"Then you have rounded up the whole case. There is nothing more to be done--nothing more left for me to do except to act on the information you have furnished me, which I shall do at once."

"May I make a suggestion, sir?"

"Certainly."

"If you have any reason to believe this will not fully account for the shortage, would it not be an excellent idea to have the other tally-men inspected?"

Mr. Penton reflected.

"An excellent idea; yes, it shall be done. Tell me how the tally-man, Marvin, worked his end of the game. Although you have not explained that part of it, it goes without saying that he was in collusion with Spooner."

"Yes, sir; so I suspected from the first. I did not like his actions. He appeared to be watching everyone about him. That aroused my suspicion after hearing what I did when you and the mine captain were there. So I watched him without pretending to do so. In the meantime he had driven me away from the tally-boards while I was standing there looking at them. While watching him I distinctly saw the fellow juggle the pegs and give the Spooner contract credit for more loads than were then on the chute. I counted and kept track of the Spooner cars, so that I could check up with Bob. You see, I wanted to make absolutely sure that I was right."

"And your figures tallied?"

"They did."

"Lads, you have done the company a great service. I have no doubt but that both of you will receive a substantial reward. Personally, I cannot find words to express my appreciation. You have relieved me from a very embarra.s.sing situation. I shall show my appreciation in a more substantial manner in due time."

"We do not wish to be rewarded, Mr. Penton," returned Steve. "We are working in the interest of the company that pays us our wages, just the same as we should expect men to serve us if we were employers."

"And you would find that you would be sadly disappointed in the rank and file, boys. When I said 'reward,' I did not mean exactly a money reward, although indirectly it will amount to the same thing. This company is not slow to recognize merit. It gives every man a chance to show what sort of stuff he is made of. If his is a low grade of ore, as we would term it in the mines, then he stays where he is, but if of a higher grade from which the finest steel is made, then the man goes on up as fast as he is fitted to hold higher positions. There is practically no limit to the positions to which young men in this company may aspire.

Take, for instance, the present president of this mining company, who is now drawing a salary equal to that received by the President of the United States. How do you suppose he began his career?"

"I--I do not know, sir. I never heard," answered Steve.

"He began with a shovel in his hands, just the same as you did something like a week ago, and so did I, and so did the most of us who have risen to the higher positions. But to return to our subject, I will have the other tally centres investigated secretly."

"It might be a good plan for you to have your captain watch the tally-board at level number seventeen to-morrow. He can do so by secreting himself in the skip shaft," suggested Steve.

"I think your suggestion is a good one. In the meantime, of course, you lads will be discreet--you will not mention what you have told me?"

"You may depend upon us, sir."

"Yes, I am aware of that. Come to see me to-morrow. I shall want to talk with you. Good night, lads."

CHAPTER XIII

STRAIGHTENING THE CROOKED ONES

A brief investigation on the part of the mine captain on the day following verified all that the boys had told the superintendent.

Watching the tally-board man from behind the part.i.tion that shut off the skip shaft, the captain saw the man falsify the tally of the ore cars, making it show a considerable excess of the actual amount of ore contained in each car.

At noon Marvin was summoned to the office of the superintendent and confronted with the facts. After a few minutes of stubborn denial, the rascal gave in and told the whole story. He was to share half of the amount thus gained with the man Spooner. Up to that time the two men had made a substantial rake-off six days in every week.

After the tally-man had made a clean breast of the steal the superintendent said:

"Go back to your post. You will receive further orders later in the day.

But see to it that nothing is said to Spooner until I have seen him; then you two can talk and growl all you wish. You will have something to growl about, I promise you that. How long has this thing been going on?"

"For six weeks, sir."

"How much have you cheated the company out of thus far?"

Marvin handed Mr. Penton a slip of paper on which he had made some figures while talking, after which the tally-man departed very much crestfallen.

Spooner was the next man summoned, and the contractor pa.s.sed the most uncomfortable hour of his life under Mr. Penton's shrewd questioning.

Spooner had been a miner and his contracting was of only recent date.

When he saw that the superintendent was in possession of all the facts, he admitted that he had been receiving pay for many tons a day more than he had delivered to the company.

Mr. Penton considered the matter for some moments, while the contractor stood before him twisting his hat nervously between his hands, now and then shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"What do you think I ought to do with a rascal like you?" finally demanded the superintendent.

"I'll give up my contract and go back to working in the drift."

"You will do nothing of the sort! You will keep on with your contract until you have paid back what you have robbed the company of, you and your partner in crime, Marvin. You are a fine pair. By rights I ought to send both of you to jail. Perhaps I may do that yet, but that will depend upon what officials higher up order me to do. For the present, however, you will engage to pay back what you have stolen; that is, unless you prefer to hand over the money in a lump."

"I haven't that much money--I have no money."

"I thought not; therefore two thirds of the amount will be deducted from the money due you each week and one third from the wages of the tally-man."

Spooner essayed to speak, but the words seemed to stick in his throat.

Finally he managed to mumble:

"All--all right, sir."

"But, mind you, no more of your thieving tricks, or I'll have you in the cooler before you realize it."

"All right, sir. I--I'd like to ask a question."

"Ask it."

"Who was the man who gave me away?"

"You ought to know better than to ask me that question. Frankly, it is none of your concern. We have been looking for this leak for some time, and we have found it. Had you possessed a grain of common sense you would have known that, sooner or later, you would have been checked up.

You're checked. The interview is ended. Go back to work."

"I'll _find_ the man!" growled Spooner. "I'll find him if it takes all the rest of my life to do it, and when I do----"

"What then?" interrupted the superintendent, fixing stern eyes on the man before him.

"I'll tell him what I think of him," answered the contractor lamely, as he left the room.