a
foregone conclusion, and, sure of the money promised me by the
directors, Milly and I began to make plans for the cottage upon the
hill.

The Rube insisted on pitching Monday's game against the Torontos, and
although poor fielding gave them a couple of runs, they never had a
chance. They could not see the ball. The Rube wrapped it around their
necks and between their wrists and straight over the plate with such
incredible speed that they might just as well have tried to bat rifle
bullets.

That night I was happy. Spears, my veteran captain, was one huge
smile; Radbourne quietly assured me that all was over now but the
shouting; all the boys were happy.

And the Rube was the happiest of all. At the hotel he burst out with
his exceeding good fortune. He and Nan were to be married upon the
Fourth of July!

After the noisy congratulations were over and the Rube had gone, Spears
looked at me and I looked at him.

"Con," said he soberly, "we just can't let him get married on the
Fourth."

"Why not? Sure we can. We'll help him get married. I tell you it'll
save the pennant for us. Look how he pitched today! Nan Brown is our
salvation!"

"See here, Con, you've got softenin' of the brain, too. Where's your
baseball sense? We've got a pennant to win. By July Fourth we'll be
close to the lead again, an' there's that three weeks' trip on the
road, the longest an' hardest of the season. We've just got to break
even on that trip. You know what that means. If the Rube marries
Nan--what are we goin' to do? We can't leave him behind. If he takes
Nan with us--why it'll be a honeymoon! An' half the gang is stuck on
Nan Brown! An' Nan Brown would flirt in her bridal veil! ... Why
Con, we're up against a worse proposition than ever."

"Good Heavens! Cap. You're right," I groaned. "I never thought of
that. We've got to postpone the wedding.... How on earth can we?
I've heard her tell Milly that. She'll never consent to it. Say,
this'll drive me to drink."

"All I got to say is this, Con. If the Rube takes his wife on that
trip it's goin' to be an all-fired hummer. Don't you forget that."

"I'm not likely to. But, Spears, the point is this--will the Rube win
his games?"

"Figurin' from his work today, I'd gamble he'll never lose another
game. It ain't that. I'm thinkin' of what the gang will do to him an'
Nan on the cars an' at the hotels. Oh! Lord, Con, it ain't possible to
stand for that ho