But when the fat boy and Mouser were let down, and Max and Barry grabbed the chums from Clinton, for a moment, Fred was inclined to cut up rough.
"Aw, be a sport, Fred!" said Bobby, earnestly. "If Pee Wee can stand it, we can."
So Fred thought better of "getting mad" and for a while the two friends swung in the air and punched and kicked at each other to the delight of the other boys. Bobby was very careful not to anger the red-haired lad, and they came through the poguey fight with smiling faces. It was borne in upon Bobby's mind more and more that Fred Martin was going to have difficulty in keeping out of trouble in this new environment.
At eleven o'clock the whole school filed up to the hall on the second floor. None of the teachers were present and there was some little confusion and noise at first.
Barry stepped forward and held up a hand for silence. "You fellows better take a tumble to yourselves," he said calmly. "You want to show the Doctor that you don't have to be watched all the time. You all know—at least, all of you but Bobby Blake and Fred Martin, and they are not making the noise—that this isn't the place for skylarking.
"We had our fun downstairs. I hear the Doctor coming now. Let's give him a Rockledge cheer when he comes in and then—silence!"
The door opened as he ceased speaking and the tall, heavy-set principal with his quiet smile and pleasant eyes peering through the thick lenses of his glasses, appeared.
Captain Gray raised his hand again. The roomful of boys sprang to their feet. Bobby noted that many of them placed their left hands upon the little blue and white enameled button that they wore on the lapels of their coats, as they shouted in unison:
"One, two, three—boom!
Boom—Z-z-z—ah!
Rockledge! Rockledge!
Sword and star!
Who's on top?
We sure are—
Rock-ledge!"
Bobby and Fred had both noticed the blue and white buttons with the star and sword upon them, but they did not know what they meant. Now Bobby guessed that there was some society, or inner circle at Rockledge School that they, as newcomers, knew nothing about.