In the excitement caused by Viola's fall, coming as it did after the two leaders in the boys' race had been put out of the running by similar accidents, those who had been watching the girls' race were too absorbed in their efforts to urge on their favorites, now that all had practically an even chance of winning, for, in her endeavor not to meet a similar mishap to Viola, Mildred had skated so far to one side that she had lost the lead, so that none of them had seen the trick save Nettie and Harry.

Both of them, however, were too far away to hear what pa.s.sed between the boy and girl, but as Nettie saw her chum limp when she tried to skate after picking herself up, she gave up the race and went to her a.s.sistance.

"What is it? Have you hurt yourself?" she asked, solicitously.

"It's my ankle. I'm afraid I've sprained it."

"Really?"

"Don't be a goose."

A moment the girl gazed at her chum and then the light of understanding coming to her, she exclaimed, significantly:

"Oh!" And the better to give the semblance of truth to the supposed injury, she put her arm around Viola to support her, and led her to the bank, where she sat down on a tree stump.

In the meantime, the race had been won by Annabel Hutchins, who was known among her cla.s.smates as the infant prodigy, because being precociously bright, she had entered the freshman cla.s.s when she was only thirteen years old.

For a moment after the tall, awkward girl skated across the line in the lead of the others, there was a silence. And then, as the humor of the situation dawned upon the others, for Longback, a member of the senior cla.s.s, had the proper contempt for the under cla.s.smen, the boys and girls yelled and cheered frantically.

"This will be some coronation!" cried Socker, with a grin. But some of the girl's, noting Annabel's embarra.s.sment, prevented any more such remarks by surrounding her and skating her to the brush-pile. Then quickly seizing some of the dried branches, they started down the river with them toward the spot where the bonfire was to be built.

The boys, however, especially the freshmen, found it too great an opportunity to tease the haughty senior, and they made his life so miserable with their comment that in a rage he skated away by himself.

CHAPTER VII-THE RIVALRY BETWEEN HARRY AND ELMER

Their victim, having thus put himself beyond their torment, the other boys turned to the brush-pile, and each taking as many branches as he could carry skated down the river.

Viola and Nettie were still on the stump, and only Paul, Jerry and Harry were left at the brush-pile.

"You don't suppose Miss Darrow hurt herself so badly she can't skate back, do you?" asked Harry of his companions.

"Jove! I hadn't thought of that," returned Paul, and skating over to where the two girls were, he asked concerning the extent of Viola's injuries.

"She's hurt her ankle," explained Nettie.

"My! that's bad. Can you skate on it at all?" inquired Paul.

"I can't skate on it, but I may be able to step on it," dissembled Viola, and getting to her feet, started to walk, only to sink down with a little cry of well-feigned pain.

"Jerry and Harry, come over here! Viola's hurt her ankle, and we've got to get her back down the river some way," called Paul to his chums.

"Remember we haven't met Mr. Watson!" exclaimed Nettie in a low voice, as the two boys left the brush-pile and skated toward them.

"Why, I'm glad you reminded me. I'd forgotten," murmured Paul, and when the new student joined them, he was quickly introduced.

"We'll have to go down the river and get a sled for you, Viola,"

announced Jerry. "You wait here with Nettie and Paul, and Harry and I'll go down."

But after their manuvring to meet Harry the two girls did not propose to lose his companionship so quickly, and Viola hurriedly exclaimed:

"I think perhaps if you boys will help me, I shall be able to walk down."

"But that will only make your ankle worse, Miss Darrow," declared Harry.

"I have it. We'll take a big pile of the brush and you and Miss Masterson can sit on it and we will pull you down the river."

"The very thing!" cried the other boys, and without more ado, they returned to the heap of dried branches, picked out several big ones, which they placed on the ice, heaping smaller ones across them, until they had made a rustic nest into which the girls climbed, while the boys, with pieces of rope which they had found and with their skate straps, bound the heavy limbs together and made a leash by which they could pull the improvised sled.

But not without difficulty did the strange method of transportation advance. First some of the heavy limbs spread, letting the twigs and girls down onto the ice and frequently were they spilled from their nest, but all enjoyed it and with much laughter and merry chatter they approached the spot where the others were stacking the brush which was to be set on fire in the evening.

"My eye! Look what's coming!" shouted Misery Jones, as he espied Viola and the others.

At his cry the rest of the boys and girls followed the direction of his gaze, and when they beheld the moving brush-heap with its two pa.s.sengers, they shouted and laughed as they skated up to meet them.

"_Ach! die liebliche Schnee-fogeln!_" exclaimed Prof. Schmidt, laughing as he caught sight of the two pretty girls on the brush-pile. "Too bad it iss dat wir de coronation not now can have?"

As he heard the words, Longback took a hasty glance over the crowd a.s.sembled near the brush-pile, and not seeing Annabel, exclaimed:

"That's a good idea, Professor. It's getting so dark that we can have the bonfire now just as well as later."

"Oh, no you don't!" cried Misery. "You can't get out of the formal ceremony by one got up on the spur of the moment. The real queen who won the race, you know, might object and cause you domestic unhappiness.

Even kings are allowed only one queen."

The result of the boy's protest was a lunge from Longback's hockey stick, from which he was able to dodge back in the very nick-of-time.

But the haughty senior was not allowed to get away with his caddish suggestion with only Misery's reproof.

"Now look here, Sam Dalton! No matter if Annabel Hutchins is a freshy she won the race, and she's going to be crowned queen when you're crowned king!" exclaimed several of the older girls, gathering about Longback. "You wouldn't have made any objection, you know, if it had been Viola, or even Nettie, and they're only freshmen, too; so if you don't want to regret it all the rest of the time you're in Rivertown High School, you'll be just as nice to Annabel as you possibly can be.

The poor child went home crying because she thought we were all laughing at her."

"If it's going to make so much trouble, what's the use of having the mock ceremony at all?" exclaimed Elmer, seeking to come to the aid of his chum.

"That's it! Be a spoil sport!" cried several of the boys and girls.

"Then I'll resign my honor in favor of any of you who desire it,"

growled Longback.

"Let's not have the bonfire at all," exclaimed Viola, flashing a look of contempt at the senior. "Instead let's go on a hay ride to Cardell-I'm sure I can have the horses."

"Good! We'll take along Nettie's and Socker's mothers and then we can have a dance at the Lake House!" exclaimed Paul.

The suggestion met with instant approval.

"Let's have a great big sleigh-ride," Socker exclaimed. "I guess father will let me take our horses, too, and we can fix up with hay, and it will be a great lark."