Summary

In Part III, Rudolph's father was a freight-agent, named Carl Miller (78). Carl was "hard-headed," "suspicious," and "unrestful" (78). One of the most important things in his life was the Roman Catholic Church. He often struggled to balance his love of physical labor and railroads, with that of his faith in God.

Early Sunday morning, Carl got up to pray. Afterwards, he shaved. His wife was asleep in bed. The house was silent. His son was asleep in his bed. He heard the train and the birds outside his window. Suddenly a sound from the kitchen disturbed Carl. He rushed downstairs. Rudolph was near the sink, "clutching a full glass of water" (79). Carl and Rudolph stared at one another, "they were striking a balance between the extremes of emotion" (79). The only thing that moved in the kitchen was the dip from the faucet.

Carl...