"Look out what you're doing—you chump!" exclaimed Jack. "Keep still, can't you?"
"Keep still yourself," growled Bill, as his gyrating friend collided with him again with some force. He tried to push Jack away. At once the latter put out his mittened hand and punched Bill between the eyes.
"Look out what you're doing!" yelled Bill, striking madly at his opponent.
In a moment they were at it! The poguey fight was on. The two erstwhile chums swung over the rungs of the horizontally laid ladder, like the famous Kilkenny cats, punched and kicked and batted at each other in a most ridiculous manner.
They couldn't hurt each other very much, save when they bumped heads, and that was not often. But they grew madder every moment.
The spectators were delighted, and the harder the combatants tried to strike each other, the more ridiculous the whole thing appeared.
Why it was called "poguey" nobody seemed to know, but Bobby discovered that it had long been practiced at Rockledge School, and that usually the two victims accepted the situation philosophically and did not really get mad.
The two bullies, however, had never learned to control their tempers. Besides, both considered that the other was somewhat to blame for their predicament.
The battle continued, fast and furious. Bill Bronson's face was blazing. Jack Jinks' was very ugly indeed to look at. If they could have torn the gloves off their hands they would have done so and struck each other with their bare fists.
Suddenly Jack drew up his knee as they swung together, and he caught Bill right in the belt. It was a solid blow and the victim uttered a cry of anger and pain. Captain Gray stepped forward and stopped the two from swinging together again.