent."
A Look Of Relief Crossed The Face Of Orton At This Commendation Of
His Work, Followed By A Puzzled Expression That Plainly Indicated
That He Would Like To Know What Was The Matter, If All The Crucial
Things Were All Right.
"But," Resumed Kennedy, "The Bends Are Still Hitting The Men, And
There Is No Telling When A Fire Or A Blow-Out May Occur In Any Of
The Eight Headings That Are Now Being Pushed Under The River.
Quite Often The Work Has Been Delayed And The Tunnel Partly Or
Wholly Flooded. Now, You Know The Theory Of The Bends. It Is That
Air--Mostly The Nitrogen In The Air--Is Absorbed By The Blood
Under The Pressure. In Coming Out Of The 'Air' If The Nitrogen Is
Not All Eliminated, It Stays In The Blood And, As The Pressure Is
Reduced, It Expands. It Is Just As If You Take A Bottle Of Charged
Water And Pull The Cork Suddenly. The Gas Rises In Big Bubbles.
Cork It Again And The Gas Bubbles Cease To Rise And Finally
Disappear. If You Make A Pin-Hole In The Cork The Gas Will Escape
Slowly, Without A Bubble. You Must Decompress The Human Body
Slowly, By Stages, To Let The Super-Saturated Blood Give Up Its
Nitrogen To The Lungs, Which Can Eliminate It. Otherwise These
Bubbles Catch In The Veins, And The Result Is Severe Pains,
Paralysis, And Even Death. Gentlemen, I See That I Am Just Wasting
Time Telling You This, For You Know It All Well. But Consider."
Kennedy Placed An Empty Corked Flask On The Table. The Others
Regarded It Curiously, But I Recalled Having Seen It In The
Tunnel.
"In This Bottle," Explained Kennedy, "I Collected Some Of The Air
From The Tunnel When I Was Down There This Morning. I Have Since
Analysed It. The Quantity Of Carbon Dioxide Is Approximately What
It Should Be--Not High Enough Of Itself To Cause Trouble. But," He
Spoke Slowly To Emphasise His Words, "I Found Something Else In
That Air Beside Carbon Dioxide."
"Nitrogen?" Broke In Orton Quickly, Leaning Forward.
"Of Course; It Is A Constituent Of Air. But That Is Not What I
Mean."
"Then, For Heaven's Sake, What Did You Find?" Asked Orton.
"I Found In This Air," Replied Kennedy, "A Very Peculiar Mixture--
An Explosive Mixture."
"An Explosive Mixture?" Echoed Orton.
"Yes, Jack, The Blow-Outs That You Have Had At The End Of The
Tunnel Were Not Blow-Outs At All, Properly Speaking. They Were
Explosions."
We Sat Aghast At This Revelation.
"And, Furthermore," Added Kennedy, "I Should, If I Were You, Call
Back All The Men From The Tunnel Until The Cause For The Presence
Of This Explosive Mixture Is Discovered And Remedied."
Orton Reached Mechanically For The Telephone To Give The Order,
But Taylor Laid His Hand On His Arm. "One Moment, Orton," He Said.
"Let's Hear Professor Kennedy Out. He May Be Mistaken, And There
Is No Use Frightening The Men, Until We Are Certain."
"Shelton," Asked Kennedy, "What Sort Of Flash Oil Is Used To
Lubricate The Machinery?"
"It Is Three-Hundred-And-Sixty-Degree Fahrenheit Flash Test," He
Answered Tersely.
"And Are The Pipes Leading Air Down Into The Tunnel Perfectly
Straight?"
"Straight?"
"Yes, Straight--No Joints, No Pockets Where Oil, Moisture, And
Gases Can Collect."
Part 3 Chapter 6 (The Sand-Hog) Pg 68
Straight As Lines, Kennedy," He Said With A Sort Of Contemptuous
Defiance.
They Were Facing Each Other Coldly, Sizing Each Other Up. Like A
Skilful Lawyer, Kennedy Dropped That Point For A Moment, To Take
Up A New Line Of Attack.
"Capps," He Demanded, Turning Suddenly, "Why Do You Always Call Up
On The Telephone And Let Some One Know When You Are Going Down In
The Tunnel And When You Are Coming Out?"
"I Don't," Replied Capps, Quickly Recovering His Composure.
"Walter," Said Craig To Me Quietly, "Go Out In The Outer Office.
Behind The Telephone Switchboard You Will Find A Small Box Which
You Saw Me Carry In There This Morning And Connect With The
Switchboard. Detach The Wires, As You Saw Me Attach Them, And
Bring It Here."
No One Moved, As I Placed The Box On A Drafting-Table Before Them.
Craig Opened It. Inside He Disclosed A Large Disc Of Thin Steel,
Like Those Used By Some Mechanical Music-Boxes, Only Without Any
Perforations. He Connected The Wires From The Box To A Sort Of
Megaphone. Then He Started The Disc Revolving.
Out Of The Little Megaphone Horn, Sticking Up Like A Miniature
Talking-Machine, Came A Voice: "Number Please. Four Four Three O,
Yorkville. Busy, I'll Call You. Try Them Again, Central. Hello,
Hello, Central--"
Kennedy
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