The hill was covered with sleds. Shouts of laughter and merry yells echoed and re-echoed over the surrounding country as the cadets enjoyed the fun. Generosity prevailed, the cadets loaning their sleds to those who had none, while the lenders warmed themselves around the fires and waited for the borrowers to toil up the hill again.
“Well, what say to our first trip down?” called Douglas, planting the bob firmly on the brow of the hill.
“OK,” agreed Vench, sitting on the sled. Douglas eyed him with vast disapproval.
“What are you going to do, sit on the sled?” he demanded.
“Certainly,” retorted Vench. “What am I supposed to do, stand on it?”
“You ought to know enough about tobogganing to lie down,” Douglas said. “Only girls sit up. Do you want me to clasp my hands around your tummy and scream when we hit a bump?”
“Aw, go chase yourself!” growled Vench, lying down on the front of the sled. Jim and Terry followed and Don squirmed on top of them. There was now just room enough for Douglas.
“All set?” inquired Douglas, taking hold of the rear of the sled.
“Let her go!” the others cried, and Douglas gave the bob a push. It began to tilt over the top of the hill and moved slowly down. Douglas sprang on, kneeling on the little space left for him, and the bob, with its heavy load, began to move with increasing speed down the hill. It did not immediately gain a great rate of speed for the runners were still a little rusty, but it picked up gradually, until it was fairly flying down the hill.
Past single sleds they went, Vench steering dexterously in and out between them, passing cadets toiling up the snowy slopes, who turned to stare after them. One or two light bumps were encountered, which caused the sled to jump a few inches from the ground, and they literally flew through the air, to land with a jarring thud a little further on. In this way they reached the bottom of the hill and kept going on the level ground, to stop finally a long way from the point at which they had started.