the playing of either team, and, since a slump is always looked for at
some time during the season, both Mr. Robey and Danny Moore were getting
anxious. Danny almost begged the fellows to go stale a little. "It ain't
natural," he declared. "It's got to come, so let it and have it over
with." Neither had there been any injuries of moment. On this score
Danny had no regrets, however. He was a good trainer and prided himself
on his ability to condition his charges so that they would escape
injuries.

Of course there had been plenty of bruises--one mild case of
charley-horse, several dislocated or sprained fingers, a wrenched ankle
or two and any number of cuts and scrapes, but none of the injuries had
interfered with work for more than three or four days and not once had
any first-string member of the 'varsity missed an outside game by reason
of them. Steve's share of the injuries was a bruised shoulder sustained
in a flying tackle that was more enthusiastic than scientific, and the
thing bothered him for several days but did not keep him off the field.
Tom, who played opposite Jay Fowler in scrimmage, was forever getting
his countenance disfigured. Not that Fowler meant to leave his mark, but
he was a big, powerful, hard-fighting chap and there were plenty of
times when both parties to the practice games quite forgot that they
were friends. Tom was seldom seen without a strip of court-plaster
pasted to some portion of his face.

It was four days after the Phillips game, to be exact, on the following
Wednesday, that the first and second got together for what turned out to
be the warmest struggle of the season in civil combat. It was a cold,
leaden day, with a stinging breeze out of the northeast, and every
fellow who wore a head-guard felt as full of ginger as a young colt. The
second trotted over from their gridiron at four and found the first on
its toes to get at them. Things started off with a whoop. The second
received the kick-off and Marvin ran the ball back forty yards through a
broken field before he was nailed. Encouraged by that excellent
beginning, the scrub team went at it hammer and tongs. There was a fine
old hole that day between Sawyer and Williams, and the second's backs
ploughed through for gain after gain before the opposing line was
cemented together again there. By that time the ball was down near the
'varsity's ten yards and Captain Miller was frothing at the mouth, while
the opposing coaches were h