The stands emptied, the players thronged to the dressing-rooms and Wayne and June journeyed across the trampled field of battle on their way to the gate as happy as though they themselves had won that victory. And Sam trotted behind with his pathetic stub of a tail wagging proudly.
[CHAPTER XIX]
WAYNE LENDS A HAND
That evening Wayne went to the Congress House and inquired for Mr. Milburn. The clerk at the desk pushed a card toward him and he wrote his name on it. Five minutes later a bell boy returned with the message that the manager declined to see him. As Wayne had expected just that, he was not disappointed. Finding a vacant chair against a wall of the lobby, he went on watch. But, although he saw several of the Harrisville players come and go during the succeeding hour, the manager did not appear, and at half-past nine Wayne returned to the new lodgings. June, with Sam curled into a tight bunch on his chest, was stretched on his bed reading an evening paper. June was not a fast reader but he was most thorough, and one newspaper generally lasted him for several days. Wayne made him lay his paper aside for the present and produce what money he had. To it Wayne added his own wealth and they then counted it over. They had to count it thrice for the result was different the first two times. Fifty-five dollars and forty-one cents was what they finally made it. Then Wayne figured on the margin of June’s paper and, after much frowning and muttering, decided that by rigid economy they could live just about five weeks on their capital.
“Fifteen cents apiece is enough for breakfast and supper,” said Wayne, “and we can get a good dinner for thirty cents. That comes to one dollar and twenty cents a day, or eight-forty a week. Then two and a half for the room makes it ten-ninety, and ten-ninety goes into fifty-five forty five times and leaves ninety cents over.”
“That’s so,” assented June, “but we’d better leave us enough to get home on, Mas’ Wayne.”
“We’re home now,” replied Wayne firmly.
“Is we?”
“We are! We’re going to stay right here, June. If I don’t get on the baseball team I’ll find a job somewhere. And you can do the same.”