to put Grant back on the
slab to avert the disgrace of being beaten by this bunch of kid
pick-ups."

A sudden gust of anger caused Springer to glare, speechless, at the
annoying shortstop; and he was so much disturbed that, in spite of all
he could do, the next batter, "waiting it out," was rewarded for his
patience by a pass. Within a few moments both these runners advanced
on a long fly to the outfield, dropped by Stone after a hard run.

Springer forced a laugh. "Can't expect to hold the kids dud-down with
that sort of support," he cried.

He did strike the following hitter out; and then came Hooker, who found
a bender and straightened it for a sizzling two-bagger that sent in
both runners.

Springer longed to quit at this juncture, but, being ashamed to do so,
he relaxed his efforts and pitched indifferently, permitting the two
following scrubmen to hit the ball. It chanced, however, that neither
of these fellows hit safely, both perishing in a desperate sprint for
the initial sack.

Rodney Grant, jogging in from the field, seated himself beside Springer
on the bench.

"You were a little out of form that inning, son," he said; "but you'll
be all right next trip, I opine."

Without replying, Springer got up and began pawing over the bats, as if
searching among them for some special favorite.

Hooker again pitched very well, indeed, but poor support gave the
regulars a score, and they would have obtained more had not Roy risen
to the occasion, with one down and the bases full, and struck two
hitters out.

Although Phil showed some improvement in the fourth inning, and the
scrub team did not succeed in securing another tally, he felt all the
while that his teammates were watching him closely and comparing or
contrasting his work with that of Hooker; nor did he forget that in the
first two innings Grant had performed more successfully.

To the surprise of many, fumbles and bad throws behind Hooker in the
fourth did not seem to discourage him, and he persisted in pitching as
if the game was one of some importance and he had resolved to do his
part, no matter what happened. The errors gave the regular team three
runs and the lead, and it was Hooker's work alone that kept them from
obtaining several more.

In the fifth and last, Phil whipped the ball over spitefully, and only
one batter hit it safely. Nevertheless, with the contest ended and the
fellows trooping toward the gymnasium, he noticed that no