oan, not only from Fatty, but
also from Spouter and Ned Lowe. Then with one voice the three shouted:

"Down with him! He's at it again!"

"I don't believe any of you know the date," retorted Dan Soppinger. "If
you did, you'd tell me. I am writing an article about the presidents,
and I've got to put that in. And then, here's another thing. Can any of
you tell me who crossed the Pacific Ocean to----"

But whatever the question was, it was never finished, for at that
moment Spouter, Fatty, Ned and several others piled on Dan Soppinger
and brought him to the gymnasium floor.

"Hi! You let up!" cried the victim, squirming from under the others as
best he could. "Can't a fellow ask a question or two without you
starting such a rough-house as this?"

"No questions to be asked, Dan, until the regular school term begins,"
answered Spouter. "Then all you've got to do is to go to the Rover
boys----"

"Not much!" came simultaneously from Andy and Randy.

"Do you take us for a school library?" questioned Fred, gaily.

"I'll answer all the easy ones, Dan," said Jack, good-naturedly. "The
hard ones I'll turn over to Spouter. If the question is a real sensible
one, he'll give you a nice little answer--one about twelve hundred
words long."

"Hurrah! Spouter is discovered at last!" cried Fatty. "Twelve hundred
words long just fits it--that is, if Spouter is in a hurry to cut it
short."

The Rover boys were much interested in what was taking place in the
gymnasium, and they even tried out some of the bars and swinging rings,
as well as one of the exercising machines.

"This is certainly an up-to-date institution," remarked Jack. "This gym
couldn't be better."

"How about the boats?" questioned Randy. He and his brother had owned a
rowboat on the Hudson River, and had often gone out in the craft.

"Oh, we've got half a dozen good rowboats, as well as several racing
shells," answered Spouter. "You'll probably get a chance to look them
over later."

While the Rover boys were taking in the sights to be seen in and around
the gymnasium, their attention was attracted to a tall, well-formed
cadet who was doing some clever work on one of the bars.

"He's doing that almost as well as a circus performer," was Fred's
comment.

"Yes; he's certainly very graceful," returned Jack. "I wonder who he
is."

"That is Walt Baxter," announced a cadet who had heard the talk.

"Walt Baxter!" exclaimed Randy. "I wonder if he can be the so