d fillum."
The Blue and Orange--it was the only movie theater in town--was almost
full when the boys arrived. Only a few seats near the front were still
vacant. A freshman started down the aisle, his "baby bonnet" stuck
jauntily on the back of his head.
"Freshman!"... "Kill him!"... "Murder the frosh!" Shouts came from all
parts of the house, and an instant later hundreds of peanuts shot
swiftly at the startled freshman. "Cap! Cap! Cap off!" There was a panic
of excitement. Upper-classmen were standing on their chairs to get free
throwing room. The freshman snatched off his cap, drew his head like a
scared turtle down into his coat collar, and ran for a seat. Hugh and
Carl tucked their caps into their coat pockets and attempted to stroll
nonchalantly down the aisle. They hadn't taken three steps before the
bombardment began. Like their classmate, they ran for safety.
Then some one in the front of the theatre threw a peanut at some one in
the rear. The fight was on! Yelling like madmen, the students stood on
their chairs and hurled peanuts, the front and rear of the house
automatically dividing into enemy camps. When the fight was at its
hottest, three girls entered.
"Wimmen! Wimmen!" As the girls walked down the aisle, infinitely pleased
with their reception, five hundred men stamped in time with their
steps.
No sooner were the girls seated than there was a scramble in one corner,
an excited scuffling of feet. "I've got it!" a boy screamed. He stood on
his chair and held up a live mouse by its tail. There was a shout of
applause and then--"Play catch!"
The boy dropped the writhing mouse into a peanut bag, screwed the open
end tight-closed, and then threw the bag far across the room. Another
boy caught it and threw it, this time over the girls' heads. They
screamed and jumped upon their chairs, holding their skirts, and dancing
up and down in assumed terror. Back over their heads, back and over,
again and again the bagged mouse was thrown while the girls screamed and
the boys roared with delight. Suddenly one of the girls threw up her
arm, caught the bag deftly, held it for a second, and then tossed it
into the rear of the theater.
Cheers of terrifying violence broke loose: "Ray! Ray! Atta girl! Hot
dog! Ray, ray!" And then the lights went out.
"Moosick! Moosick! Moo-_sick_!" The audience stamped and roared,
whistled and howled. "Moosick! We want moosick!"
The pianist, an undergraduate, calmly strolle
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