Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1901-04-03
Edward Blake:
College Student,
CHARLES M. SHELDON.
Copyright, $780, in U. S. A., by Advance Pu
fishing Co., Chicago.
(CONTINUED.)


ord of every football player for years
back. HE went in to play on the reg
ular team before he had been In college
six weeks, and he made one of the best
quarter backs Hope ever had"
"Of course" said Willis. what does
the college care about a man, whether
he's freshman or professor, whether
he's 10 years or 100. whether he knows
a quadratic equation from pitchfork,
II he can play football. That's all we
want Play ball"
Edward said nothing, but when he
and Willis had gone up to their room
he began to ask questions about the
team. He did not really know the men
on the eleven because they were, with
one exception. upper class men. and he
never met them in studies and did not
even know the names of all Of them.
Willis was usually perfectly indiffer-
ent about everything in the college, but
football was the one subject he was
enthusiastic over. He told Edward all
the particulars about the team, gave
their records in the different games
played, gave quite graphic descrip-
zion Of the finest run ever made across
the gridiron and wound up by telling
about the defeat of the university team
at last Thanksgiving day game.
1--WE ran in Walker on 'em that game.
Walker was a semiprofessional. The
college paid him $780, to play on the
team, and he registered as sopho-
more, taking special course in history
or Egyptology or something l don't
believe he ever made recitation in his
life, and he didn't know HOO from q
barrel Of molasses, but he could play
ball, and that's all the college wanted"
"You say the college hired him?'
"Well, the association. OF course it's
really the same thing. The association
is made up Of a committee Of profess
ors and upper class men,"
'Then the professors knew that
Walker was not real bona f1de stu
dent, but was allowed to register so as
to play footballY'
"That's it," replied Willis carelessly.
'1t's done by good many colleges. OF
course the university men found out
something and tried to kick on Walker,
but he was registered all right as q
student taking special course. and
they had to play or forfeit the game.
We didn't think it was necessary to in
form the university that the special
course Walker elected was for the de-
gree Of F. B.'-Foot Ball." And Willis
chuckled as he called up the incidents
in that particular game.
Edward was silent for awhile. Then
he said, 1T looks to me as If q thing
like that was lying"
Willis looked over at him, and his
lips curled slightly, but it was not ex-
actly scorn. There was another feeling
back of it.
well, suppose it is when you boil
it down." he replied indifferently. He
paused and then added as If confiden-
TALLY: 1.-THE fact is, of course, that
Pearsons, the new tackle, Is dummy
student. He registered last fall as a
Junior and is supposed to be taking
physics and botany. About all the
physics he gets wouldn't turn the hair
scales in the laboratory, and all the
botany he knows is the color of the
grass out on the campus. But he can
play football all right, and he's earning
his $3.50 good enough so far"
do you mean that the professors
know that Pearsons is only a student
in name and that he is really in college
just to play ball?"
"Of course they know it. They know
that Pea-sons will drop out at the end
of the second half. He has no intention
of going through college. He Is plan
ming to spend the winter on a ranch
in Nebraska. I've heard him say 90.
But If we can beat the university
again on Thanksgiving day we dom,
care whether he goes to Nebraska OF
Cuba-'
Edward made no reply, but opened
his books and began his evenings
study. Willis pulled down a much bat.
tered volume, looked it over for about
ten minutes, shut it up, threw it down
on his table and said, THANK good
ness, I've mastered that subjectv
Then he reached up to his case and
pulled out box Of cigars, lighted one
and began to smoke. After ten min
utes he got up and found another book
which lay under tennis hat, sweater
and boxing glove; glanced through
it hastily, made a few figures on 8
piece Of paper, put the paper into thu
book, threw it on top Of the other ont
and exclaimed, 1--WE got that al
rightw Then he rose and went ovel
to a little blackboard on his side o.
the room and put down a number o.
chemical formulR, copying them from
the card that he took out of his yes
pocket. This occupied him about fiv'
minutes. He came back to. his desk
thumped on it once or twice carelessl!
and then went to closet and took on
his best coat. He changed his cola
and necktie, brushed his hair carefully
and when Edward looked up again h
was just going out. It was an unwrit
ten rule with them that when eithe
was studying they were not to tall
or ask questions, but as Edward look
ed at him Willis said: z{z;,%..
"I've got everything for tomorrow
and I'm going down to the societ!
rooms q little while. II the presiden
calls, tell him I'll be back in the morn
ing in time to take breakfast with him
/ like nv steak well done, ~g2$ Il !-.r5
When Willis was gone, Edward stud
led on. The difference between hin
and his roommate was shown in tn
almost painful sloWness with which
Edward succeeded in getting his les
sons. He studied three different book