"Hold on, captain!" exclaimed Steele again. "There's another side to this story, and you're going to get it right now."
Concisely, and with telling effect, the coach told of the events which had happened at the Kingswood High. His flashing eyes and vigorous manner, backed up by the cool and determined attitude of Bob Somers and Dave Brandon, soon made the visitors regard things in a different light.
As Owen Lawrence saw them wavering his belligerent manner increased.
"This is the time your bluff won't work, Somers!" he cried, angrily. "I wouldn't advise you to talk too much, or you might get run right off the field."
"Who's going to do it?" asked Bob.
"I may take a hand myself."
"Well, you can start a rough-house if you like. I can tell you this much, Owen Lawrence: the regulars are here to play ball, and they're going to do it."
"Hooray—hooray!" shouted Benny Wilkins. "There's sand for you—pure grit. Sand is gritty; so is Somers."
The clamor of the excited, jostling mob, the yells of encouragement from first one side, then the other, and apparently every sound which boys are able to produce made such an uproarious noise that the voices of the speakers were often entirely swallowed up.
One by one the members of the regular team fought their way to the center of interest.