"I'll tell you, though I meant to keep it until to-night. Coach
Willoughby finally made up his mind, though nobody knows it but
myself. He means to drop two fellows off the team to-morrow--Tony
Gilpin and George Andersen; the former because he fails to come up
to the scratch, and George on account of that old injury to his
leg, which is cropping up again. He was our star player last year,
and we are going to miss him a heap."

"Yes, I supposed poor George would have to go, but expected Tony
would hold on," remarked Ralph, quietly.

"And the coach has decided that _you_ are to take the place
of Tony as left half-back. I'm awful glad of it! I purposely kept
my hands off, because I wanted merit and not favoritism to bring
the change about. Shake on it, Ralph!"

"And I'm glad, too," remarked the other, his voice quivering a
little with his emotion; "not that I like to supplant any other
fellow, but I believe it's only right that every one of Columbia's
sons should cherish an earnest desire to make the best of what
there is in him. I only hope the coach isn't making a serious
mistake, that's all."

"I know he isn't, and the other fellows will say so, too, when
they hear. Tony isn't a popular player at all, and when there is
dissension in a baseball nine or a football eleven, it's going to
make trouble. 'Beware the worm i' the bud,' you know. But these
cowards may find that they're up against a tougher proposition
than they suspect, before they're done with it."