Batting to Win: A Story of College Baseball

  CHAPTER XIII

  A SPORTY COMPANION

  "Where's my blue tie?" cried Tom, tumbling about the things on hisbureau. "Have you seen it, Phil?"

  "Well, I like your nerve! Yes, I used it as a shoe polishing rag,"remarked Phil sarcastically. "You'll find it on the blue-tie hook, Ishould say. Why don't you look there."

  "Blue-tie hook?" queried Tom.

  "Yes. You're such an orderly chap," added Phil, as he looked at hischum's disordered side of the room, "that I supposed you had a hook foreach tie."

  "Oh, cut it out," advised Tom, making a perfect shower with a rainboweffect of colored silks, as he looked in vain for the blue article ofadornment.

  "I don't know where in blazes your blue tie is," went on Phil, as hegazed with a puzzled air into a box on his dresser; "but I'd like toknow where my garnet cuff buttons are. Have you been sporting 'em,Sid?"

  "Me? No!" answered the other chum, who was quietly dressing, a taskwhich Tom and Phil seemed to think called for more or less elaborateeffort. "But, say, what's getting into you chaps, anyhow? You're toggingup as much for the soph picnic as though it was a frat. dance. Are theresome damsels in the offing?"

  "Oh, there are always girls to these affairs," carelessly spoke Tom, ashe opened another drawer and began tumbling about his collars and cuffs."Hang it all, where _is_ that tie, anyhow."

  "I s'pose nothing but a baby-blue one would suit your fair complexion,"remarked Phil, glancing at Tom, who was as brown as an Indian from hisout-door life.

  "It will suit me as well as your cute little garnet cuff buttons willyou. I never saw such a fusser! Ah, there's the tie. I remember now, Iput it there to hide it away from you chaps," and Tom pulled out agorgeous affair of silk from inside a cuff.

  "Speak for yourself, you old fossil!" retorted Phil, who just thendiscovered his cuff buttons marking a place in his Ovid. "Wonder how inblazes they got there?" he murmured, as he proceeded to put them in hiscuffs, while Tom was busy trying to make just the proper knot with theblue tie.

  "Why are you fellows togging up so?" demanded Sid. "Are you going totake some girls, as well as meet some there?" And, for the first time heseemed to entertain some suspicions of his friends.

  "Oh, well, Ruth wanted to go," said Phil, as indifferently as he could,"and Tom and I promised to----"

  "I suppose Miss Tyler is going?" asked Sid quietly.

  "Yes," assented Tom, his face flushing under its bronze coat, thoughpossibly it was from his exertion in pulling his tie into place.

  "And so is Miss Harrison," went on Phil, with a desperate effort, as ifdesirous of getting the worst over. "But you don't need to worry," headded, as he saw Sid sit limply down in a chair. "She probably won't seeyou, so there need be no embarrassment. I thought it was a pity to haveher miss it, especially as Ruth and Madge are going, and she rooms withthem. We thought you wouldn't mind, old fellow, but we weren't going totell you."

  "So that's what you've been so mysterious about these last few days,"commented Sid. "I thought something was up. Of course it's all right. Isha'n't annoy Miss Harrison, only--Oh, what's the use!" and he went onwith his preparations.

  It was the morning of the day of the annual sophomore picnic, and therewas much excitement, especially in the ranks of the second-year men,and the more or less numerous fair ones who counted on being taken tothe charming little island in the middle of Lake Tonoka. The affair wasalways held at this season of the year, when there was no danger of anattack from the freshmen students, who, by this time, had settled downinto something approaching dignity.

  "You're not going to back out, because she--Miss Harrison--is coming,are you?" asked Phil, as he saw Sid cease his arrangements for dressing.

  "No--no--of course not. I was just--just thinking. I'll take my cameraand specimen box along, and do a little work in biology and naturestudy. I need a little freshening up for the final exams. I probablywon't see much of you chaps."

  Phil and Tom departed ahead of Sid, who busied himself with his camera,his specimen box and his cyanide bottle, with which latter he painlesslykilled such bugs and butterflies as he captured.

  "We'll see you later," called Tom, as, with his blue tie very much inevidence, he and Phil went to get the girls.

  A picnic is pretty much the same the world over, even if it is gotten upby a college crowd, and the one on Crest Island was no exception. Therewas the usual screaming of the girls when the boats tipped, and theusual strolling in shady nooks by youths and maidens, there was fungalore and happiness on all sides, for the day was perfect.

  Madge Tyler, Ruth Clinton and Mabel Harrison were walking along withPhil and Tom, having just come in from a ride around the lake in a motorlaunch.

  "What shall we do now?" asked Ruth.

  "We'll soon have the pleasure of seeing some ants do a waltz or atwo-step in the butter," announced Tom. "I see the waiters getting thetables ready," for a caterer had been hired by the students to provideluncheon.

  "How interesting," remarked Madge. "Suppose we go over there in theshade----" She paused suddenly, and with a little gesture to Ruth wenton hurriedly: "Oh, no, let's go this way."

  "That's too sunny," objected Mabel. "I'd rather go over in the shade,and----"

  She, too, stopped, and then she saw what had made her chum hesitate. SidHenderson was approaching them on a path which had no turn in it, asthey had passed the only one just as Madge tried to branch off. Therewas no help for it. Sid was creeping up with his camera, intent ongetting a picture of a large butterfly that had alighted on a flower,and, as yet, he had not seen the little party.

  Miss Harrison was at once aware that her two girl chums had endeavoredto save her the embarrassment of meeting Sid, but it was too late toturn back gracefully now, and with an admirable assumption of calmnessthe girl said:

  "Oh, isn't it interesting! I hope Mr. Henderson gets his picture. I didnot know he was a naturalist."

  Tom and Phil both breathed easier. It seemed that Miss Harrison wouldnot "cut" Sid after all. Perhaps their precautions had been useless.

  They were not aware that a girl can sometimes, under force ofcircumstances, assume a part she does not feel. It was this way withMabel Harrison. She did not want to meet Sid, but she was too culturedto cause his friends sorrow by refusing to notice his presence. So, withsomewhat heightened color, she stood in the group composed of her chums,Phil and Tom, and watched the young naturalist coming nearer and nearer.So intent was Sid on getting the picture that he had not, as yet, seenhis chums or the girls.

  There was a click of the camera, and, a moment later, after the exposurehad been made, the gorgeous butterfly sailed gracefully off through theair.

  "Did you get it?" called out Tom, and Sid looked up.

  "Yes," he replied. "A fine and rare specimen." Then he saw Miss Harrison,and halted in his approach, which he had begun. But, he also, was tooproud to turn back now, and came on. The others advanced toward him,and Miss Harrison was just bowing, coolly perhaps, but with a show ofcordiality, when from the bushes there stepped a gaily attired youth,whom neither Phil, Tom, nor either of the girls seemed to know.

  "Hello, Sid, old chap!" greeted the newcomer in easy but rather tooloud tones. "I've been trying to pipe you off for ever so long. Lookedall over for you. Say, this place is dead slow. Not even so much as aring-cane game. What makes you college sports come here? It's too deadfor me. But I've found a bunch of good things. Come on over and we'llhave a little poker, and I'll depend on you to----"

  The sportily dressed youth paused, for Sid had started back with horrorat the sight of him, and had made an unmistakable gesture of caution.

  "What's the matter?" went on the flashily attired one. "Ain't I goodenough to speak to you? Or maybe you think the dames give me thefussers. Not a bit of it. Pleased to meet you, girls," and he made pertbows to the three young ladies, who returned them with mere nods, forthey expected to learn that the new arrival was a friend of Sid's,however undesirable he might seem.

  "How
came you here? What do you want?" demanded Sid, and the hand thatheld the camera trembled.

  "I came after you," was the answer. "Called up at the brain factory, andthey told me the whole bunch of second year boys were off on a chowderparty, so I took a boat and came here. I thought I'd have some sport,but it's dead slow. Come on, and I'll show you some fun. I've got a deckof cards and----"

  Sid was quickly at the side of the sporty one, and uttered something ina hoarse whisper.

  "Oh, that's all right then, don't mind me," came the answer, and theyouth leered at the girls. Tom was with difficulty keeping downhis anger, while Phil was hopelessly wondering who on earth Sid'sacquaintance could be.

  Miss Harrison, who had started to greet Sid, drew back and there was alook of disgust on her face. She turned aside, and started back.

  "Don't go away--I like your style," called the sporty lad. "We needanother lady as it is. Don't go away."

  "Keep quiet!" begged Sid desperately. "I'll go with you. Come on," and,to the surprise of his friends, Sid turned into the woods, and followedthe youth, who impudently took off his hat and threw kisses to thegirls, as they turned their backs. Miss Harrison had disappeared arounda turn in the path.