"Bad." Tesno sank into a chair. "I telegraphed the boiler factory in Connecticut as soon as I got to Ellensburg. Your damned boiler still wasn't shipped yet."
Ben looked as if he had been struck. He got slowly to his feet. "Hadn't been shipped!"
"I was on the telegraph for three days getting it straightened out. It seems they had a wire a couple of weeks ago, signed with your name. It requested that they hold up shipment till they got further word from you."
Ben leaned heavily on the table. For a moment Tesno was afraid he was going to collapse. Then he thumped his fist on the table, began to swear, and they both felt better.
"Somebody deliberately tried to delay you, Ben. Who would it be?"
"How would I know?"
"Jay?"
"I don't know. I've heard he's shifty—but a stunt like that! If I could pin it on him, I could get him blacklisted by every railroad in the West."
"The message was sent from North Yakima, so I rode down there. The operator had the original copy. It was printed in block letters on plain paper. As he remembers, the man who brought it in was dressed like a rancher or a cow hand."
Ben sank into a chair. He wagged his head sadly. "Is that boiler on the way now?"