Quarter-Back Bates

nardville, rather long letters about the High School Team, with messages from Dick's former schoolmates and questions about Parkinson football methods. Sumner's faith in Dick remained unimp

we're watching you, kid! Every time you make a touchdown for Parkinson the old Argus will have a full and graphic account of i

Ed did all last year. What about Cleary? He's slow, I know, but you might speed him up this year, and he has lots of fight.... Things here are humming along finely. We played Musket Hill yesterday and just walked away with them. I told you I didn't fancy Driscoll, the coach, but I like him better, and I guess he does know how to get the stuff out of a team. Talking about full-backs, I wish you could see our man here in action. His name's Kirkendall and he comes from Kentucky. The fellows call him 'K of K.', or just 'K' sometimes. Well, he got started yesterday in the third period on our forty and Stone (quarter) fed him the ball eight times and he landed it on N. H.'s seven yards, and he'd have taken it over, too, if Stone hadn't acted the silly goat and swi

ieve me, Sum. Gee, I was certainly surprised when I saw how the team stacked up. Why, Newhall, the right guard, must weigh two hundred pounds, and Cupp isn't any light-weight either. Another thing I was surprised at was the way they go at football here. Everything's all arranged and cut out six months ahead and it's the most business-like proposition I ever saw. There's an Athletic Committee first, composed of three faculty and two students, the football and baseball managers usually. Then there's the Head Coach, and under him the trainer and his assistant. The committee meets

n the Second Team here who were better than anything Leonardville had ever seen! But Dick took his disappointment philosophically. He meant to try very hard for a place on the big eleven, no matter how humble it might be, and so get in line for next year. He wondered sometimes if he wouldn't have shown himself wiser had he gone out for the Second Team instead. There was still time for that, for very often candidates released from the First Team squad went to the Second and made good, but somehow he didn't like the idea of trying for the moon and being satisfied with a jack-o'-lantern! No, he decided, if he failed

ck had fooled Blash and Blash had taken it smilingly seemed no good reason for an increase of friendship, but there it was! Blash still threatened to get even some day, and Dick was certain that he would, but that only made the mutual liking stronger. As between Sid Crocker and Rusty Crozier, Dick would have had trouble saying which he liked the better. Rusty was far more amusing, but Sid was a dependable sort of chap. In trouble, Dick would have thought first of Sid.

rst cut and it appeared that he somehow managed to hold Dick to blame for that. When they passed in hall or on campus Sandy always had a malevolent scowl for him, and once or twice Dick thought he even hear

t for all this he was not generally liked. The younger boys, who formed most of his classes, were suspicious of his fashion of regarding them individually instead of as a whole. They declared, some of them at least, that he "crowded" them. By which, in school parlance, was meant that he tried to be too friendly. They resented his attempts to interest himself in their doings outside classes. Among the older boys, however, he was a prime favourite, and his study in Williams was the scene of Friday evening "parties" that were always well attended. Any

he edge of that the newcomers found places, they and a spectacled youth named Timmins completely filling the doorway. Conversation was still general. Mr. Matthews, dropping a word now and then into the noisy confusion, was at his study table cutting sheets of paper into quarters with a pair of shears. He wasn't a bit impressive, being under rather than over

ove. The furniture was old, rather dilapidated and most friendly. Even the chairs whose backs were straightest and whose seats looked most uncompromising had acquired unsuspected and hospitable curve

known means of staving off imbecility when one of the party, he happened to be a clergyman, by the way, introduced-should I say 'sprung,' Harris?-sprung this on us. 'There are three things,' he said, 'that every man firmly believes he can do. One is run a hotel, another is conduct a newspaper and the third is write poetry.' He proposed that we should write poetry. We tried, and the results, if not calculated to win us undying fame, were at least amusing. Suppose,

hing once!" "My middle name

t is voted to be the best effusion, there

from the window-seat: "Please may we see it firs

this, gentlemen, craving your indulgence. It is one of my attempts on the occasion mentioned. I ran across it the other day and it gave me the idea o

re comes the de

nts "The Inhu

! But you get the idea, don't you? Now, let

at's easy," so

e is up I'll call 'Time' and you will at once stop

" "Let 'e

of paper. Then mutters arose and feet shuffled. "Say, what rhymes with 'Ford'?" asked Timmins of Stanley in an audible whisper. Chuckl

in turn," said Mr. Matthews.

sir," answere

ct and it was Cashin who bashfully pro

nothing on

eyed and la

en the laughter had stopped, "but rathe

done, sir. I think

out you

ll open that drawer, s

prize, does

is its ow

his behaviour, had scorned to take part in the competition. Two other verses were read and then a second name was chosen. T

praise of ou

ry in mode a

aughed Mr. Matthews. "I might say, fellows, t

ed De Vitt, "bu

ble fellow who took himself a bit seriously, who wrote long, sensible and very dull editorials, and who mistakenly conducted a column of allegedly humorous

rcle frowns the

ntor and depl

and there were many dismal failures and ju

r may assail

shows the sang

the instructor explained that it was one of a plate of prize-winners at the County Fair. At Stanley's request a knife was produced and the apple was divided into sixteen pieces and distributed. Mr. Matthews brought out the "spread" and for an hour longer the gathering munched delect