"Well caught! well caught, Hartland!" they cried, for Temple was their most dangerous opponent, and now that he was gone they felt on better terms with themselves.
Still the score gradually crept up, till, by the time the last man was out, the board showed the respectable total of 157.
Susie had very hazy notions of cricket, and when Dick came over she wanted to know if the Deanery had won the shield.
"Won!" echoed Dick, opening his eyes wide. "Why, the match isn't over. We have to go in yet. There's Jim just walking to the wicket. Did you see that lovely catch he made? Mr. Barrow, a regular cricketing swell—plays for the county, you know—said it was as neat a bit of work as he'd seen on the ground."
Susie still felt very hazy about it, but she understood Jim had done something clever, and that was enough to make her happy.
Meanwhile the excitement over the match grew very keen. The Deanery innings opened well, fifty runs being scored for the loss of two wickets; but after that matters went badly.
One after the other, the batsmen were caught or bowled; and it seemed as if the captain could not get any one to stay with him for long.
When the seventh wicket fell for exactly a hundred, Dick began to whistle comically.
"There's only Archer to depend on now," said he, "and it isn't often he makes more than a dozen."
"Why don't you go in?" asked Susie.