Have your boys there head her
off at the mouth of Chimney-pot Fork in case she circles round the Gap."
A detail which might prove important struck Halloway as he listened.
He had recognized the sending from the other end as a man may recognize
a speaking voice.
It had been years since he had himself operated a key; but like many
adept telegraphers he could distinguish not only the dots and dashes of
the code, but also the individual peculiarities of their rapping out.
Now he would have been willing to take oath that the hand which had
sent this news was the same quick, sure hand that he had watched at
work yesterday.
That would indicate that Wicks had either deserted his post at Coal
City, or left it in charge of a relief man, and that he had come to
Wolf-Pen to operate a disused key nearer the scene of action.
Through the open door of the telegraph office Halloway, now burning
with impatience, could see Jerry O'Keefe strolling aimlessly along the
sidewalk a half a block away. Jerry too was waiting for instructions
and ready, once he had received them, to lead his own force out, with
that light in his eye that had dwelt there when he first saw Alexander.
Pages:
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141