“Colonel Carson produced it after his death, and claimed that he had never received payment. He intended to oust Mrs. McQuade from this house on Monday. If she had borrowed the money and paid it off the second time, Carson’s villainy would have triumphed. This I did not want to see.”
He paused, his grave eyes sweeping from face to face.
“As I wrote you, Frank, that would be a poor way to defeat him. So I came to Carsonville myself, in disguise. The worthy colonel tried to entrap me into betting against his team. I appeared to fall into the trap, and wagered my money against his mortgage. He tried to induce me to bet against his money, but this I would not do. I want you to get the difference, and get it clearly.”
“I do, father,” exclaimed Chip quickly.
One after another the rest nodded assent.
“What would you ’a’ done if you’d lost?” queried McCarthy.
Frank Merriwell, senior, smiled.
“I watched you at practice work, Dan, and felt sure that I couldn’t lose.”
At this retort a yell of delight went up, and Dan flushed and wriggled in his chair. The speaker went on quickly:
“Are you sure, all of you, that you get my point? I’m not defending betting, even in a righteous cause, mind; it is demoralizing, and every sport in which it is allowed is sure to suffer. Colonel Carson is doing a great injury to baseball to-day. But in this case I might plead extenuating circumstances. I was not betting in order to win. I would cheerfully have let Mrs. McQuade borrow the money, except that this would have been knuckling under to a scoundrel. I won nothing for myself except the satisfaction of having been of service to a lady whom I am proud to number among my friends, and to her son, whom I am proud to number among my son’s friends.”