"It"s a good thing for you there was a man like Smithers on second,"
returned Williamson. "It was a clean case of luck."
At this Dayguild laughed derisively, walking in to the bench.
Camden took the field. Woods stripped off his sweater and went into the box. He was a clean, fine-looking fellow in his suit. He had warmed up a little, and now he tossed a few to Williamson, who was on first.
Smithers, the captain of the Rocklands, was the first man to go to the plate. He was known to be a most remarkable little hitter, without a weak point that any pitcher had been able to discover.
Woods looked Smithers over, and then sent in a swift one that the little man let pa.s.s.
The umpire called a ball.
"Whew!" exclaimed Diamond. "That"s what I call speed."
"You don"d peen aple to seen dot pall ad all, eh?" cried Hans.
"Merry," said Bart, "Woods is the first fellow I ever saw who reminded me of you in the box."
Smithers went after the next ball, but fouled it over the fence, and a new ball was put into play. Again and again he fouled.
"You are finding him," cried the Rockland rooters.
At last Smithers. .h.i.t it fairly on the trade mark, and sent it out into right field for a single.
The Rockland crowd was delighted.
"Why, Woods is easy!" they roared.
Woods was not ruffled in the least. When the ball was thrown in, he entered the box with it immediately, and then suddenly snapped his left foot out and shot the ball over to first.
Smithers saved himself by a hair"s breadth. It was a close decision on the part of the umpire.
"Did you get onto that motion with his foot?" came eagerly from Hodge.
"It"s Merriwell exactly! Why, the fellow appears more and more like you, Frank!"
"That"s so," grunted Browning.
Edwards, Rockland"s shortstop, followed Smithers at bat. He was a large, stocky, red-headed fellow, inclined to swagger and make more or less unnecessary talk, but a good ball player and a hard hitter.
"Don"t let him catch you, Smithers," he cried. "I"ll land you on third."
Woods smiled. He was feeling first rate, and he did not believe Edwards could keep his word. While standing carelessly in the box, he gave a hitch at his pants with both hands, the right hand holding the ball, and then sent a scorcher over the plate so quickly that Edwards was not prepared and did not offer at it.
"One strike!" decided the umpire.
"That"s the way to fool "em on the first one," laughed Frank Merriwell, softly. "Woods is up to tricks. Boys, that fellow is a dandy, I believe."
Smithers tried to get a good start from first, but Woods kept him close to the base, much to the delight of the Camden crowd. All Camden was confident that Rockland was doomed to defeat that day.
The second ball was a coaxer, but Edwards let it pa.s.s. Then came another swift one, and the batter went after it and missed it entirely.
The Camden crowd howled its delight.
"That"s the stuff, Woodsie!" yelled a voice. "Leave Smithers on first, same as they left Williamson."
"He can"t do it, you know!" sung back a Rockland rooter.
Woods was the essence of coolness. He teased Edwards with two out-drops, and then he seemed to gather himself for a speedy one. As the batting score stood three b.a.l.l.s and two strikes, the batter felt that Woods would use a straight, swift ball and try to cut a corner of the plate.
Woods seemed to send the ball with all the strength he could command, but, strange to say, it lingered in the air, and, too late, Edwards saw it was a slow one.
The big shortstop bit at it. He smashed at it with all his strength, and he hit the ball with the tip of his bat. The coacher had sent Smithers for second on that ball when it left Woods" hand. It was too late to stop him when they saw the ball popped up into the air as an easy infield fly.
Makune called out that he would take it, and ran in under it. Edwards, who had a lame knee, ran as if sprinting for his life. The ball hung in the air a long time, while Makune stood under it, waiting for it to come down.
When it did come down it created one of the sensations of the day, for it dropped into Makune"s hands and fell out. There was a roar of astonishment that this crack infielder of the New England League should drop a ball like that. Makune was the most astonished man within the inclosure of that ball ground, for he had not done anything like that before during the entire season.
Then there was a kick, as Moslof claimed that Makune dropped it purposely, and, as he had thrown the ball over to first on picking it up, Edwards was out on an infield fly, even though he had reached the base ahead of the ball.
The umpire knew his business, however, and did not get rattled. He knew that the rules declared a batter was out on an infield fly that could be handled, providing there was a runner on first; even though the fielder dropped the ball for the purpose of luring the man off first. But Smithers had left first before Edwards struck the ball and was well on his way to second, while Makune had not dropped the fly as a trick, but because he could not hold it. The umpire decided that Smithers had stolen second and Edwards was safe on first, which caused the Rockland crowd to go wild with satisfaction, while the Camdenites groaned in dismay, those who did not understand the point in the game declaring it was an outrage, and those who did feeling that the umpire understood it too well to be fooled.
Gulsiver, Rockland"s center fielder, was the next batter. He went after the second ball and found it, knocking it straight at Mower. Mower was an erratic player, and, on this occasion, he stopped the ball, but he chased it around his feet long enough to permit Gulsiver to get first safely, and Smithers and Edwards moved up a base each.
The bags were full!
"That"s a hard start for Camden," said Frank Merriwell, feeling his sympathy go out toward the boys in red.
"Dot Voods don"d seem to peen doin" a great deal mit der Rocklandt poys," observed Hans.
"It"s not Woods" fault," declared Merry. "Smithers is the only man who has secured a hit off him."
If Woods was worried or disgusted, he did not betray it. He continued to pitch coolly and deliberately, for all the yelling of the Rockland crowd and chinning of the coachers.
He struck out the next man, and followed that up by causing Hammond, the fifth batter, to put up a low, infield fly, which Woods looked after himself and caught.
Then it was Camden"s turn to howl again, for, although the bases were full, two men had been sent to the bench in a minute by the cool little pitcher in crimson.
"This looks better," said Merriwell, beginning to smile again. "I"ll bet something Rockland does not score."
Shaddock was the next man at bat. Woods fooled him on a wide curve and a swift inshoot. Then Shaddock got mad and nearly broke his back hitting the ball.
The ball struck the ground near the home plate and rolled lazily down toward third. Smithers had started for home, and Woods started for the ball. As he pa.s.sed the ball, Smithers tried to kick it aside, even though he was taking chances of being seen by the umpire in doing the trick. He failed to touch it, however, and, the next instant, Woods gathered it up with one hand, taking it as he ran directly from first base. Smithers was between him and the plate, and he could not see the catcher. He did not hesitate a fraction of a second, he did not even pause to straighten up, but, in a stooping position, he swung his arm low and sent the ball whistling to first. Spectators afterward declared that at no time was that ball more than two feet above the ground. It went straight to first, Williamson gathered it in, and the Rocklands were out without scoring.
Then such a roar went up to the heights of old Megunticook! The old mountain must have fancied that the Indian warriors of long, long years ago had returned and were holding a mighty powwow down there in its shadow.
Men and boys were frantic. They hammered each other on the back, they flung their hats into the air. Women screamed with joy and waved their handkerchiefs. And Woods--just then he was the hero of the moment.
Scores of pretty girls were hugging each other and declaring that he was "just perfectly lovely." But he was as cool and unruffled as ever, seemingly utterly deaf to the roars of applause.
"I guess Camden is all right, after all," laughed Merriwell.