"I"d feel better if I thought I wouldn"t."
"You"ll be all right," said Foster soothingly, for he understood his friend so well that he knew he was in one of his periods of mental reaction, and that what he needed was encouragement more than anything else.
"And just think of it," continued Will gloomily, "you"re about the only one of the fellows I ever see nowadays. I don"t believe I"ve seen Hawley in three weeks, that is to have a word with him."
"Who has?"
"I don"t know. All the fellows, I suppose."
"Not much! Hawley is working like a Trojan on the football team. You know that as well as I do."
"I suppose that"s so. Still I"d like to see the fellow once in a while."
"He"s a good man all right and I"ve a notion that he"s saved Peter John from more than one sc.r.a.pe because he roomed with him."
"I haven"t seen Peter John either for more than a week."
"We ought to look him up and keep an eye on him."
""Keep an eye on him"? You want to keep both eyes and your hands and your feet too, for the matter of that. He certainly is the freshest specimen I ever saw, and the worst of it all is that he doesn"t seem to know that he lacks anything. He"s just as confident when he marches up to Wagner and gives him some points in running the track team as he is when he"s telling you and me how to work up our Greek. And the fellow has flunked in Greek every time he"s been called up for the past ten days."
"Yes, I know it. That"s why I said we ought to look out for him."
"He"s got to learn how to look out for himself."
"He needs a tutor, though, Will--"
"Same as I do in my Greek? That"s not nice of you, Foster. It"s bad enough to have to work up the stuff without having it rubbed in. And yet," said Will quietly, "I suppose I am in the same box with Peter John. He doesn"t know some things and I don"t know others."
"No one has everything," said Foster quickly.
"Startling fact! But we fellows who live in gla.s.s houses mustn"t throw stones I "fawncy," as my learned instructor would put it. There I am again, finding fault even with Splinter when I ought to be boning on this Greek to make up for my own lacks. Here I go!" And Will resolutely turned to the books which were lying open on his desk.
The silence that reigned in the room was broken in a few minutes when Hawley opened the door and entered. His coming was greeted enthusiastically, and when he had accepted the invitation to be seated, he said quickly, "I can"t stay, fellows."
"You never can nowadays, Hawley. Since you"ve been on the team you"ve shaken all your old friends."
"You"d shake too, if you had the captain over you that we have."
"Is he hard?"
"Hard? He beats every coach we"ve got. He goes into the game as if there wasn"t anything else to think of."
"It counts though," responded Will emphatically. "We haven"t lost but two games so far this season, and they were with ---- and ----. Of course we couldn"t expect to win those."
"Oh, we"ve done fairly well. But the hardest rub is coming next Sat.u.r.day. That"s when we"re going down to the city to have our game with Alden. There"ll be a big crowd out, and the Alden alumni are mighty strong around town there too, and they"ll be out in bunches. We"ve got to keep up our end, and that"s why I"ve come over to see you fellows. I want you both to go next Sat.u.r.day."
"Sure!" shouted Will, leaping to his feet. "We"ll be on hand. You rest your soul easy about that."
"How many are going, Hawley?" inquired Foster quietly.
"So far, about half the college have agreed to go. We"d like to get another hundred to go along. It will make a big difference to the team.
Last year there were six thousand people on the grounds, and it rained hard too, all the time. This year, if we have a good day, there"ll be ten thousand on hand anyway."
"How are the fellows going down?" said Foster.
"Chartered a special train."
"What"s the fare?"
"About six dollars for the round trip."
"Come back the same day?"
"Can if you want to, the train is coming back that night after the game.
But a good many will stay over till Monday."
"When do you have to know?"
"You ought to give in your names by to-morrow night. Peter John is going along. I think he"ll be a good mascot, don"t you?" laughed Hawley.
"I"m sorry Peter John is going," said Foster thoughtfully.
"Sorry!" exclaimed Hawley aghast. "Why, man alive, he"ll have the time of his life."
"That"s what I"m afraid of, and besides he ought not to spend the money."
"I don"t know anything about that," said Hawley quickly. "But he may make enough on the game to pay all his expenses."
"Has he staked money on the game?" said Will.
"You"ll have to ask him," retorted Hawley somewhat sharply. "We can count on you two fellows then, can we?"
"That"s what you can!" replied Will heartily.
"I"ll think about it and let you know in the morning," said Foster. And Hawley at once departed from the room.
"What do you suppose it means that Peter John is going?" was Foster"s first question after their visitor had departed.
"I don"t know, but I don"t like the look of it," responded Will.
"Neither do I. Can we do anything to stop it?"
"No, I"m afraid not. Peter John is getting beyond us."
Foster shook his head thoughtfully but made no response, and the work was resumed. For an hour each boy labored at his desk, and then Foster was the first to break in upon the silence.
"Will," he said, "I think I"ll go with you on that trip with the team."