So it happened that when the managing committee at Yale announced that they would examine candidates for the tug of war team, there was so much interest in it that a perfect mob of students gathered at the gymnasium eager for a place upon the rope.
Rowland and Hill, the senior members of the committee, were inclined to dismiss the whole crowd and then quietly pick out four men according to their own judgment, but Merriwell opposed this policy.
"There may be perfect giants concealed in that crowd," he said, "and if there's only one, we want to discover him. Give them all a trial."
"But it would take weeks," exclaimed Hill, "to arrange those men in teams and make them pull against each other until we could sift out the best four!"
"I don't think we need to have them pull against each other to find out what they're worth," Frank responded.
"What other way is there?" asked Rowland.
"I have an idea that I can sift that crowd in a week."
"Well, then, you'd better try it."
So it was agreed that Frank should undertake to examine the candidates for the team, and to superintend its training.
His plan for examining the applicants caused a good deal of amusement at first, but it proved to be remarkably effective as well as a great time saver.