E

BY that time Brimfield had played her second game and lost it, 6 to 14,
to Canterbury High School. Canterbury was not considered very formidable
and Brimfield usually had little trouble with her. But this year things
had gone wrong from the start of the game to the finish, wrong, that is,
from Brimfield's point of view. Fumbling had been much in evidence and
poor judgment even more. Carmine had worked like a Trojan at
quarter-back for two periods, but had somehow failed to display his
usually good generalship, and McPhee, who had taken his place at the
beginning of the second half, while he ran the team well, twice dropped
punts in the backfield, one of which accounted for Canterbury's second
touchdown and goal. Oddly enough, it was the veterans who failed most
signally to live up to expectations, and of all the veterans Tom Hall
was the worst offender. Possibly Tom's shoulder still bothered him, but
even that couldn't have accounted for all his shortcomings. Crewe, who
played tackle beside Tom, was not a very steady man, and Tom's errors
threw him off his game badly, with the result that, until Coach Robey
put Pryme in for Tom in the third period, Canterbury made a lamentable
number of gains at the right of the Brimfield line. Even Tim Otis,
usually undisturbed by anything short of an earthquake, was affected by
the playing of the others and finally had what he called a "brain-storm"
in the third period, getting the signals twisted and being thrown back
for an eight-yard loss. That misadventure bothered him so that he was
heartily glad when Gordon was rushed in a few minutes later.

The team took the beating to heart and the school at large was disposed
to indulge in sarcasm and bitterness. Only Coach Robey seemed
undisturbed. He lavished no praise, you may be sure, but, on the other
hand, neither did he utter any criticism after the contest was over.
Instead, he laid off more than half the line-up on Monday and Tuesday,
and, since the weather continued almost unseasonably warm, the rest was
just what the fellows needed. Wednesday's practice went with a new snap
and vim and those who broiled in the afternoon sun and watched it found
grounds for hope.

It was on Wednesday that Don began his connection with the second team,
and by then the injured hand was so well along that he was able to
discard the glove. Three days of kindergarten work followed, with, on
Saturday, a short signal drill. The first team journeyed