A CONTEST AT THE GYMNASIUM.
With the laying of the ghost, excitement dropped temporarily from
the life of Queen's School. It was the time for work now, and right
valiantly did every one study, making up for some of the lost time in
the glorious fall days which invited one out in the open to waste the
hours. Examinations were coming along, and the evenings were put in
poring over the books.
Mrs. Armstrong was a visitor at the school for a day at this time,
and Frank conducted her around the grounds, to the boat-house, the
football field, the baseball field and the gymnasium. She wanted to
know where they had trapped the ghost, and he showed her. It was a
happy day for Frank, who pointed out the various things of interest
around the old school as if they belonged to him personally.
Mrs. Armstrong noted the look of health on her boy's face, and was
glad. She felt that he had already gained something physically, for
even in the short time he had been at the school he seemed to have
increased in stature. She told Frank that he was growing like a weed.
"You think I'm growing. Just cast your eye on Jimmy," said Frank.
"Jimmy grew bigger every day of football and he is as hard as a stone
wall. Feel his muscles. Come on, Jimmy, show the lady." And Jimmy
obligingly flexed his biceps and offered the bunched-up knot of
muscles as a proof of his growing power.
"And look at David there. He's going to be the champion strong man of
Queen's, if he doesn't look out. He spends all his spare time down at
the gym. You should see him dipping on the parallel bars and doing
stunts on the flying rings. Patsy has to actually drive him out of
the place," which was a fact. "David has made up his mind to be a
'champeen.'"
"I can't do anything else, Mrs. Armstrong," said David. "And I've got
so much to learn that I have to keep at it."
David had set his heart on winning a place on the gymnasium team, and
to do this he had taken up the work he was best fitted for. Owing
to his light body and a natural strength in his arms, he was already
able to do things in raising himself with his arms, which a boy fully
developed, of greater general strength, might have accomplished only
with the greatest difficulty.
David's strength of arm was in evidence one day at the gymnasium when
the four friends, David, Frank, Jimmy and Lewis, were on the floor.
A certain amount of physical work in the gym was called for by the
school requirements, or, at least, a certain time had to be spent
in some kind of exercise. Boys who took part in any of the outdoor
sports were not called upon to do work on the floor during the period
of practice of the teams they represented. To Lewis, who was indolent
of body, the hour in the gym was the hardest of the day, but he
made his task as light as it could be. His way of exercise was to
stroll over to a chest-weight and give it two or three pulls with the
lightest loads he could find for it, and then walk to the other end
of the gym for two or three pulls at some other piece of apparatus.
Patsy kept after him, but athletic work for Lewis was like pulling
teeth.
On the day in question, the four boys had just about finished their
work and stopped by the end of the parallel bars.
"How many times can you dip?" said Jimmy. Dipping, as of course
every one knows, consists in raising oneself up and down from a bent
position of the arms to a straight position, the weight of the body
being carried entirely on the arms during the raise and drop.
"I don't know," said Frank, "never tried."
"Go on and show your speed," said Jimmy, "it will be good practice
for your pitching arm. All good pitchers have lots of muscle, you
know."
"Yes, go ahead," said David, "we'll all try."
Frank, thus urged, swung up on the end of the bars. "Count for me,"
he said, as he let himself down between the bars and straightened up;
"I'll need all the wind I've got."
Jimmy began, "One, two, three, four, five, six, good boy,
keep a-going--seven, eight,--getting pretty heavy, eh? Nine,
ten--eleven, twelve--going, going, gone;--no, he has one more in
him,--thirteen--don't stop there, it's unlucky." But Frank had stuck.
He got down all right on the fourteenth dip, but could not straighten
up. He dropped off, puffing. "Gee, that's work," he said, "Go ahead,
you try," indicating Jimmy.
"No," said that individual, "I want to see Lewis try it."
"Oh, I'm not feeling very strong to-day," said Lewis, "I'll do it
some other day."
"Here, here, no shystering," said all hands. "We all agreed to do it.
Take your turn."
So Lewis reluctantly struggled to a position on the bars. "I'll
count," said Frank. Lewis let himself down gingerly, and there he
hung. He was heavy and fat. He made desperate efforts to push himself
up again, and struggled and kicked, but although he got part of
the way up, he couldn't straighten those arms, although the blood
was almost bursting out of his cheeks in the effort. The boys were
howling with laughter.
"Kick with your left leg."
"Hold your mouth straight, and you'll make it."
"Get a step ladder."
"Give him a push."
"Get an elevator."
These and other suggestions the tormentors offered Lewis as he hung
there struggling. Finally, in despair, he let go and dropped to the
floor.
The boys were screaming with laughter, and Lewis was not any too well
pleased.
"Good work, Lewis, you did it just half a time. That's a record."
"Try it yourself," said Lewis, "I told you I didn't feel very strong
this afternoon. I've got a lame wrist, anyway." Lewis always had an
excuse.
It was Jimmy's turn and he mounted the bars. Frank counted, and
Jimmy, who was remarkably strong for his years, being a sound and
sturdy youngster, dipped down and swung back again no less than
nineteen times before he gave it up.
"Whew!" said Frank, "that beats me. I guess you're it."
"No," said Jimmy. "David hasn't tried yet."
"I guess I can't dip that many times," said David, preparing for his
trial. "Patsy says it's one of the hardest things to do and shows
actual strength. I can't measure up with much success against Jimmy."
But nevertheless he climbed to the position on the bar. "Count for
me," he said to Frank, and Frank began, while David swung up and
down with the regularity of a pendulum. He passed Jimmy's figures
without a bit of effort apparently, reached twenty, and then the boys
began to open their eyes. He did not stop at twenty, but kept it up
without fatigue until he reached the great number of forty-two times.
Then he stopped, but looked as though he might have continued for
five minutes longer.
"Hats off to David Powers," said Frank, which, seeing that they had
no hats on, was not a thing difficult of accomplishment. "Isn't he
the dandy little dipper?"
"He certainly is," agreed Jimmy. "How on earth do you do it?"
"Oh, I'm built for it," said David, looking down at his twisted legs.
"Patsy says all my strength has gone to my arms and shoulders. He
says the record for the dip is 66, made five or six years ago by one
of the football fellows."
"I'll bet you beat it before you get through," said Frank, admiringly.
"I'd like to."
"Then the record you made would go down over on the wall there to
stay until some other fellow did better."
"I don't think I can ever do it, but as it is one of the few things I
can do, I'll keep busy at it," said David.
Patsy strolled up at this moment, and they told him what they had
been at.
"You can never beat David Powers at dipping or pulling up on the
horizontal bar. Did you ever see him climbing the rope? He's been
down here in the mornings, learning how to do that."
"O-ho, Mr. Powers," said Frank, "is that where you sneak off to
in the mornings, down to the gym, eh? Well, you are out after the
records, aren't you?" But there was a note of pride in Frank's tone
as he looked at the little chap.
"Come on, David, show them how a cat goes up a rope," said Patsy. He
loosened the climbing rope from the side of the gallery, and let it
swing to its position with a clear space of twenty-five feet to the
rafters, where it was attached by an eye-bolt. David moved over to
the rope by the aid of his cane, with which he could get around in
the gymnasium, seized the rope and went up it hand over hand, like a
sailor. It seemed hardly more than a half dozen breaths before he had
reached the very top of the rope, touched the rafter, slid down the
rope, and was with them again on the floor.
"There's only two fellows in this whole school who can beat that,
and even now I think he'd give them a good tussle if it came to a
contest. Before the winter is over we'll have the gym trials, and
then you'll see some good contests. I'm backing this young fellow
Freshman to win some points if he keeps up his improvement," said
Patsy, laying his hand on David's shoulder. David smiled in a pleased
manner and looked down.
"Well, I'll take good care I don't get into any rope-climbing
contests with him; I'd come out at the little end of the horn," said
Frank.
"And I'll dodge them, too," remarked Jimmy.
"And I'm thinking of entering the dip contests and the rope-climbing
myself," said Lewis, which raised a laugh.
"Lewis, you could climb a rope if it was stretched along the ground,
all right," said Jimmy, "or if you had a convenient elevator."
"You are all very discouraging to a really good athlete. Some day
I'll show you fellows," said the disgruntled Lewis.
It was a few days after the incident in the gymnasium that the scouts
of the Gamma Tau looked in on Jimmy and Frank again, but they were
met with the same answer. "This is the last time," Cuthbert said to
Frank. "We've got about all the men we want now. We'd like to have
you both come in. And don't forget that you can't get very far in
this school without the help of Gamma Tau."
To this very direct threat both boys who were sought, answered firmly
that if they couldn't get along without Gamma Tau they would have to
do without the delightful backing of that autocrat society. Frank
was so outspoken that he raised Cuthbert's ire before the call was
over; and the caller intimated that if Frank had any ambitions in the
direction of the baseball nine in the spring he might as well bury
them, for he couldn't get on it.
"Why, Simpson, the captain, is one of our biggest men, and I think
you're a fool not to play for his friendship."
But the argument had no strength with Frank, who saw more and more
the bad effect of the fraternity in the school life. It made a clique
of fellows who considered themselves a little better than the boys
who were not in its membership.
"You fellows are going to have a tumble some of these days. You can't
run things here all the time."
"Well, I guess we can run them as far as you're concerned, Mr. Frank
Armstrong. You can set that down in your diary and refer to it next
spring about baseball time. Good night. Remember, it's the last call
for dinner."
"All right, Mr. Cuthbert. I know it is considered an honor to be
given the chance to come in, but I'm going to stay outside, for I
think I can do better without Gamma Tau. And if I can't, well, then
I'll have to do worse. If you fellows don't look out, some one will
start another society."
"It's been tried," said Cuthbert, now at the door with his hand on
the knob. "It's been tried two or three times, but it never comes to
anything. All I can say is, that you are letting a good chance go.
But fools will be fools. Good night."