Tom eyed her suspiciously.
"He chewed gum incessantly, too, and declared that it never hurt anybody."
"It never did," asserted Slater.
"We pleaded, we argued, we did our best to save him, but—" She shook her blond head sadly.
"What happened to him?"
"What always happens? He lingered along for a time, stubborn to the last, then—" Turning abruptly to Dr. Gray, she asked, "Who is this man Linn, and what is he doing?"
"He's an emissary of Curtis Gordon and he's hiring our men away from us," snapped the physician.
"Why, Dan tells me Mr. O'Neil pays higher wages than anybody!"
"So he does, but Linn offers a raise. We didn't know what the trouble was till over a hundred men had quit. The town is full of them, now, and it's becoming a stampede."
"Can't you meet the raise?"