other sophomores shared them with him. They confined Ken in the end
room, where he was safely locked and guarded from any possible chance
to escape.

For the first day or two it was irksome for Ken; but as he and his
captors grew better acquainted the strain eased up, and Ken began to
enjoy himself as he had not since coming to the university.

He could not have been better provided for. His books were at hand,
and even notes of the lectures he was missing were brought to him. The
college papers and magazines interested him, and finally he was much
amused by an account of his mysterious disappearance. All in a day he
found himself famous. Then Dale and his room-mates were so friendly and
jolly that if his captivity had not meant the disgrace of the freshman
class, Ken would have rejoiced in it. He began to thaw out, though he
did not lose his backwardness. The life of the great university began
to be real to him. Almost the whole sophomore class, in squads of twos
and threes and sixes, visited Dale's rooms during that week. No Soph
wanted to miss a sight of a captive bowl-man. Ken felt so callow and
fresh in their presence that he scarcely responded to their jokes.
Worry Arthur's nickname of "Kid" vied with another the coach conferred
on Ken, and that was "Peg." It was significant slang expressing the
little baseball man's baseball notion of Ken's throwing power.

The evening was the most interesting time for Ken. There was always
something lively going on. He wondered when the boys studied. When
some of the outside students dropped in there were banjo and guitar
playing, college songs, and college gossip.

"Come on, Peg, be a good fellow," they said, and laughed at his refusal
to smoke or drink beer.

"Molly!" mocked one.

"Willy-boy!" added another.

Ken was callow, young, and backward; but he had a temper, and this
kind of banter roused it easily. The red flamed into his cheeks.

"I promised my mother I wouldn't smoke or drink or gamble while I
was in college," he retorted, struggling with shame and anger.
"And I--I won't."

Dale stopped the good-natured chaff. "Fellows, stop guying Ward;
cut it out, I tell you. He's only a kid freshman, but he's liable
to hand you a punch, and if he does you'll remember it. Besides,
he's right.... Look here, Ward, you stick to that promise. It's a
good promise to stick to, and if you're going in for athletics it's
the best ever."

Worry Arthurs happened to be present on