xpects to be, some day. But they're not going to have it all
their own way in Welch's again. Our club's going ahead like blazes now,
and we've challenged them for a return match the day before break-up."

"There's Tedbury out," says Telson. "Twenty runs he's made--not a bad
score. We'd better cheer him, I say."

And the two grandees suit the action to the word, and rejoice the heart
of Tedbury as he retires to the tent, by their lusty applause.

The Willoughbites do not do badly as a whole. A few of them, either
through incompetence or terror at the presence of old Wyndham, fail to
break their duck's-eggs, but the others among them put together the
respectable score of one hundred and five--the identical figures, by the
way, which Wyndham scored off his own bat the other day in the Colts'
match of his county.

During the interval there is a general incursion of spectators into the
ground, and a stampede by the more enthusiastic to the tent where the
great umpire is known to be "on show" for a short time.

Amongst others, Parson and Telson incautiously quit their seats, which
are promptly "bagged" by Bosher and Lawkins, who have had their eyes on
them all the morning, and are determined now, at any rate, to take the
reward of their patience, and hold them against all comers.

The crowd in the tent has not a long time wherein to feast its eyes on
the old captain, for Willoughby goes out to field almost at once, and
Templeton's innings begins. Whatever may have been the case with the
school, Templeton seems quite unable to perform under the eyes of the
great "M.C.C." man, and wicket after wicket falls in rapid succession,
until with the miserable total of fifty-one they finally retire for this
innings.

"A follow-on," says Game, who from near the tent is patronisingly
looking on, in company with Ashley, Tipper, and Wibberly. "I suppose
they ought to do them in one innings now?"

"Ought to try," says Tipper. "Some of these kids play fairly well."

"They get well coached, that's what it is. What with Bloomfield, and
Fairbairn, and Mr Parrett, they've been drilled, and no mistake."

"Let's see," says Wibberly, "there are five Parretts in the eleven,
aren't there."

Ashley laughs.

"I don't fancy any one thought of counting," says he. "Perhaps we'd
better not, or it may turn out as bad for us as in the Rockshire match."

"After all," says Tipper, "I'm just as glad those rows are over. We're
none the w