Charley was a shift supervisor at the cement plant. He had this nervous energy. He would have trouble being a supervisor now days considering all the labor laws, restrictions, and government policies protecting employees. Charley was not a bad supervisor, but it is a very different working world today as opposed to the late 1970’s.
Charley was terrified of his boss, a man nicknamed “Killer.” I thought Killer was short for Killingsworth, but word was it was because Killingsworth tried to commit suicide.
Charley transferred his fear of Killer to his crew. When Killer wanted something done, Charley was a nervous wreck trying to push his crew.
I remember one incident where we had bricked the burning zone of one of the cement kilns. Killer was notorious for staying ahead of schedule for winter maintenance shutdowns. He told Charley to have us light a fire in the kiln burner pipe to start curing the new brick as soon as maintenance pulled (closed) the hood of the kiln. This process was burning natural gas and slow rotation of the kiln.
Well, the frantic Charley nervously pushed the kiln burner and his two oilers, one oiler being me, to light her up. M C, the other oiler, and I tied a rag on a long metal rod, sprayed it with WD 40, lit it with a cigarette lighter, and shoved it in the kiln in front of the burner pipe.
With the lighted rag in front of the burner pipe, the kiln burner opened the natural gas valve on a six-inch line. That may not mean much, but for informational clarity, a six-inch gas line makes a loud blowing sound like a rocket taking off. M C and I had liftoff.
Charley did not know that Killer and several laborers were under the burner pipe repairing the discharge hearth of the kiln. M C and I watched as these men scrambled from the hearth like rats scurrying from a corn crib fire. The door of the hearth was ten feet off the ground and one ladder. Had it not been so serious, it would have been comical and Killer was fighting mad. He had a right to be. He, along with the other men, could have perished in a fire if there had been a back draught or excess gas in the kiln. Lighting a kiln was always very dangerous.
Killer chewed on M C and me for a while. We explained that were only following orders. He wanted to know if we knew they were in the kiln. We said we did but he gave the order to Charley and if he gave the order, and he was in the kiln, that he must have known that it was okay to light the fire or he would not have given Charley the order to light it. M C and I never lit another kiln without being sure it had no one in it. It was not unusual to work on the hearth when the kiln was lit, but it was lit when no one was in it, only afterwards. M C and I felt sorry for Charley when Killer got on him.
Charley was a fine Christian man. Older employees knew him before his conversation. They said that when Charley accepted Christ as savior that the next week he brought a one-ton truckload of tools and equipment back to the plant. He had taken shovels, wheelbarrows, air hoses, welding machines, and acetylene torches and hoses to name a few.
Charley lived a converted life. Everyone in the plant knew it, especially Killer. I never understood why Charley never stood up to Killer. I always marveled at Charley’s testimony and confession of stealing the truckload of equipment from the plant. To me that took courage to confess and even more courage to bring the stuff back, especially when they told him he did not have to bring it back. That kind of courage could stand against Killer.
And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham (Luke 19:8-9 KJV)
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