n of all
Willoughby.

"Well caught, sir! Caught, indeed! Played up, Riddell!" were the cries
which on all hands greeted the achievement, Wyndham's call being longest
and loudest of them all.

But this time Riddell suffered no harm from the sound of that familiar
voice. He had steeled himself against it for a few hours at least, and
it was to him but one out of many.

Rockshire's first innings terminated shortly with no further event of
note. The last wicket fell for ninety-two, a respectable total, of
which fifty-nine had been made off the Parretts' batsmen, and thirty-
three off the schoolhouse. Indeed, the advantage of the schoolhouse did
not end there. Out of three catches--not counting Riddell's--they had
made two, while of the five wickets which had been taken by the bowling,
they claimed three against their rivals' two.

Great was the dismay of Parrett's as these results were made known.
They buoyed themselves up greatly, however, with the prospect of the
batting, where it would be strange indeed if they did not score better
than the schoolhouse. And after all, it is the runs that win a match.

Bloomfield himself, be it said to his credit, allowed no petty
considerations of party rivalry to influence him in sending in the best
men at the right time. However much in some ways he might lend himself
to the whims of his more energetic comrades, in a matter like the
Rockshire match, where he was in sole command, and responsible for the
glory of the school, he acted with the sole object of winning the match.

It would have been easy to send in Fairbairn and Porter last, when they
would have no chance of scoring; or Coates, who was a rash hitter, and
never was safe until the back of the bowling had been somewhat broken,
might have been sent in first.

But such an arrangement Bloomfield knew would be fatal for the chances
of the school, and it therefore never entered his head to contrive it.
And his fairness in this respect was fully justified, for the school put
together a hundred and twelve runs--just twenty more than their
opponents--a performance which not even the most sanguine Willoughbite
had dared to anticipate. Towards this total Riddell, who had gone in
last and carried his bat, had contributed seven, not a little to his own
surprise and the delight of the onlooking Welchers. But the most
remarkable thing about the innings was that, contrary to all
calculation, the five schoolhouse fellows had