Frank Merriwell's Catch — page 21: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

TTP TOP WEEKLY. not Hodge fouled him, but ‘the judges decided it was his own fault, as he was seen to-deliberately get in Bart’s way. This silenced him, but he looked sullen and revengeful and continued to mutter to himself. The canoe occupied by Hodge had not been injured by the collision, and Bart slowly paddled toward shore at Merri- well's side when the race was over. ‘‘Well, what do you think about it now ?’’ he asked. “TY think I had the pull of my life to win,’’ admitted Frank. ‘“‘I came near waiting too long before getting down tu business. °’ “Oh, I felt that one of us stood a good show to win,’’ said Bart; “‘but that was not what I meant.”’ “Rh? Then what did you mean?’ “What do you think about Mr. Jim Welch ?”” “‘T think he tried to foul me.” ‘SSure, >) ““And you prevented it, although I don’t know how you did it, for you were on the other side of him a few moments before. I was paying attention strictly to _ business, and supposed I was passing with Welch between us. How did you get in there?’’ “*T will tell you,’’ said Hodge, in a low tone. ‘‘I saw you were.coming up at wonderful speed, for I.took the chance of looking round. I realized that you-would bea wiuner if not interfered with, and that you were going to pass on the other side of Welch. The moment I realized that into my mind flashed the conviction that he would try to keep you from win- ning. The man from Greenville was hanging close to you, and there was a chance that he would beat all of us, un- less you had a free course to the finish. I felt that I had a slim show of winning, so I permitted my canoe to drop back till I could cross behind Welth just when you were forging alongside of him. I reserved acertain amount of strength for a great spurt, and I needed it the moment I pot into position. When I saw him try to foul you, I used every onnce of energy and drove my canoe into his. That’sall.”’ ““Well, you did a good job, old man; 13 but I don’t know what the judges will say about it.’ “IT don’t care what they say about it. What I want to know is what you say about Mr. Jim Welch now. Yesterday he tried to hammer yon, to-day he tried to shoot you, and now, although you saved him from drowning this morning, he did his best to knock you out of this trace. Is he thoroughly bad or not?” *‘Hfe is a rascal, that I will admit, but I do not believe him thoroughly bad, Bart.’ “Well, you are hard to convince!” cried Hodge, in disgust. ‘I think you are stubborn—you will not give up when you know you are wrong.”’ “You do not think that, Hodge,’ said Merry, reproachfully ; “vou must kuaw better.’’ Not another word would Bart say about it. He paddled along in sulky silence, not even giving heed when Frank thanked him for his act in preveuting Welch from fouling. From their boat the judges aunounced that Frank Merriwell was the winner. When Welch protested, they told him he deliberately turned his canoe in front of Hodge. The fellow could have claimed that Bart was of his course, but he was cautioned to let it drop, being told that it would be better to do that, as his attempt at crooked play would be shown up if he made a fuss about it. So the report went out that the collision came about because Welch pot in Hodge’s course; but those who saw everything plainly knew this was aot the real canse. For two days Frank Merriwell had kept his identity secret as far as possible, being led todo so because of his experi- ences in Camden, Rockland and Beifast. Now, however, everybody was asking the name of the wiuner, and it passed from — one to another that it was the great Yale athlete, Frank Merriwell. Two baseball teams had watched the race from the shore. They were the New- ports and the M. C. 1.’s, of Pittsfield, and the most of them had heard of Merri- well. When they kaew he was there at Camp Benson they were eager to geta close look at him. Hundreds of others experienced the same eagerness, and thus “An Alaskan Trail: or, How Two Boys discovered a new Road to Yokou,” is now reuning in The Half-Holiday. GOnnlGooe G SS (CO)