on me. Then you can see just what it does. Now
you think I'm going to pitch one sort of a ball, and if I pitch
anything else, you're up in the air right away."

At last, in huge disgust, Pete hurled his bat away from him, after
making a mighty swing at a slow floater. He seemed to be furious.

"Easy there, Pete!" said Jack, amused at this display of temper, as he
picked up the bat and advanced toward Pete to return it to him.

"I wasn't mad," said Pete, in a low whisper. "I just wanted to talk to
you without anyone knowing that I wanted to. Say, Jack, there's
someone watching us."

"Watching us, Pete? Why should anyone do that?"

"It's Lawrence,--that chap that's going to pitch for the Raccoons,
Jack. I'm sure of it! He and Harry Norman are behind that fence over
there--the sneaks!"

Jack dropped back to his position without saying anything more. He was
careful for a minute or two not to look in the direction of the fence
that Pete had referred to. But when he did look, his keen eyes were
not long in finding out that Pete had been right. There were spies
behind the fence, and they were studying every ball he pitched.

A few moments later he found, or made, another chance to speak to Pete.

"You were right, Pete," he said. "They are watching us from there."

"Let's chase them out of there, Jack!"

"Not a bit of it, Pete. I don't want them to know we've found out
they're there--not now, at any rate. If they're mean enough to try to
find something out by spying that way, I'll be mean enough to give them
something to look at that won't do them much good!"

"Say, Jack, that's the stuff! That's better than giving them a
licking, too. What'll you do?"

"Just wait and see! And hit these balls just as hard as you can."

The ball looked as big as a house now to Pete as it came sailing up to
him. Mysteriously all the "stuff" that Jack had been "putting on" the
ball was gone and done with. The balls Jack pitched now were either
straight or broke so widely that almost anyone could have batted home
runs galore off him. And Pete, who saw the point, swung wildly at
every one of them, hitting them easily.

"That's a fine joke," said Pete. "They won't find out very much about
what you can do as a pitcher from that--that's a sure thing! If
Lawrence thinks that's the best thing you can do when you get in the
box I'm afraid he'll get an awful jolt tomorrow."

"I hope so, Pete. The sneak--you were qu