Bert Wilson on the Gridiron

ed int

ssary to look up some data in the old college library. A guest on a houseboat down near Jacksonville made hurried excuses and came North by the first train. Others felt urgently the need of a brief vacation from their accustomed

e, he felt the lightening of the tremendous load of responsibility he had been carrying since the beginning of the season. These men were not theorists, but from actual experience knew every point of the game from start to fini

ger as so many two-year-old colts. "And, now that you are here, I'm going to give you plenty of work t

shirking? Are they too light? Many accidents? Come, ge

's shoulder. In fact, I was beginning to think that the team was the real goods. They walked all over the Army, and what

in which three of his best men had been whisk

r knew. Now you fellows know as well as I do that when a team slumps in that fashion there's only one thing to do. We've got to have new blood, new faces, new tactics

lushes!" exc

orget their troubles and play like fiends to justify your good opinion, and to show you that the honor

simply chain lightning, and the whole country will be talking of him by November. Axtell is one of the most savage tacklers I've ever seen, and if he can only get his conditions worked off soon, we won't have to worry about right half. Morley, the man I put in his place, is a d

nd for anything short of murder. Work them till their tongues hang out. Knock it into them if you have to use an axe. Every day counts now. Do you realize that the

general sentiment. "We'll give 'em medicine in allop

sponded at once to this drastic treatment. There was a general brace all along the line. A new factor had been injected into the situation. The l

was put through the fundamentals. The tackling dummy was brought out, and the play

rde

re to

as a lo

ter

the k

e life o

ladyl

e mo

der

ckling was as savage as even the mos

t; getting down under kicks fast enough to take advantage of any fumble by the enemy in trying for a "fair catch;" getting a quick start the moment the ball was snapped back, and a dozen other elemental features that constitute the alphabet of the

owed by keen and critical eyes that nothing, however trivial, escaped. By the time the team had rolled up twenty points and held their oppon

ly pleased. Once more

hat you've clapped your eyes on them?" h

first-class material to work on. You're a little weak at the end of the line, and right tackle can stand a lot of impr

e comes pretty near to being a team in himself. If he on

game as he is speedy. You ought to have seen the way he stood McAlpin on his head when we played the Army. That fellow was as big as a house and

d of the game. At least six of them tried to stop him, but he slipped by them like a ghost. And yet he ran almost in a straight line. Al

. They work together like a well-oiled machine. They're playing with their heads as well their feet all the time. The

d as sandy as the Sahara desert. It's around t

work, were at the moment engaged in getting their bath and rubdown, never

or fair," remarked Tom when the

paces," assented Dick. "I haven't

the team? It's the first time for a week that we've known we were alive. We're goi

ll those fellows leaving their work and traveling hundreds of miles for the sake of the old college,

hey like. There'll be never a squeal from me. I'll work

al tobasco. And I'll bet there isn't a fello

they reached their rooms. What was their surprise on opening the door to find Ax

make yourself at

here, you old flun

tatively, "it hath a right knavish sound. Beshrew me, if I fling it not b

ght dawned

al. You don't mean to say that yo

t the same pleasureth my pride but little. For less tha

nd pounded him till

lelujah!"

eard since Hector was

lted Bert. "By Jove, old scout, you do

ushed wit

e felt like a sneak. I can't forgive myself for getting in such a fix, just when we were in such good sh

nders though, to get rid of the conditions

or my exam. But I was desperate and went in largely on my nerve. When the Prof. looked over my papers I thought I heard him mutter to himself something that sounded like: 'All Gaul is di

' Hendricks won't be tickled to death. He'll kill the fatted cal

ub," remarked Axtell drily. "When it comes to

aid Bert. "But how about

der. But he's had two to make up, where I had only one. He's hired a tutor to coach him and is cramming away lik

. 'Bull' has been trying out Chamberlain in place of Ellis, but he gets mixed on the signals. He plugs away like a beaver, but finds it hard to get them straight. Morley is doing fine work at half, but he can't fill your shoes

ut he never whimpers. He hopes to be out on crutches in time to see the big games. Told me yesterday, when I dropped in t

now I must be going. I'll toddle over and give 'Bull' a chance to welc

oo sternly on the defection that had thrown it out of gear. He gave him a fatherly talk, pointed out the necessity of keeping his studies up to the mark from that time on, and put i

oot was on his native heath." And the dignified "Bull," after a cautious glance around to mak