HAZED?
At the long supper table in the spacious basement of the dormitory, many
curious glances were aimed at Bill and Gus, and many a terse remark was
shot at them respecting their departure from the honorable ways and the
rules of the school. Most pronounced were the expressions of wonder over
the fact that the carrier of concealed weapons had not been expelled, or
suspended at once. Finally a sophomore whose influence seemed to count
most gave voice to the prevailing sentiment:
"Well, I must say if that gun had been pulled on me, I'd have made the
cad use it."
"I'll bet you would, too, Siebold!" declared an admirer.
Bill got on his feet and there was an instant hush. There was something
to expect from the daring and apparently successful gunman. He laughed,
and that also charged the atmosphere. When he spoke he had undivided
attention:
"You would have run like any other scared puppy," Bill said to Siebold.
"We would have listened to you ki-yi-ing for about a mile. Say, look
here, you hazers: You're a bunch of muts! Hear me? The whole lot of you
couldn't haze anybody that puts up a fight, if you played anyway fair
and gave a little notice. We'll give you a dare, Siebold, you and all
your deputies, though I suppose you'll send them and hang back yourself.
We'll be ready to take all the hazing you fellows can give to-morrow
afternoon at about three o'clock; only there isn't one of you who will
have the nerve to show up. Oh, 'no weapons?' That was only a cigar case
I pulled on you to-day. It wouldn't shoot, but, by cracky, it worked!"
And Bill laughed, with Gus and a few others who admired the boy's nerve.
There was a sensation at once. Never before in the history of the school
had a freshman dared the upper classmen to haze him, or had named the
time and place. Would such a plan hold out?
It would, and it did. The very novelty of the thing had assured it, as
Bill expected. Some little time before the hour given, a number of
would-be spectators began to gather in the hallway, as Bill and Gus,
studying in their room, could tell from the tramping of feet outside
their door. Then there was the louder tramp of feet coming nearer and
without a preliminary call or knock the door flew open. The chums looked
up from their books with well simulated surprise. In the doorway and
crowding behind stood several upper classmen and easy confidence was
written all over their eager faces.
"Come right in, gentlemen; we are at your service," said Bill.
"Ho, men! What's this? Wire entanglements?"
The question was opportune; flimsily stretched across in front of the
attacking party and about shoulder high were some copper wires, and
about equally spaced below were others. It could be seen that these
offered no serious check, as anyone could spread them apart and push
through. It was evidently with this intention that the hazers fairly
struggled through the door in the effort of each to be first--at least
half a dozen youths had their hands on the wires. Then Bill leaned back
against the wall and his hand came in contact with a button.
Pandemonium! Cries of distress, yells of something more than discomfort,
howls of dismay, calls for succor--the S O S in other than code signals.
This was a very pretty chorus increased by some others who, hastily
coming to the rescue, also became entangled. The rest, chiefly
onlookers, refrained from too close acquaintance with the very apparent
cause of all the trouble. But the truly crucial part of the crisis was
due to the fact that those who suffered by contact with the wires found
it impossible to get away from the source of distress.