There could be no doubt about it! The ghosts of Beaver Camp really had arrived. Of course science and sense asserted that such things did not and could not exist. Yet one could not doubt what his eyes actually beheld, philosophical statements to the contrary notwithstanding. Nor were the boys asleep, and merely imagining, as part of a dream, the existence of the specters. On the contrary, they were unusually wide-awake just now! Too greatly bewildered and startled to talk much, all had risen, and now they stood watching with a sort of hypnotic fascination the slow, impressive progress of the specters. Each was fully eight feet tall. The heads were invisible except for the eyes, which glowed with a kind of phosphorescent brilliance. The long arms of the ghosts were extended, and occasionally these moved as if beckoning to the boys. Loose white draperies fluttered about the figures, and, taking them altogether, they were not reassuring objects to behold in a dark spot. "There are only two of 'em!" Lefty muttered. "Let's rush 'em! Come on! When I count three, all yell like pirates, and run right at 'em. One-two-three!" A series of war-whoops which would have done credit to a tribe of Comanche Indians smote the stillness of the night. Then the boys rushed forward, Doctor Halsey with them. The ghosts must have felt alarmed, for they halted, swayed unsteadily for a few seconds, then pitched forward, falling flat upon the ground. Behind each ghost stood a mortal. This was a surprise to the boys, and their wild rush came to an abrupt stop. Then one of the mortals addressed the doctor. "Good evening, Doctor. Pleasant evening after a fine day, is n't it?" "We thought it would be neighborly to call," the other added, "and we brought the family with us." “Well, of all things!" gasped the astonished Doctor Halsey. "Where did you two fellows drop from?" "Why, we are boarding with one of your neighbors, Samuelson by name, and it occurred to us that our call might be more impressive if we brought our friends along." "It surely was impressive, not to say spectacular," laughed the doctor. Then he explained to the boys that these two young men were classmates of his in the medical school. He had not realized how near together they would be during vacation days, although he had known of their intention to spend the summer vacation along the shores of Lake Champlain. Tad walked over to Lefty, and said in a low tone: "These are the fellows who eyed us so sharply when we were on our shopping trip. Remember?" And Lefty nodded vigorously. The "ghosts" proved to be nothing more than several yards of sheeting draped on poles, with heads rudely formed and features marked on the cloth. The poles were so arranged that the "arms" could be manipulated by one who stood behind them. The Beaver Campers were duly introduced to the two young men, Franklin Storer and Paul Rutledge by name, and the whole party went back to the camp-fire to improve their acquaintance. "We called here more than a week ago," Storer explained; "but you had n't arrived." "So you made yourselves at home, and carried our things out into the woods," the doctor suggested. "Well, we thought it would be so much healthier and more comfortable for them out-of-doors,” Storer explained with an air of guileless innocence. "It seemed very warm and stuffy in your bungalow. We really took a great deal of trouble for your sakes. Some of those things were a trifle weighty." "We noticed it when we put them back," the doctor observed. "How did you get in?” "Oh, your kind and obliging neighbor had left the keys under a piece of carpet laid before your hospitable door. Also he had so published the fact that all visitors should know it." "I suppose you put up the sign of welcome down by the landing!" "Yes. Rather an artistic effort, we thought. Harmonized well with the scenery. Did n't you think so?" "Oh, yes! Anything artistic appeals strongly to us. I suppose we must thank you for our feline visitor, too." "Oh, do not thank us!" Storer begged modestly. "We did not do it for the sake of praise. The wandering minstrel appeared without explanation or excuse upon our porch, and we shared our blessing with you." "For which we thank you!" Doctor Halsey said, smilingly. Then, with the assistance of the boys, he told the two visitors of the numerous and varied experiences which had kept their camp life from becoming dull and monotonous. "Well, I should say your first week had been a trifle strenuous," Rutledge observed. "Don't you feel now like taking the rest cure?" "It's so restful to get out into the country," said Storer. "The little birds sing blithely—” "That's right!" Doctor Halsey agreed with enthusiasm. "The little birds sing so blithely in the trees that you wake up at four o'clock and can't get another wink of sleep. The bees go humming and buzzing around your head until you are driven into frenzy. Hens cackle and roosters crow whenever you want to take a nap. The fleecy clouds, drifting across the sky, suddenly roll around and work up into a thunder-shower when you 're five miles from shelter. The soft summer zephyrs hit you in the back of the neck, and give you a cold that hangs on all winter. The highways are so dusty that you could n't see a wild flower if it did grow. Generally there 's nothing to be seen but burdocks. All kinds of creeping, crawling, flying things assault you, waking or sleeping. Oh, there's nothing like life in the country-if a person is strong enough to stand it!" Rutland, he found the natives eager to cross bats with them, so it was arranged, after a little time, that a series of three games should be played: one at North Rutland, one at Beaver Camp, and the deciding game, if one was necessary, at North Rutland. Storer consented to umpire the contests, and Rutledge agreed to act as official scorekeeper. One bright, warm Monday afternoon, the Beaver Campers, equipped with all the base-ball supplies that their combined resources could furnish, journeyed over to the village to meet their opponents in the first game of the series. Before play commenced, Umpire Storer made a speech to the members of the competing teams and the small group of spectators, promising to award a stick of peppermint candy to each member of the team that should win the series. This excited general merriment, and seemed to inspire "Pessimist!" Storer howled. "Barbarian! You each player with a desire to secure the prize. have n't any poetic imagination." After a time, the two visitors declared that they must leave, because late hours were not considered fashionable at their summer resort. The Beaver Campers walked with them part of the way, and, on their return, they decided that the two young men would prove lively and most agreeable neighbors, whose presence and participation would add much to certain plans for the future which already were being discussed. CHAPTER XIII BEAVER CAMP VS. NORTH RUTLAND By the end of the week, Beaver Camp had an athletic field. True, it left much to be desired, but it provided a base-ball diamond, marked out with infinite pains according to official measurements, so the boys felt repaid for their hard work. Lefty, being a veteran player, was by general consent invited to captain the camp team, and he undertook the difficult and delicate work of getting out of each camper the best playing of which he was capable. Some of the boys had played on teams at home, others had but little experience and less skill. All were willing to work hard, however, and this was the most encouraging development of the first day's practice. Franklin Storer and his friend Rutledge walked up and helped Captain Lefty with numerous suggestions and criticisms. Doctor Halsey, too, dropped a valuable hint now and then, although he declared that base-ball was not his specialty, but that if they would play foot-ball, he might help them in a way worth talking about. Whenever any of the campers visited North Beaver Camp went to bat, and the North Rutland players took their places. The natives were strong, sunbronzed fellows, who seemed able to give good accounts of themselves in any sort of athletic contest. "Play ball!" cried the umpire. The North Rutland pitcher wound himself up like an alarm-clock, and sent over a ball that cut the plate squarely in two. Strike one! "Some speed!" Tad muttered from the bench. "Wonder if he can last." "Sure thing!" Edgar replied. "He looks stronger than an elephant." In the meantime, Charlie had struck out, and Lefty faced the rival pitcher, smiling confidently, but feeling decidedly uncertain as to results. After two strikes had been called, Lefty found the ball for a high in-field fly that was caught easily, and he joined his companions on the bench. "Good start!" he observed with a cheerful grin. "I see six runs coming to us this inning." "That's more than any one else sees," Jack responded, as he picked up his glove. Eliot had been retired, on a grounder to short. Lefty walked over to the box, and the first batter for North Rutland selected a favorite bat, and faced him with an air of jaunty confidence. Lefty twisted himself into kinks, then suddenly straightened out and shot the ball over. Almost immediately a sharp crack followed, and the ball sailed out, out, out-some distance beyond the most remote out-fielder. Edgar reached it after it fell, and relayed it back, holding the runner at third. Here he cautiously took a lead toward home, while Lefty watched him, trying, meanwhile, to recover from the shock he had received from the opening number on the program. The second man fouled twice in his anxiety to bring in a run, ending his performance by striking out. Lefty felt better. The North Rutland boys cheered their opponents with hearty good-will, and the campers responded with, perhaps, a little less noise, as The North Rutland captain had been talking in befitted a cheer that marked no victory but a low tone to the next batter, and Lefty wondered what sort of plot they were arranging. He tried a wide ball, but the man was not tempted. A strike was called next. Then the batter met the ball fairly, and it went speeding into deep right field. Jack got under it, catching it as it fell, but threw wide to Tad, who had run out to relay it back, and the man on third went home. The next man hit a clean single, but was put out trying to steal second, and the inning ended with the score one to nothing, in favor of North Rutland. The second inning added another run to the score, while Beaver Camp was awarded a second gooseegg. Lefty improved in the third, and the North Rutland men were unable to hit him safely. In the fourth, fifth, and sixth, also, neither team scored. In their half of the seventh, it looked as if Beaver Camp would tie the score. Walter reached first on a well-placed drive, and stole second. Jack knocked out a long, swift grounder between first and second, but it was fielded neatly, and Tom, on the coaching line, held Walter at third. Then a wide ball passed the catcher, and Walter came home, with another run. This ended their scoring, North Rutland scored again in their half of the seventh, but in the last two innings, the ball did not get beyond second-nor did a runner. that was merely a complimentary expression of proper spirit from a losing but determined team. "We had to let them win the first game, you know, just to encourage them," Lefty observed, as they walked back to camp. "It would n't have been polite to wallop 'em the first time. Wait till they strike our polished diamond. Then you'll see the sparks fly!" "The two teams are rather evenly matched, I should say," Storer remarked. "Those fellows have played together longer than you have, and they hit harder. You'd better have a lot of batting practice before the second game." The next few days were improved by the campers in developing the batting and fielding skill of the team, while Lefty and Bert spent an hour or more in daily battery practice. When the North Rutland boys reached the camp diamond, Lefty's team felt able to handle them, though fully conscious of the strength and skill of their opponents, and having sufficient respect for these qualities to prevent over-confidence. The Beaver Campers found it easier to hit the North Rutland pitcher during the second game. Somehow his delivery was not as puzzling after one became familiar with it, and by the end of the sixth inning, the campers had three runs. Lefty was steadier than he had been in the first game. During the first six innings, he permitted only two men to walk, and struck out eight. Long drives were not as frequent as they had been before, and the two that went far beyond the infield were fielded perfectly, and came at times when the bases were unoccupied. A hit, a passed ball, a stolen base, and a well-placed sacrifice netted a run for North Rutland in the second, and this was their only tally, to the end of the sixth inning. "If we can hold 'em down now for three more licks, we 're all right," Lefty said to Tom, as they walked out on the diamond to begin the seventh. "Our fellows certainly are giving me fine support." "Yes, and they 're hitting better, too," Tom replied. "I hope we can get another run or two. Our lead is n't big enough to make me feel safe." The weak end of the batting list came up now, and Lefty struck out the first two men, while the third put up a little fly that Tom caught without undue exertion. In the second half, Bert got a single, and Tom attempted a sacrifice which third fumbled clumsily in picking up. Tom, by a narrow margin, was safe on first, with Bert on second, and none out. The pitcher eyed them sharply as they took cautious leads, but Charlie at bat and Eliot on deck were weak in stick work, and he decided to get rid of them before he did anything else. As he swung around to deliver the ball, Bert and Tom both started down the base line, running as if the Forty Thieves were after them. At the same time, Charlie swung viciously at the ball, VOL. XXXIX.-116. and the best the catcher could do was to smother it on the ground. He picked it up with all speed, and threw it to third, but Bert already was sliding, and reached the base an instant before the ball touched the baseman's glove. Charlie struck out, but Eliot, without trying for such a result, managed to send the ball tearing along the ground just beyond the reach of first, who sprang to the right and stooped quickly to stop it. Tom was almost to third by the time the ball struck the ground, and he quickly followed Bert across the plate. A snappy double play ended the scoring, but five to one was not a bad lead, and hope reigned among the champions of Beaver Camp. North Rutland scored again in the eighth, and had two men on bases in the ninth, when the last man went out on strikes. Beaver Camp added nothing to its tally, so the final score was five to two, in favor of the campers. Perhaps this is the reason why the cheers of the camp team were so much louder and more enthusiastic than they had been after the previous game. "I feel more cheerful about my prospects of getting that peppermint stick," Tad remarked complacently, "but there are one or two weak spots that we 'll have to brace up before the final game." Bert nodded, and mentioned several points where the team appeared to need greater strength. Hard work and plenty of enthusiasm marked the interval before the final game, and Beaver Camp fared forth to North Rutland on the day appointed, prepared alike to battle for victory or to resist defeat, if such an outcome threatened. Lefty was in his best form, and the team gave him splendid support. Likewise, the North Rutland pitcher seemed almost invincible, and flawless fielding kept the bases clear. At the end of the seventh inning, not a run had been scored by either team. Edgar opened the eighth with one of the best hits of the game-a long, hard drive over center's head. This brought him to second. Jack followed with a hot grounder that slipped between second's legs as he ducked to stop it, and Edgar went on to third. Just as Tad stepped into the batter's box, the second baseman cried out in alarm, and pointed across the diamond. The games at North Rutland were played on a level field just outside the village. Less than a hundred yards behind third base was a large red barn. Other buildings were grouped about it, but the barn itself was nearest the diamond. Now, as the boys looked in the direction indi |