t - International Brotherhood Of Electrical Workers

74
;t
The Journal of ELECTRICAL WORKERS and Operators
Shg, SHORT STORIES
Menmbers
light the old pipe and breathe
a yarn or two
a WORK a PLAY
o
hilself to its var;ius chnlites, for better
-'_-
or worse.
,--
it was iacking 10 minutes to five
, /
.'cluk, when the jobs are Iusually called.
/li
ll a Istrained eagerness prevailed ill
/I
the erom. Th viy atmosplhe re was tens.
/,f Pcl
Steve rigains, s4.'t id at ith next table with expectation. Mn had their eyes fixed
ii
in the union' s slaious, smokev-filled as- on the office door iii wa ehrId waiting.
I
semhl.Iy room, overheard tile conversation.
l
Finally the door opoed and a clerk camn.
HIe knew both of his fellow ilem.bers par- out with the lilst of jobs. There were a
iripating in it. lie also knew Ilarry Col-
few, and Steve( headll his iaie animong
Tree-Breathed Raccoons ins, the object of their disluite,. those called.
A man of fewi words . himsel f, he liked
By J*AMES ALTIC, L. . No. .- hOs
ie vas ushered, with the other men,
to listen to conv.rsations of others; to into the bulsiless manager's ofice. Ton,
R. FERGUSON'S story about the hear both sides iii any argument andi Henderson ,a busy executive, ,was ccu
watch keeping time in ilfe gills then, after efficiently weighing in his pied at his desk. No sooner did he antswe
M of , a I trout ... I a, for , a y... year pooit ipulied So the minl.d pro and eon, form his own pinion. one of the two phones, whem the other
cork. If I did not know that the ieorilng However, havinrg been ot of work a mo rang. In the brief period between
River country is so full of ticks, I would month, it was Iat lural for ihat un.easy calls, he usually interviewed men to hb
think his tale hlard to believe.
feeling to creep ill and play havoc with sent out on jobs.
Well, here's another yam. .L G, Schmidi his other'ise cheerful disposition, amd
"Bello, Steve!'" he addrssi
and I were spending a week on Ben he was
hinm
more
with
or less inclined o listoen Io
a fiendly smile, as soilon as his turn
Watts' farm near Milton. Pike County, 'knocks" direted against the union ofli .came, FI've been looking over the records
III., hunting rabbits and quail. Or the isl in ehargoe of distributing jobs. of your past employment
night of the thiLd dy we were playing "I don't came
anid
whai
I found
you say," the oice
Illat you d
pinchle when DBen''s collie dog baiked. of the first
mliuI get "ucl i bU a break late..
eakcr drifted to lhinm. in-
Now, L have a job on hand that requiire
We dashed outside and found lie had an terrupting his glum thoughts. "I still
a special skill. It'll be a long stretch. ii
opossum, which we bagged. This sug- maintain that there is too iceh faor
you can make the grade. Do you think
gested a 'coon hunt. Our host called itism in giving out jobs. There seems to
yu canl do it?"'
neighbor and invited him to bring his be a clique that gets all the work"
'coon dog and go for a chase. We shook "Aw, fiddlestieks!"
Could
the
he do
orthe
it?
speakers
Steve turned over in
out three 'possumns the first hour, Then angry retort caine
his mind
to
the
him, "an
various
you point
complicated jobs
he
the old dog hit a trail and we sat down out
had
the
handled
men ill
in
ie
his days.
clique
Yet,
you
despite
are raving
to wait. IlI about a half hour we heal abouit?
his
I'll bet
years
my
of
last
skilled
dollar
training,
you can't
he was nol
of the
him bark again. We found him at tite foot If you
know-it
were
all
in
type
tha
to boast
office
about
for
it
one nday.
of a squatty tree, the few limbs of wihich you'd realize what a gigantic task it is
'"I certainly shall try my best, Mr.
afforded no hiding place. No raccoons! to distribute
lenderson,
jobs
to
and
make
ry
good."
II o satisf)
We cussed the dog for a liar! By the everybody!"'
"Very wvell, then, Steve," Tom len-
light of my flashlight I notield the tree T'his remark
dir.i.u
t
rerilrded
Ste,ve
him
a;,-thinking.
with open admira-
seemed to move then, I spotted a crack There's somethiri
tin. }{ere
to this
was
buinress
a man who
that
was sure to
about 15 feet up ta¢i was oliciniig and the average man of the ilanlk aI.d file
make good. Ill manners, his very behavilr
speak
closing slowly. 'be tree was so full of cannot see.
for him.
After
Yet, unlike
ll, he
som,
releted, the
'coons that every time they breathed the i.nion does Il, cre'ate conditioms in the
of tli.s. ladsm ha..k in the awaiting room.
crack opened and closed. We got IS 'c.ois trade. When
,he dies
t1e
not
work
act
slacken,
as if he is
it
a genius
is
who
out of that tree!
virtually impossible to give everyone elidi do everything. "You'll see Miss
what few jobs are conming in.
Kingsley. She'll give you all tile details.
lie glanced at the low roews of tables
anid good luck to you!'
Day-Room Philosophy where men of varlios ages were seated. Steve left he (flice wilh I feeling of
By A. D. HAtLAM i GICK L. iU. ol. fl-s
either engrossed ill discussions or play- xu taition. It was not only the jIl, that
img games. Mlost of them, he knew. were. made him hlappy. lie learned it bit of dny-
lUT. I'm trying to tell you," the like himself, heais of families and some room philosophy trolay that will pov
KS.e. ..... ,ll extremeily agitated, were out of work a much ]onge, period ha.i.dy to him il the future. lie learned
"1 saw Harry Colins leave the lthan himself. A picture flashel in his that one could not get anlywhere by act
business manager's oliee with a joh slip imlaginatin of war-time balirraks where int ;,i a grouch, always looking for iflle
in his hand. A nd he's Ionly b[nt oUt of sohli rs Congegatecd await.lug ordels who get "'better breaks." lie raliied that
work three days! Why . .
fram superior ollieers. In a way, he ra o1u mnust possess somethillr nmore tkiial
"Oh, yeah? Well. I happen to know, smied, we are alI soldiers in the hattie his luiion card to be eapalle of holding
Wise Guy, that .larry was sent on an flield of industry. And, as in every wa, i job; that lthere are certain jobs that
assignment to hielp line up the boys of them must r be s casualties. omne The loval rqlire more than averaget aeg skill, n.l.turall
the B. & J. shop." The other voice was soldier never e oplnnains whiic going ei .i. ating .so.e of these would be
sareasti¢. with a slight drawl in it. "You through Endless discomifort and hardship. alftsnmin who, nvertheless. think tileir
and your infernal grumbling! You al- Somehow (his thought comforted him: skill is nconparable. And, above all, h
ways shoot off your windbag crying about it is easier to bear the burden when egaiiied his self-coldlece, feelilng err
jobs, when you know darn well they are one considers he is an important cog in tian he would measure up to any diffiult
scarce at this tihe of the yar."
the industry's wheel anmd itlit adjust problnl that nmight come his way