“And I don’t think you have seen half the people there are in this little old world,” said Wiley with a smile.
In the car with them the youthful members of the baseball team joked, and laughed, and sang. Just ahead of them sat two young chaps, who were earnestly discussing baseball; and now Wiley became interested in their conversation.
“If we win to-day,” said one, “it will be the first time Fardale has been defeated this season by a school team.”
“Oh, we are going to trim them to-day, Andy!” confidently asserted the other. “It’s all settled.”
“You think it is all settled, Paul,” said Andy. “But the game is not so easily settled with Dick Merriwell against us.”
“My dear fellow,” chuckled Paul, “we have everything on our side this day. Even the umpire will be with us; but keep it quiet—keep it quiet!”
Wiley pricked up his ears and listened more intently.
“How do you know the umpire will be with us?”
“That’s all right. Nort Madison is out for Fardale’s scalp on this occasion, and he has left no stone unturned to accomplish the trick. We even know Merriwell’s system of signals from the box.”
“Do you mean to tell me that Madison has things fixed with the umpire?”