CHAPTER XXXII.GETTING THE LEAD.
Berlin Carson had been quick-witted enough to get the knife away from Crowfoot, aided by Dick Merriwell, who was able to make the Indian understand he was in danger if the weapon was found upon his person.
Frank’s eyes detected this move, and so he did not worry much when the redskin was searched for concealed weapons.
Dick’s nerve seemed unshaken, as he again walked on the field to resume pitching. The Yale men broke into wild cheering for the boy, which was taken up all around the field.
“That’s ernough to make a feller strike out,” said Gallup.
Instead of striking out, however, he put up an easy fly that was gathered in by Browning.
The owner of the dog did not return to the vicinity of the Yale crowd on the bleachers. He had lost his money, and he did not wish to give the winners a chance to laugh at him.
In this inning Dick Merriwell had proved himself a marvel for a boy of his years; but the game wasyoung, and Morgan’s team felt confident of falling on the lad before long and striking a winning streak.
Morgan was on his mettle when he again walked out to pitch.
“I must win this game!” he mentally exclaimed. “It will be awful to lose the game, with a boy like that pitching against me!”
With the head of the batting-list up, it looked as if there was something doing for the Merries. It looked more so when Ready reached first on a safe hit, and Morgan set his teeth.
Carson did not attempt to sacrifice, Merriwell having given the “hit and run” signal. He drove the ball hotly along the ground between Skelding and Mason. Gene got his hand on the ball, but it carromed off. Fortunately for him, it went straight into the hands of Mason, who picked it up and threw like a flash to second.
The ball reached Packard before Ready got down, and he lined it to first, completing a pretty double play.
“Now ye’re playing ball, me bhoys!” cried Barney Mulloy, in deep satisfaction. “Kape it up! Kape it up!”
Morgan smiled again when Bart Hodge faced him. It seemed that his temper had been restored, and he was perfectly confident. He used his head in working Hodge, but found Bart a fine waiter. With two strikes and three balls called, Bart declined to swingon the next pitch, though to many the ball looked good.
“Take your base,” said the umpire.
Hodge wore a grim smile as he trotted down to first. Then he got a fair lead, and went for second on the first ball pitched. Mulloy threw, but Hodge sprinted like the wind, and slid under safely.
“That’s playing ball!” cried Frank.
Hodge was a great worker, and he never quit, no matter how poor the prospect. But all were surprised when Bart went to third on a “dope ball” sent in by Morgan to Browning. The ball hung in the air, and, having a lead on it, Bart set his teeth and fairly flew along the line.
Mulloy threw as soon as he could when the ball reached him, but the runner went round behind Skelding and was safe.
“Gentlemen,” said a Yale man, rising amid the group on the bleachers, “you see the kind of a man we lost when that fellow got his sheepskin! He is in every respect a jim-dandy!”
Somehow the success of Hodge seemed to rattle Morgan, for he followed with a wild pitch, and Bart came scampering home with the run that put the Merries in the lead.
But Morgan settled down after that, and proceeded to strike Browning out.
“Now hold ’em, boys!” cried Ready, waltzing downto third. “We must show these fresh chaps that they are not in the same class as our great and mighty aggregation.”
Dismal Jones really tried to smile when he walked out with a bat, but the effort seemed to cause him pain, and it was very distressing in its effect.
Dick found that Jones was determined to make him put the ball over, and he finally did so, which gave Dismal the opportunity he wanted. It was a gentle little hit, but the ball dropped beyond the infield, and Jones landed on first base.
It is possible that Dick regarded Skelding as too easy, but Gene did not hit the ball fair and hard. It went down to Ready on a slow bound, and Jack stopped it awkwardly, letting it get out of his hands. When he picked it up to throw it was too late to make a double play, and Skelding was well down toward first.
Jack would have sent the ball across, but, fearing for a wild throw, Merry shouted for him to hold it. Ready had made the first error for the Merries.
But now came Hans Dunnerwurst.
“Mofe your fielders avay off nearer!” he cried, with a wave of his short arm. “I vos goin’ to knock der pall der elefated railroadt ofer alretty soon.”
Dick remembered that the Dutch youth had secured a most unexpected two-bagger the first time up, andthis put the lad at his best. He used his best speed and a jump ball till two strikes were called; then he resorted to a drop.
Dunnerwurst hit the ball straight to Ready, and hit it hard. It went on a line. Jack froze to it, held it, and threw to second.
Both runners had started when the ball was hit, and Jones had not even stopped running for third when the ball whistled past his head on its way to second.
Rattleton was wide-awake, and he covered the bag, taking the throw and whirling to first.
Skelding had stopped and was trying to dig back to first.
Harry shot the ball into Browning’s hands, thus completing a beautiful triple play.
How the crowd roared! This was ball-playing to satisfy the most exacting fan.
Hans Dunnerwurst stood with his mouth open, staring blankly.
“Vot vos der madder?” he muttered. “I pelief somebody vos oudt alretty!”
But it seemed to take him several seconds to understand that the side had been retired.
“Wasn’t that beautiful, Elsie?” cried Inza. “Did you ever see anything so fine before?”
Elsie laughed and gave Inza’s arm a squeeze.
“Yes,” she said, “I saw something just as fine when Bart stole those two bases, one after another.”
“It’s Bart, Bart, all the time!” laughed the dark-eyed girl. “Do you never think of any one but Bart?”
“Hardly ever,” confessed Elsie, blushing.
“Let me git holt of a bub-bub-bub-bat!” exclaimed Joe Gamp, as he strode in to the bench. “Danged if I have made a hit to-day! It’s tut-tut-tut-time I did something.”
Morgan’s courage was good when he went into the box, and he did not let up a bit. His speed remained great, and Gamp threatened to strike out quickly. However, Joe bumped the ball at last, though it went to Dade on the bound, and he threw Joe out at first.
“That’s a good start, old man!” came from Oliver Packard. “Keep it up! We’ll get into the game and win yet.”
Swiftwing hit the ball, but it sailed high into the air. Mason got under it and held it safely when it came down.
Morgan remembered what Merry had done the first time, and this time he resolved to make Frank hit. He put the ball over with great speed, getting two strikes called. Then Merry placed a little single and took first.
With Rattleton up, however, there seemed little show. Harry looked at Frank, who gave him a signal to wait.
Morgan had a way of working the corners, andjust now he could not seem to get the ball over, which gave Rattleton a base on balls.
“We’ll score a few right now!” cried Ready. “Here is the chap who can turn the trick. Remember what he did to you last time, Dade.”
It was Dick Merriwell, and he received a round of applause when he stepped out to strike. Dick had plenty of courage, and he finally found one that suited him, hitting it fairly. The ball went out on a line, and the base-runners started instantly.
It looked like a clean hit, but Dismal Jones came in on the jump and caught the ball within six inches of the ground.
“Out!” cried the umpire.
The side was retired.
“Almost good, Dick,” said Frank. “You bumped it hard, boy.”
But Dick was not pleased, as he had fancied the hit good.
Morgan faced Dick, who proceeded to strike Dade out.
“Good start!” said Frank.
Packard drove a hot one at Frank, who gathered it gracefully and whistled it across to Browning, putting the second man out.
“One, two, three,” counted Ready. “Mason is the next victim. Walk up and take your bitters, Hock.”
Mason frowned, for Ready’s airy manner always irritated him. Then he hit the first ball pitched, putting it into right field for one base.
“Good boy!” cried Ready. “But you’ll die there, Hocksie.”
This prophecy proved true, Starbright sending out a long fly that was captured by Gamp.
“Let’s quit fooling, fellows—let’s quit fooling,” urged Ready. “We may as well clinch the game now as any time. I’ll lead right off with a two-bagger.”
But his two-bagger proved simply a pretty fly into the hands of Dismal Jones, who was as sure as grim death in his fielding.
“Hard luck!” muttered Ready; “but it is also combined with poor judgment in hitting. I am not such a much. At least, I am beginning to fear so.”
Carson found one that suited him, and drove it far into the field. However, Gamp returned it to second in time to prevent him from taking more than one base.
Ready started coaching near first. Carson played off, fancying Morgan was on the point of delivering the ball, and then Dade suddenly whirled and threw to Starbright.
“Back!” yelled Ready.
Carson tried to get back. Swift as he was, however, Starbright had the ball, and put it onto him.
“Out!” declared the umpire.
“Will you please kick me?” exclaimed Ready. “I did that by getting you off too far.”
To Hodge it seemed that his show was poor, as there was no one ahead of him on bases when he came up, and two were out. He remembered, however, what he had done before, and he resolved to make another attempt of the same sort.
With two out, Morgan ventured to put one right over for Bart. Hodge hit it for a safe single.
“Well, here we go!” cried Ready. “He’ll make another run without half-trying.”
But Morgan watched Bart so closely that the latter could not steal second, as he had before. Then Browning put up an infield fly, which was captured by Mason.
The sixth inning began with Mulloy at the bat. Barney led off with a clean single. Dick permitted the Irish youth to get too much of a start, and he stole second, for all of Bart’s handsome throw to Rattleton.
Gallup struck hard at the first ball, but missed, as it jumped. The next one failed to take the jump, although Dick threw it for that kind of a ball, and Ephraim smashed it.
Out on a line whistled the ball, going far into right field, Carson chasing it. Mulloy came sprinting home, while Ephraim went down to second. The throw to second was not good, and Gallup kept on to third, which he reached.
The score was tied, and the Mysteries had a man on third, with no one out.
“Isn’t that awful!” gasped Elsie Bellwood. “I’m afraid they are going to lose the game! Why doesn’t Frank go in and pitch now?”
“Frank will go if he thinks it necessary,” said Inza.
Dick Merriwell was pale, but he did not seem at all rattled. Jones stood up to the plate, and refused to hit anything that was not fairly over. Dick tried to work him too long, with the result that the umpire sent the batter to first on balls.
Hodge threw the ball slowly to first. Something unexpected happened. Quick as a flash, Gallup took advantage of the slow throw to dash for home.
A shout went up. Ephraim flung himself forward in a slide. Browning whistled the ball back to Bart, who took it and swung to touch Gallup.
Ephraim was safe, and the Mysteries had taken the lead. Still not a man was out.
Dick Merriwell seemed dazed, which led Jones to fancy he could steal second. He started before the boy had made a motion to deliver the ball to the next batter, and Dick suddenly whirled and threw to Rattleton.
Dismal was caught between the bases. For a moment there was a little excitement as Jones tried to dodge the ball and escape being tagged, but Dick ran in, got the ball himself and chased the runner down.
Flushed but triumphant, Dick returned to the box.Skelding came to bat, and hit weakly to Frank, who threw to Bruce, and the second man was out. Dunnerwurst put up an easy fly to Rattleton.
“We must square this up in a hurry,” said Jack Ready. “They had horseshoe luck to start with that inning. It ended quickly enough when we got into gear.”
Mr. Hazard came over and smiled on Frank.
“I rather think we have you, Mr. Merriwell,” he said.
“There is another think due you, sir,” put in Ready.
Gamp was earnestto make a hit, but drove a grounder to Mason, who threw handsomely to Starbright.
Swiftwing sent a long fly into the outfield, and Jones muffed it, after a hard run.
Frank placed a hit in right field, sending the young Indian round to third. Merry then signaled for Rattleton to bunt the first ball.
Frank got a lead and started for second with the swing of the pitcher’s arm.
Rattleton was not a scientific bunter, and he hit the ball into the air. Morgan ran for it, got under it, held it, and then threw to first, making a double play.
Thus the sixth inning closed, with Morgan’s team a score in the lead.