The Trainmasters Read online

  John Carlysle was a full head and a half taller than the older man, and he was as square and sturdy as Sir Charles appeared light and fragile. Sir Charles looked like antique polished porcelain, while John was as scarred and scuffed as a well-worn boot. John had been through many accidents and many battles in the course of his career as a railroad man. Every construction crew he’d managed had been a wild bunch. Every track in England had seen its share of train wrecks.

  “John,” Sir Charles said after the servant escorted him into the room, “it’s good of you to come.”

  “It’s my pleasure, Sir Charles,” John said.

  “Claret suit you?”

  “Of course.”

  Sir Charles inclined his head, and the servant poured the wine from a decanter into a stemmed crystal goblet. He carried the goblet to John on a silver tray.

  “Sir,” he said.

  “Thank you.”

  “Sit, John,” Sir Charles ordered, motioning to one of the pair of leather wing-back chairs facing the fire. “I must talk with you about important matters,” he went on. His voice was serious, almost dark with foreboding. “I’d rather do that now, before the alcohol has made my mind over mellow. Then we shall eat. Does that suit you?”

  “By all means,” John said, very curious to know the cause of Sir Charles’s intensity.

  “Now,” Sir Charles said when they were settled in their chairs, “I have a number of profound matters on my mind, and they all, I fear, intertwine. That is a problem,” he paused, pondering, “but that also may prove to suggest a solution.”

  There was a long silence.

  John took a sip of his wine and then looked at Sir Charles. Sir Charles returned the look. His eyes were chill and impenetrable.

  The silence continued.

  “I’ve displeased you?” John said at last.

  “Displeased me? What makes you say that?”

  “I can’t otherwise understand why you are reluctant to tell me what is on your mind, Sir Charles.”

  “No, John, you haven’t displeased me. You are—and you will always be—one of the best men I know. If anything, you have flattered me.”

  “How have I done that?”

  “You have chosen my daughter.”

  John Carlysle’s eyes remained locked with Sir Charles’s.

  “Now you flatter me, sir,” John said. “I wish I were as certain as you are about what I feel toward Diane, and what she feels toward me. Of course I am very fond of her.”

  Sir Charles laughed. “It’s only a matter of time, boy. What stops you now is that you see the difficulties standing between the two of you and marriage. In time your passion —or your love, whichever you choose to call it—will seem to be greater than those difficulties…”

  “And?” John asked.

  “And I have asked you to take charge of the building of the Dublin-Belfast line,” Sir Charles said, changing the subject.

  “What is your answer, John?”

  “Sir Charles, for God’s sake!” John Carlysle said, raising his voice to a near shout. “What does that have to do with Diane?”

  “I told you my thoughts about you are intertwined. Bear with the vagaries of an old man, please John, and give me an answer, would you?”

  In that instant, he made up his mind. “No,” he said, in a voice like muffled drums.

  “No? Are you sure John?”

  “Very sure, Sir Charles. I can’t—won’t—do it.”

  “Good!” Sir Charles smiled broadly. “Then I’m right. I do know you! You’re acting exactly as I predicted!”

  “Sir Charles?” John Carlysle said, stunned. “What do you mean?”

  “You thought you would surprise me, John Carlysle, my son. Well, you haven’t.” And then he roared with laughter. “Next you were going to tell me that you planned to sail to America and make your fortune there, et cetera, et cetera.”

  “What’s to laugh at?” John asked his mind in a whirl.

  “I told you, because I know you. I know your deepest desires … which brings me to the question of my daughter’s future. And I’ll make it brief, John. You can’t have her. I won’t allow it.”

  The servant appeared to refill Sir Charles’s and then John’s goblets.

  “You said to me only moments ago, Sir Charles, that I flattered you in choosing Diane. What did you mean by that?”

  “Just what I said. If but for accident of birth, I’d be delighted for you to be one of my family. If only I had you as my son!”

  “I don’t have a title. Is that it?”

  “You do not. And Diane will marry a title.”

  “What does she have to say about that?”

  “Diane will do what I tell her to.”

  “Will she?”

  “And so will you. You see, my son, I want you to emigrate to America. I want exactly what you want.”

  “You’re right… in part,” John admitted, with much reluctance. “I know there’s no future for me in this country. Not the kind of future that matters most to me.”

  “Exactly!” You’re trapped here and you know it. And you may be attracted to my daughter. And she may be attracted to you. You might in fact love one another. But a marriage between the two of you in this country is impossible.”

  John looked up quickly. “Are you telling me to go to America and take her with me?”

  “That’s not the solution I had in mind.”

  “I could do that. I could take her with me.”

  “But you won’t. And neither will Diane go with you. What you will do is listen to me, because I am going to make eminent good sense. You have too many years behind you to play Romeo, John. And I am not a Montague, nor are you a Capulet. We are far from enemies. Both of us need one another. And I especially need you in the United States.”

  John’s mouth twisted into a grim smile. “I sense dampness in the air. I think it will rain soon. And I think the rain will be money. I don’t want your money, Sir Charles. I don’t want your bribes.”

  “That’s not the solution I had in mind for you either. I thought you knew me better than that. I am a much larger devil than you take me for, my son. I plan to invest in you, not bribe you. I’ll tell you again; I will tempt you with exactly what you want.”

  “And that is?” John couldn’t help being curious.

  “What you desire is the opportunity—the chance—to do what I have done. You’ll never do that in this country. You know that and I know that. But you can—and will, or at least I believe you will—do that in the United States. I want you to do that as much as you do, for as you’ll see, I stand to gain along with you.”

  John started to say something, but Sir Charles raised his hand in order to silence him. “No, no, John, listen. You’ll have your chance to reply after I’ve made my speech.”

  “Now,” he went on, “most of the population and wealth in that country is concentrated along the eastern seaboard. But that will not always be the case. People are moving west, toward the Mississippi and beyond. Some of the richest land in the world is out there, and there is the potential for vast industrial development as well. But, there is a range of mountains—the Appalachians—that stands between the eastern and the western states. It is not a great or a lofty range. Few peaks exceed three thousand feet. But these mountains nonetheless are sufficient to restrict considerably the movement of goods and produce between East and West.

  “However, when the railroads have crossed those mountains, the United States will become the most powerful nation on earth.”

  John raised his eyebrows very high, and then he shook his head. “Oh, no, Sir Charles. You can’t be serious. The future will always remain with Europe. America is much too raw ever to catch up with the Old World. And I say that even though I am certain that my own personal future lies there.”

  “Give the Yankees fifty years, John, after they have completed their railway network, and then we’ll see. Are you willing to wager on that?”

  “A fifty-
year wager? Which of us will collect it?”

  “That’s what lawyers and wills are for,” he said, laughing. “But no, we won’t be bettors. We have more immediate gains to attend to. I’ll go on.

  “The Appalachians, then, stand between the United States and that nation’s ultimate promise, its ultimate destiny… Did you know, John, that most of the produce and goods of the western states pass down the river to New Orleans? And thence travel by sea to their final destinations? Did you know that the railroads that now exist in the western states simply funnel goods to the river? And yet the primary market for these goods lies only a few hundred miles east of where they are produced.”

  “That will change,” John said. “It has to.”

  “Exactly!” And that’s where you and I become involved. At this moment a number of rail lines are being built through the mountains—the Baltimore and Ohio, the Pennsylvania, the Erie, and others. Each of these lines will survive and prosper; or else it will be taken over by another, more powerful line. But one line, inevitably, will surpass all the others, will be the most profitable, and the most successful. I have a prediction as to which line that will be—the Pennsylvania. It is the best financed and best managed of the lines currently building westward.

  “But first it must cross the mountains, which in Pennsylvania are called the Alleghenies. And that is what I would like you to help accomplish.”

  “But I am five thousand miles from Pennsylvania. And I am not employed by the Pennsylvania.”

  “Not yet. However, I currently hold something over twenty-two thousand shares of Pennsylvania stock… out of a total capitalization of two hundred thousand shares. That means that I control a bit over ten percent of the company. The par value of that stock, by the way, is $50. I paid between $44 and $46 for it. When the line is finally connected through to Pittsburgh, the stock will increase to $55 or so. At any rate, whenever I make my wishes known to the Pennsylvania board of directors, they will pay attention to me.”

  “I should say so,” John said, in growing admiration. Sir Charles was full of surprises. “So then I shall go to Philadelphia as your representative? Or at least that is your intention?”

  “You will make sure the railroad traverses the Alleghenies. You will work with Mr. Edgar Thomson, who as of this moment is the chief engineer. I should imagine he will preside over the entire company before too very long. He will if I have a say in such matters. And of course I do,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders. “Thomson is an extremely good man, probably the best railroad man in the United States. I’ve known him for twenty years, ever since he spent time in this country studying our methods and practices. He’s one of the prime reasons for my faith in the future of the Pennsylvania line.

  “You, boy, are another. Therefore, in order to weld you solidly both to that line and to me, I have transferred one thousand shares of Pennsylvania stock to your name. On the completion of the mountain division of that line, a further fifteen hundred shares will be transferred to you. In the meantime, these shares will be placed in trust.”

  “Good God!” John said. “You overwhelm me!” He was in greater turmoil now than before he had arrived at the club. Indeed he was more shocked than he had ever been in his life. If what Sir Charles was saying about the line was true —and John didn’t doubt him for a moment—twenty-five hundred shares of Pennsylvania stock could be the key to gaining the power and wealth that he had only dreamed about.

  “In due course,” Sir Charles said, as though reading his mind, “you will acquire a line of your own. At that time, you will transfer to me—or my heirs—an amount of your own stock equal in value to the twenty-five hundred Pennsylvania shares, at then current prices, naturally. I have already undertaken to communicate with Mr. Thomson my intentions with regard to you. He will doubtless respect my wishes.”

  “You are a devil, Sir Charles.”

  There was a wicked grin on Sir Charles’s face. “I confess that I’m enjoying myself.”

  “And what if I refuse to act according to your grand design?”

  “I have never once entertained that thought. I know you, John Carlysle. I know you well.”

  “And what about Diane?”

  “Diane will be taken care of—and handsomely. She is beautiful, and she is wealthy. A suitable match for her will be found.”

  “May I have a few days to sort out my thoughts?”

  “You don’t need a few days, John. You already know your reply.”

  There was a long pause before John spoke. He gulped down the remaining claret, then set the goblet down on the marble-topped table next to his chair. He looked once again into Sir Charles’s frigid, gray-green eyes.

  “You are a monster, Sir Charles. But of course you are right. I can’t refuse you.” After a pause, he said, “Yes, I’ll do it.”

  Sir Charles then leapt up, strode swiftly over to where John was sitting, took his hands, and nearly lifted the younger man bodily to his feet.

  “Embrace me, boy! You have made my old heart sing!”

  “Thank you, Sir Charles. I only wish your words had been less painful to me.”

  “You know I love you, boy. You’re better than a son to me.”

  “Does that excuse me for abandoning your daughter?”

  “Of course! Diane knows the score. But come, I have ordered us salmon. It’s time to eat it.”

  The governor of the state of Pennsylvania was stationed in front of the podium at the center of the reviewing stand. He had been orating for well over twenty minutes. In the course of his speech, he told his audience that he approved mightily of Mr. Baldwin’s new engine as well as the recent completion of the Pennsylvania’s eastern division, because the line now extended well over one hundred miles west of Harris-burg, up the valley of the Juniata River very nearly to its headwaters. And he also, approved mightily of the continued success of the building of the railroad’s western division from Pittsburgh toward Johnstown. He approved the penetration of the mountain barrier, which would be accomplished before another year was out. He further approved of the presence on the platform of Mr. Patterson, the president of the railroad, as well as the entire board of directors. He acknowledged the other significant personages on the platform: Mr. William Astor, the financier; Mr. Cornelius Vanderbilt, the shipping magnate; Mr. Daniel Drew, representative of substantial shipping and railroad enterprises; and Mr. Charles Minot, the president of the Erie Railroad. The governor mightily approved of being on the same platform with so many of the richest and most powerful men in the United States.

  He went on to approve of the city of Philadelphia and its mayor, and after that, the bounties of the state of Pennsylvania which no other state could match. Then he approved of the quality and character of the men of Pennsylvania who produced the finest goods and the richest crops in the United States. And at last, he approved of the women of Pennsylvania for having produced such men.

  It seemed to John Carlysle that the governor would never run out of things to approve of. But finally he stopped.

  Now and again during the speech John found himself glancing at Mrs. Lancaster, who was finding it hard to mask her boredom. And much of the time her eyes were closed, as if she were dozing. But then she would whisper something to Matthias Baldwin next to her, and they would both chuckle discreetly. John thought her liveliness quite becoming.

  Several times he found her eyes watching him. John imagined that she had noticed the Savile Row suit he had acquired at Sir Charles’s urging, before he had embarked for Philadelphia. Not many men in the crowd before the reviewing stand were dressed as fashionably as John.

  After the governor finished, the mayor of Philadelphia managed to find several things to approve of that the governor had not considered.

  There was a rustle in the crowd behind John. Twisting around to see what it was, he saw his two sons Alex and David returning with food.

  Alex held a newspaper-wrapped bundle. Hot grease was seeping through it, and Alex kept shift
ing his hands to keep from getting burned. David was carrying a candied apple on a stick. His face gave clear evidence of his enjoyment.

  “Father,” Alex said, “I’ve found fried clams. But will you take them? They’re hot.” He handed the bundle over to John, who held it out for Graham to unwrap.

  “They’re delicious,” John said to Alex after he had tried a few. “Crisp and golden. Thanks for fetching them, Alex. Take a few yourself. You too, Graham.”

  By the time they had finished eating their clams, the mayor concluded speaking. He was followed by William Patterson, the president of the railroad, whose speech was blessedly short. At the end of it, he called upon Mrs. Lancaster to do the honors of christening the Tiger. She made her way to his side at the podium.

  A pole had been rigged up in front of the reviewing stand, just to the side of the podium, and a long, crimson silk ribbon had been tied to it. At the end of the ribbon a magnum of champagne had been attached. After saying a few words Mrs. Lancaster would propel the champagne so it would hit the front of the locomotive.

  William Patterson presented the bottle to her. Holding it out in front of her and smiling, Kitty Lancaster looked toward the locomotive and at the throng of people clustered around it. And then she laughed and spoke to them. “Do you people want to back away?” she asked in a loud voice, still laughing. “Soon it will be raining champagne.” Her voice was full, rich, and vibrant. And she was looking directly at John Carlysle.

  Since the Carlysles were standing only a few feet from Tiger’s pilot, they figured to take much of the splash, but John, smiling, made no move to leave, and Alex and David giggled.

  No one else moved either. There were many chuckles.

  “It’s not every day we get champagne weather,” said a voice near the Carlyles.