“We’re up against it, Binney,” says he, “but we got to stick it out.”
“Let’s give one of ’em an extry,” says Tallow, “that’ll fix the tie.”
“No,” says Mark. “This t-t-thing has been run fair, and it’ll be f-f-finished fair. We’ll take what’s comin’ to us, and git out of it the best we can. Anyhow,” says he, beginning to shake all over, “it’ll be the f-funniest thing that ever happened in Wicksville.”
“Yes,” says I, “I’ll bet we laugh like anythin’ at it when our folks come to the hospital to tell us about it. A tie,” says I. “Think of the row them women will make when they find out they’re tied.”
“I’m t-thinkin’ about it,” says Mark.
CHAPTER XXII
There wasn’t anything for us fellows to do but to go through with the thing now. We couldn’t very well duck out and then ever show our faces again in Wicksville. So right after supper we went down and opened up the hall where the food show was, and got things ready for the massacre. I kind of wished the times that Mark played games about would come back for a while. I mean when knights and such-like fellows went around with cast-iron nightgowns on so that you couldn’t hurt them without you found the combination to the safe and got the door open. That’s what Mark calls a mixed metaphor. It says what I mean, so I don’t care what he calls it. Anyhow, I don’t believe he knows what he’s talking about.
Well, about seven o’clock the crowd began to come. They came in a jam. There was to be a program, and at the end of it the announcement was to be made who had won the contest. The program started up at eight o’clock, and meanwhile all of us but Mark had been back at the Trumpet office, helping get out the paper. That was to be part of the evening’s excitement, too.
Pretty soon folks began to get tired of the program and began to yell for the decision of the contest. It kept getting louder and louder, till Mark judged it was best to let them have it.
“I’ll d-do it,” says he. “I’m the one that t-thought it up, so I’ll make the announcement and t-take what’s comin’. You fellers better skip.”