CHAPTER XII.
WHO SHALL BE CAPTAIN OF COMPANY C?
In October, there came a sudden stir of interest and excitement of a different sort, namely, the appointment of Henderson’s successor in the battalion.
Gordon was now major, and Hamlin had taken his place as captain of Company C.
The appointments had heretofore been made by Prof. Keene, and the liveliest interest was awakened when he announced that, this time, the captain was to be elected by vote of the officers of the battalion and all the members of Company C.
No one was eligible for the captaincy except those members of the senior class whose average during the previous years had been ninety or more, and of these there were but eight, and of these, two—one of whom was Clark—had not been in the battalion at all, and so of course could not be candidates. The names of the remaining six were put on the bulletin board, and Prof. Keene announced that the vote would be taken after school on Friday of that week.
Graham and Raleigh stood highest on the list, each having averaged ninety-four for the previous years. Then came Griffin, the first lieutenant of Company C, with an average of ninety-two; then Fry, Cole and Edson, with averages of ninety-one and ninety. The last three belonged to another section.
Prof. Keene had supposed that the choice would lie between Graham and Raleigh, and as he was perfectly willing that either should hold the position, he had decided that the one that the boys preferred should be captain. He had not imagined that any one of the other four would be considered at all, and was wholly unprepared for the strong feeling and sharp rivalry that was soon developed. Neither was he fully aware of the character of some of the boys in Company C. There were a few fine fellows in the company, but there were more who were idle and indifferent to everything but “fun,” and a few who were really bad, and who would not hesitate to sacrifice the best interests of the school to carry out their own schemes. Some of these last had been friends of Henderson, and these had by no means forgotten the occurrences at the competitive drill. They resented Henderson’s enforced departure, and the disgrace that had fallen upon the company rankled in their minds. To these, the idea of having Graham or Raleigh for a captain was most distasteful.
Coyle was second lieutenant of Company C, and he and Barber, who belonged to another company, quickly made up their minds that, if possible, these two should be defeated on Friday.
Monday was “drill day,” and when the drill was over, Coyle privately asked all of Company C except the first lieutenant, who was a particular friend of Graham’s, to stop and talk the matter over. The discussion was held with closed doors, and a lively one it was.
Coyle was the first speaker.