gs might be muddled away in the getting of them.

"You go in, Fairbairn," said the captain.

The Parretts felt their fate to be sealed hopelessly. Had Game been
sent in he might still have done something for Parrett's, but now his
chance might never come.

It did not come. Fairbairn joined Crossfield, and the two did just what
they liked with the bowling. As the score shot up from fifty to sixty
and from sixty to seventy, the school became perfectly hoarse with
cheering. Even most of the partisans of Parrett's, sorely as the match
was going against them, could not help joining in the applause now that
the prospect of the school winning by seven wickets had become a
probability.

Up went the score--another three for Fairbairn--another two for
Crossfield--seventy-five--then next moment a terrific cheer greeted a
four by Fairbairn, which brought the numbers equal; and before the
figures were well registered another drive settled the question, and
Willoughby had beaten Rockshire by seven wickets!

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE.

"AM I MY BROTHER'S KEEPER?"

The evening of the Rockshire match was one of strangely conflicting
emotions in Willoughby.

In the schoolhouse the jubilation was beyond bounds, and the victory of
the school was swallowed up in the glorious exploits of the five
schoolhouse heroes, who had, so their admirers declared, as good as won
the match among them, and had vindicated themselves from the reproach of
degeneracy, and once for all wiped away the hateful stigma of the boat-
race. The night was spent till bedtime in one prolonged cheer in honour
of their heroes, who were glad enough to hide anywhere to escape the
mobbing they came in for whenever they showed their faces.

In Parrett's house the festivities were of a far more subdued order. As
Willoughbites they were, of course, bound to rejoice in the victory of
the old school. But at what cost did they do it? For had not that very
victory meant also the overthrow of their reign in Willoughby. No
reasoning or excusing could do away with the fact that after all their
boasting, and all their assumed superiority, they had taken considerably
less than half the wickets, secured considerably less than a third of
the catches, and scored considerably less than a quarter of the runs by
which the match had been won. Their captain had been bowled for a
duck's-egg. Their best bowlers had been knocked about by the very
batsmen whom the schoolhouse bo