“I deny,” retorted the manager of the Colorado Springs team, “that I entered into such an arrangement as you claim I did. If you can prove——”
“Blazes! You know I can’t prove it. I took you for a man of your word. I had an open date for to-morrow; so did you. I phoned you, and after we had fixed it up you said to come on. Now we’re here, and you want to make it dead certain that you’re going to get one-half the pie. You’ve got something of a team, haven’t you? You think your bunch can play baseball, don’t you? Well, if you can beat us, I’m willing you should lug off two-thirds of the gate money. Such an arrangement as that makes an object to work for. With an equal division, either of us will be as well off financially whether he wins or loses.”
“You called me on the phone, Harrison. You were mighty anxious for the game; I wasn’t particular. The open date to-morrow meant an opportunity for my boys to rest up, and they know it. Hot weather and a long, grilling pull at the game threatens to make ’em go stale. My pitching staff is on the blink. There’s only one slabman left in good condition—and he might be better.”
Harrison looked the local manager up and down, as if taking his measure.
“You’re just about built to run a third-rate bush league team,” he sneered. “This is the first time I’ve got bitten by anything as small as you.”
Loring flushed to the roots of his hair.
“You’re an insolent, coarse-grained bully, Harrison,” he said hotly; “but you’ll find you can’t browbeat me. The Springs will rest to-morrow, and you’ll do the same as far as I am concerned. It’s off.”
“Quitter!” snarled Harrison, choking with excess of anger.
With a shrug of his shoulders Loring turned and left the furious man there in the lobby of the hotel, spluttering and snarling his wrath.
The Outlaws, managed by Harrison, was indeed a famous baseball organization, being composed entirely of men who had worn Big League uniforms. Harrison had been the manager of the Menockets in a certain Middle Western League, which had blown up in the midst of a season, the cause of the disaster being reckless extravagance and astonishing lack of business methods on the part of various managers in the league. The rivalry had been intense, and the salaries paid not a few of the players who had deserted the Big League teams, something to gasp at.