But the only station at which we
could then get an order to 17 was Sicklen, Ferral's station. Burke began
to call, but Sicklen made no answer. He called for forty-five minutes at
a stretch, 22 all the time waiting at Bakersville. He stopped for five
minutes and then went at it again. In ten minutes Sicklen answered.
Burke started to give the order, but Ferral broke and gave the "OS"
report that 17 had just gone by.
That settled it; No. 22 was hung up another hour all on account of
Ferral's failure to attend to his duty. I opened up on him and said,
"Where have you been for the last fifteen minutes?" The same old excuse,
"Lunch," came back at me.
"Well, where were you for ten minutes before that?"
Then that dear old stereotyped expression, "Fixing my batteries,"
followed. But I was only too sure that he had been asleep, and No. 17
going by had awakened him. So I gently remarked that "I was not born
yesterday, and said that he would probably have ample time to fix his
batteries after this; that, in fact, I thought it would be a good thing
for him to take a long course in battery work, and I would assist him
all I could--I would provide him with the time for the work.
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