“Not so much as you think, Mr. Merriwell,” said Brady. “He always was a good catcher, and if he’s much better, it’s partly because he’s been taking the game more seriously and looking after himself better.”
“I wanted to speak to you two fellows,” said the coach seriously. “I’ve been thinking a lot about this man Parker. He’s a fine football player, and if he doesn’t play this fall, Yale will miss him badly. I don’t know just where we can look for a guard to take his place. But I won’t have him on the team if he hasn’t been playing fair. You remember that after I proved he was responsible for that absurd charge that Jim Phillips was a professional, he promised to behave himself. Now, what I want to know, Jim, is whether you think he had anything to do with your being kidnaped in Boston the night before the first Harvard game?”
“I can’t say at all positively that he had, Mr. Merriwell,” Phillips answered finally, after going over the whole affair in his mind. “I thought I recognized his voice, but he only spoke once—the man I thought was Parker, I mean—and I never got a look at his face. So I certainly couldn’t make the positive statement that he had anything to do with it.”
“I’m pretty sure he had,” said Brady. “There was no one else who would have had any reason for doing anything of that sort, you know, and Parker could have managed it. He could have pointed us out to the chauffeur of that cab, and they were probably willing to carry me off along with Jim, you know.”
“You’re out of this, Bill,” said Dick, with a smile. “I think as you do, but we need more than thoughts to be sure, you see. I can’t punish Parker unless I’m absolutely certain that he did take part in that affair. I think we’re agreed that his loss of the football captaincy is sufficient punishment for the business of the registered letter. As it happened, that did no serious harm; though, of course, it was no fault of his that we were able to defeat his plans. But you have to consider the effect as well as the intention, and I think we can let that matter drop. However, he was very defiant when we obtained that confession from him.”
“I can’t make any charge against him in that taxicab affair,” Jim decided finally. “I haven’t enough evidence to satisfy myself, much less some unprejudiced person. So, as far as I am concerned, I say, let the thing drop. I’ll be careful hereafter. I’ll see that no one has a chance to do anything of that sort again.”
“There’s Parker now,” said Brady curiously, looking up into the stand, where a score or more of students, who were not themselves players, had assembled to watch the practice.
“Good,” said Dick. “I’ll go up there and read the riot act to him, anyhow. Whether he’s innocent or guilty, that won’t do any harm.”
Parker looked up with unconcealed surprise and hostility when he saw the universal coach making his way toward him through the rows of empty seats.
“What do you want?” he snarled, as Dick dropped into a seat beside him. “You’ve got your way, haven’t you? Your man has been elected as football captain. Can’t you let me alone?”