Page:Dave Porter at Oak Hall.djvu/190

172 said one of the Military Academy students. "They don't know how to play."

"Wait—the game isn't ended yet," answered an Oak Hall youth.

So the talk ran on, while Dave and a number of others tried to cheer the players up. In the midst of the talk Gus Plum pushed his way into the dressing room, followed by Puffers and Macklin.

"Why ain't you fellows doing something?" cried the bully. "You're putting up a regular baby game."

"I could do as well blindfolded," added Puffers.

"If I couldn't do better than that, I wouldn't accept a challenge," put in Macklin, with a sickly squint at Roger.

"I don't want any advice from you," said the senator's son, warmly. "If you want to do me a favor, please leave this dressing room."

Gus Plum and his cohorts wanted to argue the point, but nobody was in the humor for listening, and the bully and his friends were soon forced out of the place. Then the ten minutes' intermission came to an end, and the team took its place once more on the gridiron, or rather checkerboard, as it must in the future be called, since most of it is now marked off into five-yard squares instead of lines as formerly.

The ball had been in play less than two minutes when there came a bad fumble on the part of