CHAPTER XIX ANOTHER CHALLENGE
"I know those fellows!" whispered Jack, as he and Andy came to a haltbehind convenient trees.
"So do I. They are Mr. Strong's two crazy relatives, Bart Callax andPaul Shaff."
The cadets hardly knew what to do.
"I want that million dollars!" cried the man named Callax. "Give it tome!"
"And I want the order for an airship," put in Paul Shaff.
"Bart! Paul! Let me go!" said George Strong. "You are making a mistake,I tell you!"
"If you don't give us what we want we'll tie you to a tree and burn youup!" cried Shaff.
"They are certainly crazy," whispered Andy. "They ought to be in anasylum."
"I wonder how they got here?"
"Ran away from those other relatives in the west, I suppose," returnedthe young major, and he spoke the exact truth. The relatives had beenlooking all over for the crazy men, but without success.
Suddenly the two crazy men threw George Strong flat on his back andbegan to beat him with their fists.
"Come, we must do what we can!" cried Jack, and ran forward.
The man named Callax was closest to him, and raising his stick he dealtthe fellow a blow that caused him to fall dazed on the sward.
At the same time Andy hit Paul Shaff a glancing blow on the shoulder.The crazy man turned, leaped up, and caught the cadet by the throat.
"Le--let go of--of m--me!" gasped Andy.
"Boys! I am glad you came!" burst from George Strong's lips. Hescrambled up and caught Shaff by the arm. "Let him go, do you hear,Paul! Let him go, I say!" And after an effort he managed to draw thecrazy man back.
By this time Bart Callax was getting up. The blow Jack had dealt seemedto take much of the fight out of him.
"Do--don't hit me again!" he whined.
"Then leave Mr. Strong alone," answered the young major.
"I want my million dollars!"
"And I want my airship," put in Paul Shaff. "I have an order to go tothe North Pole, to get fifty polar bears for the circus!"
"If you'll behave yourselves I'll see that you get what is coming toyou," said George Strong. "But you mustn't attack me in this fashion."
"Too bad! We are so poor!" cried Callax, and suddenly began to weep.Then Shaff sat on the ground and looked the picture of despair.
"What do you want to do, Mr. Strong?" whispered Jack.
"Where is the horse and buggy?"
"The horse ran away, up the road, but maybe I can find him," answeredAndy.
"Then do so, if you can. If it can be done, I wish to place these poorchaps where they can do no further harm."
"Better place them in a regular asylum after this," suggested Jack.
"No asylum for me!" yelled Bart Callax, leaping up. "Good-bye!" And hedove into the bushes.
"Stop him!" cried the teacher, but it was too late. In the excitementPaul Shaff also got away, and that was the last seen of the pair forsome time to come.
In the meantime Andy had gone after the runaway horse. As he surmised,the steed had not gone a great distance, and a third of a mile up theroad was found in a hollow, quietly cropping the grass. Fortunately thebuggy was not damaged in the least, and he had no difficulty inreturning to the scene of the encounter with the turnout.
"They came upon me so suddenly that I was taken off my guard," said thesecond assistant teacher, when telling his story. "I tried to reasonwith them and said I would take them to the Hall, but they pulled mefrom the buggy and dragged me into the wood. They might have killed meif you had not happened along."
"I am glad to be of service to you," said Jack. "But if I were you I'dmake a strong effort to catch them. They are too dangerous to be left atlarge."
"I'll put some officers of the law on their track," said the teacher,and this was, later on, done.
"Mr. Strong, perhaps this explains it!" cried Jack, as they were drivingback to Putnam Hall.
"Explains what, Ruddy?"
"Those orders for goods sent out in your name. Those crazy men might dosomething like that?"
"That is so!" ejaculated the teacher. "It never struck me before. I mustlook into it without delay. No doubt they are guilty." And this provedto be the fact.
With the coming of warm weather the thoughts of many of the students hadturned to baseball. Several teams had already been organized, includingone by Reff Ritter. Baxter had wanted to organize a team, but Ritter gotahead of him. However, the bully of the Hall was made pitcher, withRitter as catcher, so he was content. Coulter played first-base andPaxton short-stop. They called themselves the Medals, and issued achallenge to any team in the school.
"That means us," said Jack. "Baxter and Ritter are bound to get ahead ofus if they possibly can."
Since the previous summer there had been some changes made among theboys when playing baseball, and now a team was made up with BartConners, the captain of Company A, as captain and short-stop. Jack waspitcher, Dale catcher, Andy first-base, Pepper second-base, Stufferthird-base, Hogan center-field, Harry Blossom right-field, and Henry Leeleft-field. Dave Kearney and two others were substitutes. This team wascalled the Browns, for all of the players got suits of brown. The Ritterand Baxter crowd procured suits of blue, with red stockings.
After a good deal of talk it was decided that the Medals and the Brownsshould play a game a week later, on a Saturday afternoon. Both teams atonce began to practice vigorously.
"Baxter is taking private lessons from a professional pitcher who comesto Cedarville from Ithaca," said Pepper one day. "I got the word fromHampden, who saw him."
"Did Hampden say anything more?"
"He said Baxter was going to fool us on a new kind of a curved ball."
The news was true. From a friend in the city the bully had gotten thename and address of the professional pitcher, and the latter was nowgiving Baxter as many lessons as the cadet's spare time would allow.
The new curved ball was a difficult one to pitch, and had to bedelivered by a certain swing of the wrist and the elbow. At first Baxtercould not "get the hang" of it, as he said, but presently it came tohim, and then he delivered the ball very well.
"That's the way to do it," said the professional pitcher. "Keep it uplike that and you will fool 'em every inning."
"I hope I do," answered Dan Baxter. "I want to down that team sure."
"Well, you keep at it, and don't you fear for results."
To make sure that the professional was not humbugging him, the bullypitched for his cronies in a field away from Putnam Hall. He struck outCoulter, Paxton, and Sabine in succession, and Ritter got nothing but anaccidental pop fly.
"That is certainly a great ball to pitch," was Reff Ritter's comment. "Idon't see how we can lose if you keep that up, Dan."
"I'll keep it up, don't worry about that," was the answer. "I'll beatthem if it breaks my arm to do it."
Everybody in the school was interested in the coming game, and inprivate not a few wagers were made on the result. When the two teamswent out to practice Dan Baxter did not pitch the new kind of curve, andmany thought his work weak in consequence.
Jack pitched in the regular way, but as soon as he heard that Dan Baxterwas taking lessons from a professional the young major went at pitchingin earnest and perfected his signals for his catcher, Dale. Jack couldpitch a fairly speedy ball and also a drop ball that he hoped wouldprove effective from time to time.
The day for the game dawned fairly clear. There were a few clouds in thesky and a breeze from off the lake. The game was to begin at threeo'clock and before that time visitors began to arrive from Cedarvilleand elsewhere, including some students from Pornell Academy.
"Hullo, here is a surprise!" cried Andy, pointing to a big automobilethat was coming along the road. "Mr. Ford and his wife, and twodaughters."
"How do you do!" cried Laura and Flossie, as the automobile drew closer."Can we come in to see the game?"
"Certainly yo
u can!" answered Jack, warmly, and took off his cap. "Weare much pleased to see you."
"We missed the boat race, but we didn't wish to miss this--at least thegirls didn't," said Rossmore Ford.
"We'll get you good seats," said Pepper.
"Thank you, but we can stay right in the automobile," said the wealthygentleman.
"We expect you to win!" said Laura to Jack.
"You must win!" cried Flossie, to the others.
"We are going to try our best," answered Andy, and the others saidpractically the same. Then the boys ran off, for it was time to startthe game.
The Putnam Hall Rivals; or, Fun and Sport Afloat and Ashore Page 20