*fore scarcely a dozen fellows had watched the

performances of the Track Team, now the daily practice was almost as popular as baseball and squads of critical but enthusiastic youths stood about the track and applauded and urged on their friends. The hammer-throw was sufficiently spectacular to attract a large gallery every afternoon, and I'm not denying that Fudge strutted a little when, having tossed the weight far away across the field, he allowed some admiring acquaintance to help him on with the crimson dressing-robe he affected.

Over at Springdale great things were said of the local Track Team, and the Springdale paper even now predicted victory. Guy Felker and the others studied that paper every day and compared what they learned of the Blue team's performances with what they knew of their own, sometimes with satisfaction and more often with alarm. There was no disguising the fact that Springdale would send a team more than ordinarily strong in the quarter, half and mile events and in the jumps. The Blue was likely to prove weak in the sprints and hurdles and at present seemed about on a par with the Purple in the hammer-throw and shot-put. Springdale's best performer with the shot was credited with thirty-nine feet and two inches, but Skeet