Five times more the Kansan did this, and Merriwell duplicated the performance. The antagonistic crowds ceased to whoop and shout their exclamations of pleasure. The thing was becoming interesting. It began to seem that Badger and Merriwell would again tie. Then Badger, becoming overconfident, missed a bird. He stepped back, with a look of chagrin on his face.
Frank stepped forward, pitched up his gun as the birds were thrown—and missed one! Merriwell missed with the left barrel of his gun, and Badger had missed with the left barrel.
"Now you're monkeying!" Hodge grumbled, as Merriwell retired into the circle of his friends. "Don't do it, Merry! What did you do that for? You could have made the whole string straight, without a single goose-egg!"
Badger's dark, heavy face was flushed as he advanced again into position. He felt, like Hodge, that Merriwell had purposely missed that second bird, and it annoyed and angered him. This was the worst possible thing that could have happened to him, for when he fired he again missed a bird.
"Don't imitate him again!" Hodge implored.
And Merriwell did not. He made a clean kill of both birds.
"Only two more birds apiece, and Merry one ahead!" squealed Bink, vainly tiptoeing to see as well as those who were taller.
"You want to see Merry do him up?" said Bruce. "You little runt, I'll take pity on you!"
"Me, too!" squeaked Danny.
With little apparent exertion of strength, Browning hoisted the little fellows to his shoulders, thus elevating them above the heads of others, where they sat in great glee, squealing and laughing, Danny on the young giant's right shoulder and Bink on his left, as Badger walked out to shoot at his last two birds.