“You obtained it from him just before Mr. Lawson called to claim his furniture, and later he came on to the college. The rest fits in with what you already know.”
“Well, wouldn’t that——” began Tom, and then he happened to remember that he was in the president’s presence, and he stopped.
“Your old chair is at this place,” went on Dr. Churchill, giving the address of a small dealer in a nearby city. “You may go and get it any time you like,” the good doctor concluded. “And now I think that this clears up the mystery. But, before you go, let me congratulate you on the magnificent victory of this afternoon. The nine did exceedingly well.”
The president smiled benignly, unconscious of the “break” he had made in calling the eleven a “nine,” and the boys, joyful over the prospect of an early recovery of their chair, left the office. At last the mystery was ended.
There was more rejoicing in Randall when the facts regarding the quit-claim deed became known, and the next day formal notice of the withdrawal of the suit was filed. There was some talk about prosecuting Mr. Lawson, but there was a doubt as to his real criminality, so nothing was done.
And thus ended the troubles of Randall, not only from a legal standpoint, but also from an athletic, for her title to the championship of the gridiron was firmly established. But there were other battles of the field to come, and those who are interested in them may read thereof in the next volume of the series, to be called: “For the Honor of Randall; a Story of College Athletics.”
“They look like twins, don’t they?” remarked Tom, a few evenings later, when, having recovered their own chair, it was placed beside the one left by Mr. Lawson, for he did not come to claim it.
“Yes, if we had two more, we’d have a collection, and there’d be one apiece,” added Phil.
“Oh, the sofa’s good enough for me,” came from Sid. “I hope nobody borrows that to take out a wheel, or some of the stuffing.”
“And the clock ticks as naturally as it always did,” commented Phil, as he took a seat in one of the easy chairs, for Lenton had returned the timepiece.