Page:Baseball Joe on the School Nine.djvu/140

128 "Sam Morton here," murmured Joe, as if unable to believe it, while his old enemy strode on without having seen him, and the Morningside lad, who had given them the information swung about on his way to the dressing rooms.

"Say, that's going some!" exclaimed Joe, as he and Tom walked on. "Fancy meeting Sam Morton here. I didn't hear that he was going to boarding school."

"Neither did L He must have made up his mind lately. Probably he began right after the Easter vacation. I didn't spot him at the time of the banner parade.

"Me, either. But there was such a mob of fellows that it was hard to find anyone. But if he's here and he makes good, and pitches in some of the games, and if"

"If you get the chance to pitch for the school nine, you and Sam may fight your old battles over again," finished Tom.

"That's right," agreed Joe.

It was a discouraged, disgruntled and altogether unhappy crowd of lads that returned to Excelsior Hall late that afternoon. Despondency perched like a bird of ill-omen on the big flagstaff; and a celebration that some of the lads had arranged for, in case of a victory, did not come off.