CHAPTER III

STEVE SHOWS THE IRON HAND

"TELL the mine captain that I wish to see him," said Steve Rush to one of the men working in his shift.

"Where is he?"

"That is what I am sending you to find out," answered the young foreman, somewhat sharply.

The messenger hurried away, grumbling to himself. While the Iron Boys were popular in the mines, there had been no little grumbling when it was learned that they had been promoted over men who had spent many years in the mines. Steve knew and understood this, but he knew that he had done no one an injustice. He had worked hard, and if his employers considered that he was entitled to promotion that was his own good fortune.

"One seldom gets anything in this world unless he works for it and earns it," was the lad's wise conclusion on this particular morning, as his keen eyes caught a disgruntled look on the face of more than one man working under him.

Steve, true to his name, was pushing the work of his employers with his characteristic rushing tactics. Upon taking up the new work he had made a brief speech to each shift in his department.

"Men," he said, "I am younger than most of you, but you may depend upon one thing. I shall always treat you with absolute fairness and do you justice. If at any time you think such is not the case, tell me so, or go to the superintendent. If I fail in my duty toward you, at any time, it will be because I do not know better, and under such circumstances I shall be glad to be enlightened. However, the business of the mining company comes first. Everything must give way before that. Our sole business in life, down here, is to get out iron ore. I am satisfied that this drift has not been getting out nearly as much as it should. I shall hereafter expect at least two more tons a day than you have been mining. If you find that you cannot do it, you will have to give me a good excuse. The ore is running soft. You'll never have easier work than what is before you now. Take some pride in your work. See if you can't beat them all. If you break records I shall see to it that those higher up are informed of it. That is all I have to say."

A similar speech was made by Rush to each of the dozen drift crews under his command. Either his words, or the manner in which he spoke them took hold of the men, for the output of the twelve drifts was increased by twelve tons the first day.

Superintendent Penton rubbed his eyes when the report came in to him that night. He wondered if a mistake had not been made. On the report of the ore mined in Bob Jarvis' department he found a substantial increase also, though not within half a dozen tons of that shown by Steve Rush.

Mr. Penton said nothing, but decided to wait until the week was over, when, if the increase held up to the mark set, he would call the attention of the Duluth officials to the gain. He knew this would please Mr. Carrhart, for the president had great confidence in Rush, and in his rough and ready companion, Jarvis.

Both boys were stationed on the twentieth level, far down in the earth in the Red Rock Mine, to which they had been transferred with their promotion. That morning Steve had been making an inspection of the various drifts. It was the first opportunity he had had to make a thorough examination of them. In section twenty-four L he had made a discovery that led him to send for the mine captain at once.

"Anything gone wrong?" demanded the mine captain, strolling in half an hour later.

"No, but there is likely to be. Come in here. I want to show you something."

Steve led the way into the drift, where the diamond drills were banging away in a deafening chorus. He motioned for the men to shut off the drills; then, climbing up on the crumbling ore that was being shoveled into the tram cars, he held his candle up to the peak of the dome-like drift.

"Do you see that?" demanded Steve.

"I don't see anything very alarming."

"You don't?"

"I do not."

Rush pointed to a seam in the rocks overhead. The seam extended along through some three feet of rock and ore. There was a narrow opening or crack there into which the lad jabbed his sharp-pointed candlestick.

"Now do you see what I am trying to show you?"

"Pshaw! That's nothing. We always get those cracks in back-stoping."

"We are not back-stoping now; we're drifting," protested Steve. "That drift is dangerous."

"No more so than any of them. This isn't a kid's job; it's a man's job down in these mines."

"I am simply pointing it out to you, sir. At the same time I want to ask your permission either to abandon the drift until it can be shored up, or to back-stope until we can get through to solid rock."

"Go on with your drifting. We can't stop for a little thing like that, I tell you," answered the mine captain, turning and starting away.

"Pull out your drills," commanded Rush.

The drill-men began to obey his command.

"Shovelers and trammers knock off. Hand in your time until I can see the superintendent and get you in a new place."

The mine captain came striding back. He had overheard the orders of the young foreman, and the captain's face reflected his anger.

"See here, what are you doing?" he demanded sternly.

"I am closing this drift for the present."

"I order your men back to work. What do you mean by interfering with the work of this shift?"

"I already have told you what I mean, sir. I decline to risk the lives of the men in section twenty-four L until it has been made safe."

"Get back to work, every man of you, unless you want to be fired out of this mine!" commanded the captain.

Steve raised a warning hand.

"Men, I am your foreman. You will obey me. Mr. Mine Captain, you have no right to give these men orders over my head. I have asked you for protection for them. You refuse to give it. I am responsible for their safety, so all work will stop in this drift, so far as I am concerned, until you have made the drift safe."

"I'll report you; I'll put another crew to work. I'll----"

"And I'll report you if you do. I have no intention of being disrespectful, and I am willing to take the responsibility for my act."

With this Steve urged his men out of the drift. The captain fumed, but he knew full well that Steve was right in saying that he had no right to order the men back to work.

No sooner had the men of the regular shift withdrawn and gone up to the surface, than the mine captain gathered another crew and set them to work in section twenty-four L, Steve in the meantime having gone to another part of the works. The captain did not want the daily output to fall behind, for that would reflect on him. The captain set the new shift at work, then went away about his business, muttering his threats against the young foreman.

When Steve passed that way again his attention was attracted by a light in the drift. Somewhat surprised, he turned into section twenty-four L to learn what was going on in there. He found a new crew at work.

"Who sent you in here?" he demanded.

"The captain did," was the answer.

"Very well; so long as he has done so it is not for me to order you out. You do not belong to my crew. But let me warn you, men. This drift is not safe. Some or all of you are likely to get hurt. I should advise against your working here. I have sent my crew away and they will not come into the drift until something has been done to make it safe."

The miners laughed and went on with their work. The drill-men were boring in, making openings for the dynamite sticks, while the trammers were loading, taking their time at the work.

Steve turned away when he saw that the men did not take his warning seriously. He made his way to the telephone, where he called up Superintendent Penton, acquainting him with conditions in section twenty-four L.

The superintendent said he would be down as soon as he could get into his mine clothes. He directed Steve to leave matters as they were until he could look into the affair. At the same time Mr. Penton warned Steve that these disagreements between mine captain and foremen were very bad for the discipline of the mine.

"I am willing to assume the full responsibility for my act, sir," was the answer of the young foreman, as he hung up the receiver and started away, his lips shut tightly together, a look of stubborn determination on his face. Steve was ready to give or take.

Shortly after that Mr. Penton arrived. He looked up the mine captain first, and heard what the latter had to say. Then the two men sought out Steve Rush, whom they found directing the work of one of his crews.

"Rush, this is a bad piece of business. What have you to say for yourself?"

"There is nothing more to say, sir, so far as I am concerned. It is for you to decide whether I am in the right or the wrong."

"You say the drift is not safe for the men to work in?"

"I do."

"The mine captain disagrees with you, and you have had an argument with him before the men. Rush, I am surprised at you."

Steve's face flushed a dull red, but he held his head erect, looking the superintendent squarely in the eyes.

"I am willing to assume all the responsibility for my act. One of the first lessons I learned from you, sir, was to guard the lives of the men as I would my own. I do not think there was need for me to learn the lesson. I should have done it anyway. The drift is in a dangerous condition. No men under my charge shall work there in its present condition. If you say they are to do so I shall step down and out. I do not want to feel, after an accident has occurred, that I am responsible for the maiming of a lot of men, not to mention the possible loss of life."

"That's what comes from giving a kid authority," nodded the mine captain.

The superintendent raised a restraining hand.

"I will have a look at the drift. You may come with us, Rush."

The three started away, Steve walking on ahead, the superintendent and mine captain bringing up the rear. They had gone something more than half way through the cross-cut when they saw a miner approaching them on the run. Steve saw at once that something had gone wrong.

"What's the matter?" he cried before the man got up to him.

"Twenty-four L has caved in, burying the whole crew!" panted the messenger. "There's tons of red ore and rock on them. They're wiped clean off the slate!"