"Then somebody's stock will go down, and I don't know as I care a rap whose it is."
"I don't think we'll have to guess far to know whose it will be," answered Spooner, with a grin.
"What are you going to do?"
"I am going over to Tracy to get a job. We can both get work there, but they haven't lost us yet. No, sir; the Cousin Jack has not done with you and me, by a long shot. We've got a few tricks left up our sleeves that will open their eyes. But we have made a mighty good start; yes, sir, a mighty good start."
Chuckling at his own villainy, Spooner hurried along, the other man by his side.
Steve and Bob had returned to their work at once. The former was now filling the place of the man Marvin at the tally-board, and at the same time dumping the cars. The two jobs kept him continually moving, but this Steve, true to his name, thoroughly enjoyed. He liked to be driving ahead every minute of the day.
From the moment the whistle blew he was hard at work. He had no time to talk with the motor-man as he had before when dumping the cars, for he had to keep the number of cars and the drift or contractor in his mind while he was dumping them, and until he could jump back to the tally-board.
When night came Steve was ready to turn in. He confessed that he was tired. For one thing he felt no little relief, and that was that Spooner and Marvin were no longer in the employ of the company.
The next morning the boys went to work in high spirits. The shift had been at work something more than an hour, when the catch on one of the tram cars caught as Steve sought to release it, and resisted his efforts stubbornly.
"Smash it!" cried the motor-man. "I'm in a hurry."