CHAPTER XVIII
THE LIVE WIRES
The matter of a new athletic field dragged. Two more meetings had beenheld by the committee, and several trips of inspection had been made tonear-by fields, but no decision had been reached. In the meanwhile, thesurveyors had shown activity and had run lines through the old field andeven demolished a section of the fence. It was a question whether theteam would be able to use the diamond much longer, although inquiriesfailed to elicit any definite information from the men who were doingthe surveying. The football enthusiasts were becoming impatient. Theprospect of having no better place to hold practice the next month thanan empty lot somewhere in the neighborhood of the railroad didn't pleasethem, and they demanded action.
Unfortunately, Mr. Grayson, the principal, had left Clearfield on hissummer vacation, and several other members of the High School facultywere also out of town, and the committee showed a disposition to awaittheir return. The hope was several times expressed that, since Mr. Brenthad done nothing with the field so far, he might postpone cutting it upuntil next year. But when the surveyors got to work that hope seemedidle, and at last a public meeting was called at which the AthleticCommittee was to make a report and recommend the leasing of what wasknown as Tilden's Meadow for a term of two years. The meadow was a milefrom Clearfield and on the trolley route to Rutter's Point, andconsisted of about fourteen acres of fairly level turf. Only sufficientspace for a football field and diamond was to be used, and the rest ofthe land was to remain as at present. Mr. Tilden was to keep the grasscut in return for the hay and was to receive one hundred dollars a year.There was no question of having a running track, for the ownerabsolutely refused to allow one to be laid out, and that, at firstglance, seemed a great objection to the project. But, as several of thecommittee pointed out, there was no money on hand to build a track evenif Mr. Tilden would allow it. The plan was to make use of the Y. M. C.A. field, a small enclosure behind the Association's building onLafayette Street, for training purposes, and hold the meets withSpringdale at the latter's grounds until Clearfield could secure a trackof its own.
A piece of land sufficiently large for all athletic purposes was to behad across the river and fairly handy to the G Street Bridge, but it wasnext to the railroad tracks and the mills and the sentiment of thefemale members of the High School was strongly opposed to it. "It wouldbe horrid!" they declared indignantly. "The smoke and soot from theengines and the mill chimneys would spoil our dresses and hats. And,besides, we'd have to walk a whole block through dust up to ourshoe-tops!"
In the face of such weighty opposition the committee gave way, and theNorth Side location was abandoned. Only Tilden's meadow remained then,and to that, too, there was much opposition. Many thought it too farfrom town; others pointed out that, since it was unfenced, there wouldbe no way of keeping persons from witnessing games without paying, andstill others dwelt on the lack of a track. The Athletic Committee wasnot to be envied.
Dick talked it over with Louise Brent one morning. Dick had got into thehabit lately of walking over to the Brents' in the morning before goingout to the Point. Brentwood was hardly on his direct line to the car,although it is true that by retracing his steps two blocks he could getthe trolley at B Street and consequently went only seven blocks out ofhis way. But seven blocks, when you have to do it on crutches, is quitea distance, and doubtless Morris was much flattered by the interest inhis recovery which led Dick so far afield four or five mornings a week.Dick began by taking books to Morris, but his library was soonexhausted, and after that he continued to call just the same. Of coursehe always saw Morris, and equally of course Louise appeared at someperiod of his visit. I think that eventually Morris began to have doubtsas to being the chief attraction. At all events he very frequently leftDick for his sister to entertain and it wasn't apparent that Dickmourned his absence. Louise was good to look at and jolly andsympathetic, and there was no reason why Dick should not have been quitesatisfied with her company.
On the morning in question, the morning of the Wednesday following theSpringdale game, Morris had, after offering to race Dick on crutches tothe gate and back and having his proposition declined, wandered awaytoward the tennis court, leaving Dick and Louise on the front steps,which, at nine o'clock in the morning, were shaded and cool. Dick hadbrought up the subject of the athletic field and both Morris and Louisehad had their say. Morris, who was an ardent football enthusiast andplayed a good game on the High School team, had bewailed the fact that,with practice commencing in another three weeks or so, no place had beenprovided for it. Louise had reminded him gently that the doctor held outslight hope of his being able to play this Fall and Morris had brieflyand succinctly informed them that the doctor was an old granny anddidn't know what he was talking about. When he had gone Louise said:
"You know, Dick, both Morris and I begged papa not to take the field,but he wouldn't listen to us. He said the school could find anotherplace to play on without trouble. He seems to think that all we need isa back yard or a vacant lot! I don't think papa ever saw a game ofbaseball or football in his life."
"It is too bad that he has to cut that field up," replied Dick, "but Idon't see any reason why he should consider us any. He's been very goodto let us use it so long. And he's never charged us a penny, you know."
"May Scott told me yesterday that her father had told her that the fieldmight not be cut up after all. It seems that the mayor or whoever it isthat has the say about such things doesn't want papa to put the streetthrough there unless he builds it up to some grade or other. I don'tunderstand about it. And papa doesn't want to do that."
"Yes, I heard something of that sort. I believe the matter is to come upat a meeting this week. It's the board of aldermen, I think, who areagainst it. It seems that the city has established a new grade out thereand the present grade is several feet below it. I suppose it means thatyour father would have to do a good deal of filling in if he put thestreet through. Otherwise the city wouldn't accept it."
"It sounds awfully complicated to me," said Louise. "I just wish fatherwould change his mind about it. I almost wish the--the aldermen wouldtell him he couldn't do it!"
"Perhaps they will," laughed Dick. "But in that case your father wouldprobably build to the new grade. So there isn't much hope, I fear. No, Iguess it's up to us to move to new quarters. It's a queer thing that ina town of this size there isn't a place we can use."
"I know. And that field they're talking about now is so hard to get to!Of course, there's the trolley, but it's been such fun to walk out tothe games and have the field so near home. Your team plays a game thisafternoon, doesn't it, Dick?"
"A sort of a game. We're going to play a team called the Live Wires atfour o'clock. They're fellows in the mills and I guess they haven'tplayed together much. It'll be sort of a practice affair for us. TomHaley can't play and Curtis Wayland is going to pitch for us. Youhaven't been to any of the games, have you?"
"No one has asked me," she laughed. "Morris has been laid up and----"
"Would you care to go Saturday? We play the Hemlock Camp fellows. Iguess they have a pretty good team."
"I'd love to!"
"Then I----" Dick paused and frowned. "The trouble is," he went onapologetically, "I'll have to be on the bench a good deal of the time.Perhaps you'd rather not go."
"I shouldn't mind. Just come and see me now and then, Dick."
"Really? Then I'll get Gordon or one of the fellows to call for youabout half-past two."
"Indeed?" asked Louise coldly. "Why Gordon--or one of the fellows,please?"
"Why--why--because," stammered Dick, "I thought probably you'd rathernot--That is, I get along so slowly, you know----"
"Dick Lovering, you were going to say you thought I wouldn't want towalk with you! Weren't you?"
"Well, something of the sort. You see----"
"No, I don't see at all," she responded with suspicious sweetness. "Ishall be very glad to go to the game with you, Dick, but I refuse to bepa
lmed off on 'Gordon or one of the fellows!'"
"Then I'll be here for you at two-thirty, Louise. It isn't very far,after all; only three blocks, you know."
"I ought to know," she said dryly, "since I can see the top of thegrandstand this minute. I may decide, however, that I want to go by wayof the Common, Dick."
Dick smiled doubtfully. "We-ell, that's all right. I'm game! Now I guessI'd better be getting along."
"The car just went in," said Louise. "You've got nearly a quarter of anhour yet. How are you getting along with your pupil?"
"Finely! I tell him two or three times a week that we'll never be ableto do it, and he doubles up his fists and glares at me and wants tofight--almost. He's an awfully stubborn little chap and he's simply madeup his mind that he's going to get into school this Fall, and I think hewill, too. He will if I can keep him mad!" And Dick, smiling, wentswinging off to catch the car.
That game with the Live Wires wasn't as easy for Clearfield as Dick andGordon and most of the others expected it to be. Of course Way wasn'tmuch of a pitcher, and that had to be reckoned with, but even allowingfor that the Live Wires showed up a lot better than anticipated. From afinancial standpoint the game was a huge success, in spite of the factthat the admission had been lowered to fifteen cents to entice the millworkers to attend. Attend they did, and "rooted" so lustily andincessantly for their team that poor Way was more than once up in theair. Young Tim Turner played in right field and Jack Tappen went over toleft in place of Way. Tim didn't do so badly, since out of three chanceshe got two flies and only muffed the third because the crowd hooted soloudly.
It was quite a tight game up to the fifth inning, with both pitcherssuffering badly at the hands of the opposing batsmen and both infieldsguilty of many stupid errors. But in the fifth Clearfield landed onKelly, the Live Wires' pitcher, and batted around before they werestopped, adding seven runs to the six already accumulated. In theseventh the opposing team returned the compliment and had Way dancingout of the path of liners and giving bases on the least provocation. Butthe infield steadied down then and only three runs came over for theLive Wires. The final score was fourteen to eight and Dick, who hadacted as gateman in Tim's absence, turned over nearly seventeen dollarsto himself as treasurer. So, on the whole, the game was a success.
When Dick got home after the game his mother told him that a Mr. Potter,from the _Reporter_, had called to see him and would be back abouteight. Gordon came over after supper and was still there when therepresentative of the newspaper repeated his call. Mr. Potter, awide-awake, energetic young man of twenty-five or six years, professedhis pleasure at finding Gordon on hand. "Because," he said as he took achair in the Loverings' little parlor, "I want to talk about anothergame of ball between your team and the Point. I wrote the story of thelast game, by the way. I don't know whether you saw it?"
"Yes, we read it," said Dick. "It was awfully good, I thought."
"I used to do that sort of stuff in Hartford. Well, say, fellows, howabout another game? Anything doing along that line?"
"Yes, we're to play the Point again later. There hasn't been any dateset yet, though."
"Well, that's good. I mean I'm glad you're going to get together again.Folks who saw that game enjoyed it. There's nothing like a game of ballto bring folks out and give them a good time. Now, Stevens--he's my bosson the _Reporter_, you know--Stevens wants to get up a rousing good gamefor the final one, see? You and what's-his-name out at the Point set adate; make it some Saturday, of course; and let me know and the_Reporter_ will whoop things up. How would it do if we got the retailtradesmen or someone to offer a prize? Say a silver cup or a phonographor a set of books or something? What the _Reporter_ wants to do is tostir up some excitement; see? Get a big crowd there, have the Mayorthrow out the ball, get folks pulling for the home team and all thatsort of thing. Great scheme, eh? What do you fellows think?"
The boys looked both doubtful and perplexed.
"Why, I don't know, Mr. Potter, that we want to make a--a Roman holidayof it," objected Dick. "We started up the team just to have some fun,you see."
"Well, you'll have your fun, won't you?" asked the newspaper maneagerly. "Don't mind winning a prize and making a little money, too, doyou? Look here, fellows, I'm keen on this. I want to make it go. To tellthe truth, it was my idea. I put it up to Stevens and he fell for it.This town needs livening up. Say, honest, we could have the finest sortof a hullabaloo without half trying!"
"I don't see why not, Dick," observed Gordon, thinking a good deal ofthe money side of the project.
Dick shrugged his shoulders. "Sounds sort of like a four-ring circus,doesn't it?" He asked. "Still, I don't mind. I dare say it would amusefolks."
"Amuse 'em! Say, I'll guarantee to have 'em talking nothing but baseballin a week! I'll get 'em so they'll be offering fancy prices for thefirst row in the grandstand!"
The boys laughed. There was something infectious in the man's enthusiasmand the proposed affair began to loom up as a huge and very amusinglark.
"Do you really think you can do it?" asked Dick.
"Watch me! I'll run a story to-morrow on the first page thatnegotiations are under way looking to a deciding game, see? And I'llhint that there is so much feeling between the two teams that theoutcome is doubtful. Then----"
"That's hardly truthful, is it?" asked Dick.
"Well, maybe I can get around that," was the untroubled reply. "I'll saythat the folks at the Point are so certain that their team will win thatthey're willing to offer any sort of inducement for a third game."
"You've got some imagination," laughed Gordon.
"Have to have in my business," replied Mr. Potter with satisfaction."You trust me to work up the excitement, fellows. Stevens says I can gothe limit. We'll print your score-cards for you, and--that reminds me.How about a band? Ought to have a band there, oughtn't we?"
"Bands cost a good deal," Gordon objected.
"What of it? Why, say, we'll have three or four hundred folks to seethat game! We'll get 'em in from the country and over from Springdaleand Corwin and from miles around. It might be a good idea----" Mr.Potter paused and stared into space a moment. Then he nodded vehemently."That's the scheme! I'll get the store-keepers to shut up shop thatafternoon. Maybe Toppan will declare a public holiday."
Mr. Toppan was the Mayor, and the boys stared in amazement.
"Why--why he wouldn't do that, would he?" gasped Gordon. "Not just for aball game?"
"Sure, he would, if the _Reporter_ got after him hard. Say, you see thatPoint fellow, whatever his name is, and let me know by day afterto-morrow. And don't put it off too long. Let's strike while the iron'shot. Folks want to see baseball now. In another three weeks it'll beabout out of season. Well, that's all. Glad to have met you fellows."Mr. Potter shook hands briskly. "We'll give Clearfield a ball game shewon't forget! Good-night. I'll see you again in a day or two."