V
BATTLE ROYAL
The toboggan slide was in fine shape, and as soon as supper was over the upper grade boys hurried out to it. Bert had never tasted the joys of tobogganing and so was quite indifferent to the fact that he was not to be allowed on the slide, but Lanny and Small were inclined to be rueful.
“I wish now,” said Small, “that we’d fixed it for them.”
“I don’t see why we can’t use it if we want to,” said Kid. “It’s the school slide and not Ben’s and Sam’s. I guess if we asked Mr. Crane——”
“That would be a babyish thing to do,” said Lanny. “Let’s go out and see them, anyway. Maybe they’ll let us go down a few times.”
“They’ve got all the toboggans,” said Small, as they scattered for their sweaters and jackets. “Aren’t you coming, Bert?”
“No, I guess not. I don’t want to stand in the snow and watch those fellows slide down hill.”
“Oh, come along,” begged Lanny. “Maybe we can have some fun.”
So Bert accompanied them and they went out and stood at the foot of the incline and watched the more fortunate ones come scooting down the ice-covered planks and go, rising and dipping and rising again, down the long trough of snow until lost in the darkness of the meadow. Their feet were beginning to get cold and Bert had already announced his determination to return indoors when Cupples and Crandall, drawing a fine new toboggan that the former had received as a Christmas present, arrived at the foot of the incline and started up the steps. It was Ben who saw them and raised a warning shout to the others, who included three day students from the village.