PREPARATIONS FOR THE GREAT GAME.
When Joe did not come home at the hour expected nobody was greatly
surprised, his folks thinking that he and Fred had been detained. But
as it grew later and later Mrs. Westmore began to worry.
"What can be keeping Joe?" she said to Harry. "Did he say anything to
you about coming home so late?"
"No, mother, he said he would be home about supper time, or directly
afterwards."
Another half hour went by, and then Mr. Rush dropped in on the Westmore
family.
"Thought I'd step over to see if Fred was here," he explained. "I told
him to come straight home."
"He isn't here, Mr. Rush, and neither is Joe."
The Westmores were talking it over with their visitor when the doorbell
rang and a farmer named Hiram Salter presented himself.
"Good evenin', Mrs. Westmore," said the farmer. "I found the store shut
up, so I thought I'd come to the house. I've got a letter for you."
As he spoke he handed out a slip of yellow store paper folded in the
form of a letter. On the slip was scrawled:
"We have been detained and won't be home until nearly noon
to-morrow. It's all right, so don't worry."
"J."
"P. S.--Send Mr. R. word."
"That's a queer note," was Mr. Rush's comment. He turned to the farmer.
"Where did you get it, Mr. Salter?"
"Got it from a feller who stopped my wagon when I was a-drivin' into
town. He asked me to leave it here an' gave me ten cents. It was so
dark I couldn't make out who he was."
"Oh, I guess it is all right," came from Mr. Westmore. "They are going
to stop over with some of their boy friends."
The farmer went off, and presently the Westmores retired. But Harry was
not satisfied, and it was a long time before he could go to sleep.
"Joe said he would be on hand the first thing to-morrow morning to put
the club through its final practice," he reasoned. "He ought to be
home to-night getting a sound sleep. He can't rest quite as well in a
strange bed."
By nine o'clock on Saturday morning Harry had finished up his chores
and he also did the work generally assigned to his brother. Every
moment he looked for Joe, and when the clock struck his face took on a
gloomy look.
"Hullo, there!" came from the fence, and the next instant Link leaped
the pickets and walked across the garden. "All ready for the great
game?"
"Yes, I am ready, but I don't know about Joe. Have you seen Fred this
morning?"
"No, he isn't home."
"He and Joe went off yesterday. They were to come back in the evening,
but sent word that they were going to stay over until nearly noon
to-day. I don't like that much."
"Humph! neither do I. It will break up our practicing."
"Well, we've got to do the best we can."
By ten o'clock all of the members of the club but Fred and Joe were at
the clubroom, and a little later they marched to their grounds. In the
absence of Joe, Link, who was a fairly good pitcher, was put in the
box, and the shortstop, Matt, was placed behind the bat.
Harry felt that he must do his best with the team, and he coached
them all he could, and explained to them certain new signs he and
his brother had been talking over. As each minute went by all of the
players looked for Joe and Fred, and when the saw-mill whistle blew
twelve o'clock and the practicing came to an end each looked at the
others in a doubtful manner.
"I may be mistaken, but I think something has gone wrong somewhere,"
was Bart's comment. "I don't think Joe and Fred would stay away like
this of their own accord."
"Neither do I," answered Matt. "Something serious has happened to delay
them."
"My father said there was a fire last night up in the direction of
Hollow Cove. He said it looked to him as if it was a barn. Maybe Joe
and Fred went to the fire, or maybe it was at the place where they were
stopping and they stayed to help."
The boys scattered for dinner, agreeing to meet at the clubroom at one
o'clock or a little after. On the way home Harry ran into Si Voup, who
grinned at him.
"Well, I suppose you are about ready to take your defeat this
afternoon," said the captain of the Excelsiors.
"We'll take what comes," returned Harry. "Perhaps your club will be the
one to lose."
"Rats! I'll bet you five dollars we win."
"I don't bet, Voup."
"You're afraid you'll lose," sneered the captain of the rival club.
"No, I am not. But I don't bet, and that is all there is to it," and
with this remark Harry walked off.
"Won't he be worried when the time comes to open the game," muttered Si
Voup to himself.
Voup and Boardman had returned to Lakeport in high feather over the
success of their plot against Joe and Fred. Marcy was also in town,
but keeping shady. Each of the three was putting up his money on the
Excelsiors, confident that, with Joe and Fred out of the game, the
Lakeports could not possibly win.
Both the Rush family and the Westmore family were much disturbed over
the prolonged absence of the two youths, and after dinner Mr. Rush said
he would drive up to Hollow Cove to see what had become of them.
"If you find them bring them back just as quickly as you can, Mr.
Rush," said Harry. "We need them on the baseball team."
"I suppose you do, Harry. I will do my best."
"If they don't show up I don't know what we are going to do."
"Haven't you enough players?"
"Oh, yes, but Fred is our best catcher and Joe our best pitcher. With
them out of the game we won't stand near as good a chance of winning."
Promptly on time the members of the Lakeport Club assembled at the
room. The first question asked by each was concerning Joe and Fred.
"This is the worst blow yet!" cried Bart. "If they don't show up what
in the world are we to do?"
"All we can do is to put Link in as pitcher and Matt as catcher, and
then rearrange the rest of the players," answered Harry.
"I'll do my best," said Link. "But I must say I thought Joe would be
here to do the twirling for us."
"So will I do my best," added Matt. "But you all know Fred is the best
catcher in Lakeport."
"If I knowed where to look fer 'em, I'd go after 'em red-hot," came
from Teddy Dugan.
"Maybe we'd all go after them," said Walter.
It was not long after this that a number of friends came up to the
clubroom. When it was announced that Joe and Fred were missing many
looked glum.
"And to think that I just bet Boardman two dollars that the Lakeports
would win," said one of the visitors.
"Boardman and Voup are betting all around," said another visitor. "I
never knew they had so much money. And somebody said Dan Marcy was
around and that he was betting on the Excelsiors, too."
"Do they know that Joe and Fred are missing?" asked Walter.
"I don't know, but they will know it as soon as we appear on the ball
field."
The various players consulted their watches every few minutes and it
was plainly to be seen that some of them were nervous. All had depended
upon Joe and Fred to pitch and catch.
"Let us go back of the shop and practice," said Link to Matt, and they
went down and Link did his best to get his arm into proper shape for
the great game.
"This, in one way, is a chance for us," observed Matt.
"True, Matt, but I'd rather see Joe on deck--not but what I am willing
enough to pitch. I shouldn't care if it was some other game than the
one for the championship of our town."
"That's the way I look at it, too."
At last it got so late that Harry called the club together. All were in
their uniforms, and Harry directed that the suits belonging to Fred and
Joe be taken to the little dressing-room under the grand stand at the
grounds.
"They may show up at the last minute," said he, "and if they do they
won't have time to come up here and dress."
The game for the championship of Lakeport had been widely advertised
and the ball grounds were already beginning to fill up when the club
arrived there. The grand stand was packed.
"Gracious, what a crowd!" murmured Bart, as he looked around. "I never
saw so many people in Lakeport in my life!"
"And to think Joe and Fred are not here," groaned Frank. "It's enough
to make one sick at heart."
The absence of the regular pitcher and catcher of the Lakeports was
quickly noticed by scores of spectators and various were the comments
in consequence.
"Where is Joe Westmore? I thought he was going to pitch."
"And Fred Rush was going to catch. I don't see either of them."
"Link Darrow is practicing with the ball, and Matt Roscoe is catching
for him."
"Well, Link is pretty good, but not as good as Joe."
"You're right there, and they want the best battery they've got to-day,
or they'll lose."
Swiftly the minutes flew by and still no Joe and no Fred. Harry held
his watch in his hand almost constantly.
"It's no use!" he groaned at last. "We have got to start up the game
without them!"