themselves.

"Now then, fighting will begin when the school-bell rings out four!"
cried the cadet who had been made referee. "The company that chases the
other company over its back line wins the contest. No fighting with
anything but snow allowed. Anybody using his fists, or a stone, or a
lump of ice, will be ruled out of the contest."

With all possible speed the young soldiers started to supply themselves
with snowballs, and soon each had ten to twenty in his hands and pockets
and under his arms or at his feet.

"Get ready!" shouted Bart, as he glanced hastily at his watch.

"Give it to 'em hot when the bell rings!" came from Henry Lee.

Half a minute more and the Hall bell commenced to toll out the hour. The
bell had not yet ceased to ring when there came a grand shower of
snowballs from each company. The shower was so thick that a few of the
snowballs hit each other.

"Forward!" shouted Captain Bart.

"Forward!" echoed Captain Henry.

And then the two long lines of cadets rushed forward over the
snow-covered field until they were within thirty or forty feet of each
other. Then came another shower of snowballs.

"Wow!" yelled one cadet. "Oh, my nose!"

"Caesar's helmet! That hit me in the eye!" came from another.

"Say, don't try to knock out all my teeth!" added a third.

"Charge!" yelled the captain of Company A. "Charge! Get 'em on the run
right now!"

"Stand firm!" came from the commander of Company B. "Now then, fire!"

The rush of Company A was met with an extra heavy volley of snowballs.
The cadets staggered under the onslaught and then came to a halt.

"Now then, up and at 'em!" yelled Captain Bart. And yelling like wild
Indians, his command charged on Company A. The snowballs flew thick and
fast, and slowly but surely Company A was forced to give ground until it
stood on the line from which it had started. But by that time Company B
was out of ammunition and had to pause to manufacture more snowballs.

In the ranks of Company A were Ritter, Coulter and Paxton. Paxton had of
late somewhat dropped the others, but Reff and Gus were as thick as
ever. They were now standing side by side.

"Say, I'd like to give it to Ruddy and those others," muttered Coulter.

"So would I," whispered Ritter in return. "Confound 'em, I'd like to
know if they really know the truth about the bicycles."

"I don't see how they found out; nobody was around when you fixed 'em
up."

"Maybe somebody was spying; th