"I'll get Dr. Rudden out to give you fellows some pointers as soon as we're in a little better shape," said Hiram, referring to the instructor who usually acted as coach.

"Yes, and you fellows need it all right," said Tom in a low voice.

"Everybody in the gym right after the game," ordered Hiram, during a lull in the play. "We're going to arrange about the Blue Banner parade."

"What's that," asked Joe of Teeter.

"Oh, every year all the teams in the Interscholastic League meet and have a parade to sort of open the season. The nine that holds the banner marches at the head, we have a band, and after that a little feed and it's jolly fun. You'll like it."

"Morningside holds the banner now, doesn't she?"

"Yes, worse luck. It ought to come here, and would have if Hiram and Luke had run things differently last year. But they wouldn't listen to reason. Well, I've got to play ball. See you at the meeting."

The regulars won the ball game by a small margin, and then the lads trooped off to the gymnasium to the meeting. It was much more friendly and enthusiastic than the organization session had been, and arrangements were quickly made for taking part in the annual parade.

"As is the custom," said Hiram, "we will all meet on the grounds of the school that holds the Blue Banner--that's Morningside, I'm sorry to say, but next season will be different. We are going to win the Blue Banner this time."

"That's what he always says," murmured Peaches in Tom's ear.

"So we will meet on the Morningside diamond, do the regular marching stunt and have a feed there. It will be necessary for you fellows to chip in for part of the expenses as our treasury is low just now. It won't be much. Now the parade committee will meet to talk over details, and so will the rooting crowd. Get busy now, fellows; we want to make a good showing in the parade."

The Interscholastic League, of which the Blue Banner was the trophy, consisted of these schools beside Morningside Academy and Excelsior Hall: Trinity School, Woodside Hall and the Lakeview Preparatory Inst.i.tute--or, more briefly the Lakeview Prep., which I shall call it.

In the parade of the nines of these inst.i.tutions, and the followers of them, there were always some novel features, and the lads tried to outdo each other in singing, cheering or giving their school yells. A committee generally had charge of the cheering and yelling contingents, and this body of students for Excelsior now got busy making up new war-cries.

The day of the parade was a glorious one. It was Sat.u.r.day, naturally, as that was the only time the students could be free. Early in the afternoon a big crowd left Excelsior Hall, the nine and the subst.i.tutes, including Joe and Tom, in their uniforms, each carrying a bat as an insignia of office. Morningside Academy was about five miles from Excelsior, and could be reached by trolley. Several special cars carried our hero and his companions.

All the other marching contingents save Trinity were on hand when the Excelsior lads arrived at Morningside, and they were noisily greeted. A few minutes later the Trinity lads arrived and then pandemonium broke loose.

"Say, this is great!" cried Joe, as cheer after cheer, and school-yell after school-yell, rent the air. "I guess we'll have some fun after all, Tom."

"Oh, sure. It's jolly."

The managers of the parade were rushing wildly to and fro, trying to get things in shape for the start. Lads who had not seen each other for some time were exchanging greetings, and the members of the various nines were talking "shop" to their hearts' content.

"Get in line! Get in line!" cried the marshals. "We're going to start."

The lads were to parade around the Morningside diamond, as a sort of tribute to the winning team of the league, and then go down through the town to the public square, where the yelling, cheering and singing would take place. Then they were to come back to Morningside for the feast.

The band struck up a lively air and a silence fell over the crowd. Then, out from the midst of the throng came the lads of Morningside. They were to lead the line, as was their right, by virtue of being champions, and as they swung into formation Joe looked at them with critical eyes.

Here was the doughty foe of his school.

His gaze fell upon one st.u.r.dy lad who carried a staff--carried it proudly--and no wonder, for, floating from it was the Blue Banner, glorious in gold embroidery and silver lace--the Blue Banner of the Interscholastic League--the trophy which meant so much.

"'Rah! 'Rah! 'Rah!" yelled the lads. "Three cheers for the Blue Banner!"

And how those cheers welled out! The lad carrying the banner dipped it in response to the salute.

Joe felt his heart strangely beating. A mist of tears came into his eyes--not tears of regret, but rather tears of joy and pride, that he belonged to the school which had a right to fight for that banner. Ah, if he could but enter that struggle himself!

Slowly the Morningside lads filed to their places. Louder played the band. There were more cheers, more salutes to the blue trophy, and then the banner parade was under way.

CHAPTER XI

JOE HOPES AND FEARS

Around the Morningside diamond marched the singing, cheering and yelling lads. The Blue Banner fluttered in the Spring breeze, and not a student in the crowd but either hoped it would stay in the possession of the present owners, or would come to his school, the desires varying according to the allegiance of the wisher.

[Ill.u.s.tration: AROUND THE MORNINGSIDE DIAMOND MARCHED THE SINGING, CHEERING AND YELLING LADS.]

It was a gala occasion for the town of Morningside, this Blue Banner parade, and the people turned out in great numbers to watch the lads.

Throngs came from neighboring towns and villages, and some even from a distant city, for the boys could always be depended on to make the occasion enjoyable.

The Excelsior Hall crowd did some new "stunts." Under the leadership of Luke and Hiram they rendered some odd songs and yells, and then, as they pa.s.sed around the public square, Hiram executed his main surprise. The leader of Excelsior, none other than Luke Fod.i.c.k, had been carrying a pole, on the top of which was a canvas bundle. It was tied about with strings in such a manner that, by pulling on one cord the wrapping would fall off, as when a statue is unveiled. To all questions as to what was on the pole under the canvas Luke and Hiram returned only evasive replies.

But on reaching the public square, when the cheering was at its height, Luke pulled the string. At once there floated from the staff an "effigy"

of the Blue Banner. It was made of blue calico and worked on it in strands of yellow rope were the words:

WE'LL HAVE THE REAL BANNER THIS YEAR!

Surmounting the odd trophy was a stuffed eagle, rather the worse for being moth-eaten, and worn "to a frazzle," as Tom said. But it made a hit, and the yells of laughter bore evidence of how the crowd appreciated it.

"Guess we've made good all right," said Hiram to his crony. "There's nothing else like it in the parade."

"That's right," answered Luke. "Oh, it takes us to do things."

"And sometimes _not_ do them," murmured Teeter. "We ought to have the real banner."

"Maybe we will," spoke Joe.

The other schools had their own specialties in singing, cutting queer capers, or in cheers, and made hits in their own way. Around the square marched the lads, and then, with a final chorus, rendered by all the students, the parade was over. Back to Morningside Academy they went, and sat down to what the papers described later as a "sumptuous repast; a feast of reason and a flow of soul."

Jolly good fellowship prevailed at the board. Speeches were made, toasts responded to, and baseball talk flowed on all sides. Hiram and Luke made remarks, as did the managers and captains of the other nines.

Predictions were freely expressed as to who would have the banner the next year, and then came more singing, more cheering and more yelling.

The dinner broke up finally, and then the various managers and captains got together to arrange the Interscholastic League schedule of games.

"Well, it was all right; wasn't it?" asked Tom of Joe, when they were on their way back to Excelsior Hall.

"Fine and dandy," was the answer. "They're a nice lot of fellows--all of 'em."

"Quite some cla.s.s to those Trinity School lads," remarked Tom. "It's a swell place--a lot of millionaires' sons go there I understand."

"Yes, but I hobn.o.bbed with some of 'em, and they weren't a bit uppish.

Right good fellows, I thought."