MAKING THINGS INTERESTING FOR MILLER.
"It's funny," remarked Frank, with a smile, "how far a man seems to be
going when his eyes are shut."
There was a chorus of laughter at this, in which Rattleton and the other
neophytes, who were present, joined.
Order was quickly restored by Baker, the president, who announced that
there was yet one more step in the initiation to be taken. What this
step was cannot be described here.
It must be remembered that the order of Pi Gamma is a secret society,
and every member of it is sworn to keep its secrets sacredly. Among the
things that they are not allowed to tell are the very tests which have
already been narrated, but such secrets are really common property in
New Haven.
So much of the initiations are conducted upon the public streets and in
a public manner that there has been no violation of the rules of the
order in telling of Frank Merriwell's experience.
What followed in the rooms of the society, however, must be omitted out
of respect to the serious character of the proceedings and the fact that
the members of the order regard them all as of considerable importance.
It is proper to say that no further tests were required of the
candidates; they had passed their week's ordeal successfully, and the
other proceedings were conducted with their eyes open.
The end of it all was conducted with vociferous cheering on the part of
the old members of Pi Gamma, and each of the new members came in for a
lot of hearty handshaking and congratulations. Then the whole affair
wound up with a supper in the society's largest room.
At this there were not only the seniors who had initiated the first
block of juniors, but also a number of graduates who had paid a visit to
New Haven for the sole purpose of taking some part in an initiation
ceremony.
Two or three college instructors, who had been members during their
student days, were present, and no one there appeared to enjoy the
occasion more than did Prof. Adler, the one who had warned the boys that
they must conduct their initiation more quietly as long as it took place
in a college room.
On such an occasion as that the students and professors are pretty much
on the same terms. The professors, to be sure, are addressed by their
titles, and spoken to respectfully, but there is none of the restraint
of the classroom, and no fear whatever that any of the professors
present will report unpleasant things to other members of the faculty.
The supper was a good one, and naturally enough it was thoroughly
enjoyed by the new members, the more so as a part of their trial during
the week of initiation was the fact that they had been compelled to
limit their eating to the plainest articles of food.
All pies and cakes had been forbidden, and in fact nothing that could be
called a luxury was allowed to pass their lips. Those who smoked had
been deprived of that habit also.
Now the seniors who had been the most severe in compelling an obedience
to these rules fairly overloaded their new associates with attention.
They made a point of heaping the junior's plates with more good things
than they could possibly eat, and a plentiful supply of cigars and
tobacco was placed before them.
After the eating was finished speeches were in order. Pres. Baker called
upon one after another of the older members, and eventually each one of
the new members had to make remarks.
Prof. Adler spoke briefly but with undoubted sincerity of the pleasure
it gave him to be associated with the students' society in this way,
declaring it as his belief that they were helpful to the college and
that it was a mistake to try to suppress them.
This from a member of the faculty was especially interesting to the
boys, and it brought out thunders of applause.
The younger members got through their speeches very well, being greeted
with loud cheers whether they said anything of consequence or not.
As was to be expected, Rattleton twisted his words hind side forward a
good many times, and at last sat down, blushing and feeling that he had
never made such a fool of himself.
The older members apparently thought differently, for they applauded
long and heartily until the abashed student had to rise and bow.
Frank spoke easily and quietly. He made no attempt at oratorical
effects, but declared that he felt it an honor to be a member of Pi
Gamma, and assured them that he should look forward to the time when he
could get even for the miseries he had endured for a week in inflicting
the same tortures upon another fellow.
This was the spirit that the members appreciated best, and of course
they cheered tremendously.
The most effective part of Frank's speech, however, and the one that
created the greatest interest, was not applauded at all.
"Perhaps you don't all know it," he said, "but some of you will remember
that there was an incident connected with my initiation that was not on
the programme."
The room became very quiet. All the seniors had been informed of
Miller's attempt to do Frank an injury, and the only ones there who did
not know it were the graduates and a few members of the faculty.
"I think my friends know me well enough," Frank continued, "to believe
me when I say that I haven't the slightest desire to be revenged upon
the man who put me in such danger of my life. It was a low-down,
dastardly trick and the work of a coward."
There was a low murmur of assent at this.
"A man who would do such a thing as that," Frank went on, "is really
unworthy the contempt of a Yale student and so from one standpoint it
might be well enough to let the matter drop.
"On the other hand, we are bound to consider the possibility of such a
thing happening again. If the man who did the trick escapes without any
sort of punishment, he may attempt it again, or he may boast of it to
some companion as cowardly and mean as himself, and the result may be
that at some future time a student may be treated in a similar way and
not have the luck to come out of it as well as I did."
Frank paused a moment, for the deathly silence with which his hearers
listened was a little embarrassing.
"I have said that I didn't care for revenge," he said, in a moment, "but
now that I am a full-fledged member of Pi Gamma, I feel that I have a
right to look at it as an offense against the society rather than
against me as an individual."
"Right!" exclaimed one of the seniors, in a low tone. Others nodded
approval.
"I think it would be dignified and proper," Frank continued, "for the
society to take some kind of action on the matter, and if it is
allowable I should like to make a suggestion."
"Go ahead," said Baker, promptly; "there is no member from whom a
suggestion on this matter would be more fitting. What do you think we
should do?"
"I'm not thinking," Frank answered, "of passing any vote to do one thing
or another, but it strikes me that in a perfectly harmless way we can
take the law into our own hands a bit and fix Miller, for there's no
doubt that he was the guilty one, so that he will never molest a student
again as long as he lives.
"You see," and he smiled good-humoredly, "I'm fresh from my experience
with the tortures of Pi Gamma."
All the listeners smiled broadly.
"It is one thing," he added, "to endure these tortures with a feeling
that you are in the hands of your friends, but quite another, I should
think, to go through such an ordeal with a feeling that the fiends and
demons surrounding you are hostile.
"I can tell you frankly that for my own part, during the worst parts of
the initiation, I felt always that you were friends of mine and that I
was perfectly safe to trust myself in your hands no matter what
extravagant things you seemed to be doing.
"I think that if Miller should be put through some such proceeding it
would--well, it would likely tear what little nerve he has into
tatters."
Frank hesitated a moment and then sat down. The room was perfectly still
while the members of the order looked at one another doubtfully.
"I don't quite see," remarked Baker, presently, "how the society of Pi
Gamma can put a man who is not a student through an initiation."
"Oh, I didn't mean to suggest that," responded Frank, hastily, but
without rising. "I was only thinking that the society has such means for
terrifying a man that it ought to be easy for us to devise a plan for
giving Miller a good scare."
"Yes, that's the scheme!" exclaimed Rowe, earnestly. "I wouldn't favor
putting him through anything like the farce with which we treat
neophytes, but it does seem to me that we might give him a dose in
earnest somehow."
Other members gave their assent to this suggestion and then somebody
asked:
"But what can you do about it if you can't find Miller?"
"That's a damper!" responded Rowe, gloomily. "I understand that he's
skipped."
"He's come back," said another senior.
"So?"
All eyes were turned upon the speaker.
"I saw him in his shop on my way to the rooms this evening," said the
senior.
"Then he's got over his scare. Probably he may have heard that Merriwell
wasn't seriously injured and so thinks the thing's blown over."
"We'll show him the contrary!" growled Baker.
"But how shall we do it?"
After a moment of thought Baker rose and said:
"I think as Merriwell has suggested that it is just as well that the
society should not pass any vote on this matter, but with your
permission I'll appoint a committee to take the matter in charge.
"They can meet after the ceremonies of this evening are over and decide
what to do about it. It is probably too late to undertake anything
to-night."
"Miller keeps open until after midnight," somebody suggested.
"Yes, but it's after midnight now and we don't want to act without being
thoroughly prepared. Unless there is some objection I will appoint the
five new members with Rowe and myself to act as a committee to consider
this matter and take such steps as we think best."
There was no objection to this and so the matter was considered settled,
but the interest of the students in it was so great that they had little
desire to talk of other matters, and before long the meeting adjourned
for the night and the members of the committee assembled in one of the
smaller rooms to lay plans for Miller's punishment.