"I believe I would," replied Hal, quietly.
The other scrambled out of his chair, wild with delight. "I dare you!"
he exclaimed.
"I'm ready," said Hal.
"You mean it?"
"Of course I mean it."
"In that costume?"
"Certainly. I'm one of his miners."
"But it won't go," cried the reporter. "You'll stand no chance to get near him unless you're well dressed."
"Are you sure of that? What I've got on might be the garb of a railroad-hand. Suppose there was something out of order in one of the cars--the plumbing, for example?"
"But you couldn't fool the conductor or the porter."
"I might be able to. Let's try it."
There was a pause, while Keating thought. "The truth is," he said, "it doesn't matter whether you succeed or not--it's a story if you even make the attempt. The Coal King's son appealed to by one of his serfs! The hard heart of Plutocracy rejects the cry of Labour!"
"Yes," said Hal, "but I really mean to get to him. Do you suppose he's got back to the train yet?"
"They were starting to it when I left."
"And where _is_ the train?"
"Two or three hundred yards east of the station, I was told."
MacKellar and Edstrom had been listening enthralled to this exciting conversation. "That ought to be just back of my house," said the former.
"It's a short train--four parlour-cars and a baggage-car," added Keating. "It ought to be easy to recognise."
The old Scotchman put in an objection. "The difficulty may be to get out of this house. I don't believe they mean to let you get away to-night."
"By Jove, that's so!" exclaimed Keating. "We're talking too much--let's get busy. Are they watching the back door, do you suppose?"
"They've been watching it all day," said MacKellar.
"Listen," broke in Hal--"I've an idea. They haven't tried to interfere with your going out, have they, Mr. Keating?"
"No, not yet."
"Nor with you, Mr. MacKellar?"
"No, not yet," said the Scotchman.
"Well," Hal suggested, "suppose you lend me your crutches?"
Whereat Keating gave an exclamation of delight. "The very thing!"
"I'll take your over-coat and hat," Hal added. "I've watched you get about, and I think I can give an imitation. As for Mr. Keating, he's not easy to mistake."
"Billy, the fat boy!" laughed the other. "Come, let's get on the job!"
"I'll go out by the front door at the same time," put in Edstrom, his old voice trembling with excitement. "Maybe that'll help to throw them off the track."
SECTION 11.
They had been sitting upstairs in MacKellar's room. Now they rose, and were starting for the stairs, when suddenly there came a ring at the front door bell. They stopped and stared at one another. "There they are!" whispered Keating.
And MacKellar sat down suddenly, and held out his crutches to Hal. "The hat and coat are in the front hall," he exclaimed. "Make a try for it!"
His words were full of vigour, but like Edstrom, his voice was trembling. He was no longer young, and could not take adventure gaily.
Hal and Keating ran downstairs, followed by Edstrom. Hal put on the coat and hat, and they went to the back door, while at the same time Edstrom answered the bell in front.
The back door opened into a yard, and this gave, through a side gate, into an alley. Hal's heart was pounding furiously as he began to hobble along with the crutches. He had to go at MacKellar's slow pace--while Keating, at his side, started talking. He informed "Mr. MacKellar," in a casual voice, that the _Gazette_ was a newspaper which believed in the people's cause, and was pledged to publish the people's side of all public questions. Discoursing thus, they went out of the gate and into the alley.
A man emerged from the shadows and walked by them. He passed within three feet of Hal, and peered at him, narrowly. Fortunately there was no moon; Hal could not see the man's face, and hoped the man could not see his.
Meantime Keating was proceeding with his discourse. "You understand, Mr.
MacKellar," he was saying, "sometimes it's difficult to find out the truth in a situation like this. When the interests are filling their newspapers with falsehoods and exaggerations, it's a temptation for us to publish falsehoods and exaggerations on the other side. But we find in the long run that it pays best to publish the truth, Mr.
MacKellar--we can stand by it, and there's no come-back."
Hal, it must be admitted, was not paying much attention to this edifying sermon. He was looking ahead, to where the alley debouched onto the street. It was the street behind MacKellar's house, and only a block from the railroad-track.
He dared not look behind, but he was straining his ears. Suddenly he heard a shout, in John Edstrom's voice. "Run! Run!"
In a flash, Hal dropped the two crutches, and started down the alley, Keating at his heels. They heard cries behind them, and a voice, sounding quite near, commanded, "Halt!" They had reached the end of the alley, and were in the act of swerving, when a shot rang out and there was a crash of glass in a house beyond them on the far side of the street.
Farther on was a vacant lot with a path running across it. Following this, they dodged behind some shanties, and came to another street--and so to the railroad tracks. There was a long line of freight-cars before them, and they ran between two of these, and climbing over the couplings, saw a great engine standing, its headlight gleaming full in their eyes. They sprang in front of it, and alongside the train, passing a tender, then a baggage-car, then a parlour-car.
"Here we are!" exclaimed Keating, who was puffing like a bellows.
Hal saw that there were only three more cars to the train; also, he saw a man in a blue uniform standing at the steps. He dashed towards him.
"Your car's on fire!" he cried.
"What?" exclaimed the man. "Where?"
"Here!" cried Hal; and in a flash he had sprung past the other, up the steps and into the car.
There was a long, narrow corridor, to be recognised as the kitchen portion of a dining-car; at the other end of this corridor was a swinging door, and to this Hal leaped. He heard the conductor shouting to him to stop, but he paid no heed. He slipped off his over-coat and hat; and then, pushing open the door, he entered a brightly lighted apartment--and the presence of the Coal King's son.