trike it; it slips under
it; there is a little "click" behind my back, and then the ball flies
aloft, and I discover that my services at the wicket are no longer
required.

So ended my first innings. Happily for our side, some of the men who
went in afterwards made a better show than we three unfortunates who had
opened the ball had done. Steel made forty, and two others about twenty
each, which, added to the odds and ends contributed by the rest of our
side, brought the Parkhurst score up to 102--72 runs behind our
competitors.

There was great jubilation among the Westfield partisans, as their
heroes entered on their second innings under such promising auspices,
especially when the redoubtable Driver went in first with the bat which
had wrought such wonders in the former innings. There seemed every
probability, too, of his repeating his late performance with even
greater vigour, for the first ball which reached him he sent flying far
and high right over the tents for six, a magnificent hit, which fairly
deserved the praise it received, not from the Westfield fellows only,
but from ours, who for a moment could forget their rivalry to admire a
great exploit. The next three balls were delivered to his partner at
the wickets, who blocked carefully, evidently bent on acting on the
defensive while his companion made the running. From the fifth ball of
that over a bye was scored, which brought Driver once again to the end
facing the bowler. The next ball came slightly to the "off," and he
tried to cut it. Either he miscalculated, or was careless about the
direction he gave it, for he lodged it clean into my hands, a safe and
easy catch, but a catch of enormous importance to our side, as it
disposed once and for all of our most dreaded opponent.

Bereft of their champion, the Westfield fellows only succeeded in
putting together the moderate score of fifty in their second innings, of
which twenty-four were contributed by one man. So our spirits revived
somewhat, as we discovered we had only 123 to make to win. That was
indeed plenty against such bowling, but it was a good deal less than we
had dreaded.

Well, the decisive innings began, as soon as we had fortified ourselves
with lunch, provided for us by our hospitable rivals. The afternoon was
getting on, but still the crowd of spectators kept together patiently,
determined to see the end of the match.

"Shall we do it?" I heard some one ask of Steel.

"Do