Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1905-11-22
The Girl at the
FiYe-Yard Line.
BIZ EDWIN BALMER.
IT'S Randa.l!

4
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TITS Randall!
It's Randall!' In hoarse whisper,
as II louder tone feared to confirm
: khe statment. the words sweep
through the throng. On the Twelfth
tier of eeats at the five.yard line the
Girl made out the murmur, alrea ly
8 confused to sigh, upon the lips of
the thousands.
It's Randall! It's Randall" she re
peated. THAT means--"
Young Barstow, beside her. raise
bis left wrist and let 1t fall again
into the black silk sling he wore over
his shoulders.
"Yes." he said, without interrupting
his eager. jealous scrutiny of the field
below, that means David goes In as
quarterback. It ought to mean me-"
and he glanced down bitterly at his
broken wrist. "but 1t means David
now. They'll have to put David in"
They'll have to-? the girl as..ed,
reproachfully.
Jimmy Barstow, of Harvard %,
and but for his broken wrist first
substitute for Randall, the crimson
quarterback, smiled with his custo.
mary elder-bro,her-of-David indul.
sence. Then he looked approvingly
at her troubled, flushed little face set
Oh by wavy brown hair.
Excuse me, Helen, he said. "Da-
vtd has my place to-day, but have
his. Twas awfully rude to want to
change back, wasn't it? But" he went
on. quickly and more seriously, ,"he's
only freshman; he's only fresh
man. and he's never been In a big
game-and the balls on the five-yard
line"
He Isn't only at ALL" the girl cor
rected, stubbonly. Hes David. What
u It 10 our ball on the five-yard line?
Isn't that all the better"
Upon the side lines, where the sub
stitutes sat together. crimson.e lad
form, smaller and more youthful than
the others. turned and twisted III.
easily: and beside him Dalton. the
head coach. hesita ed uncertainty.
Almost upon the broad chalk-line,
which eleven men In body and twenty
thousand In spirit defended as Yale's
goal, the blue and the c. imson teams
the latter lack ng man-eyed
each cher Geiantly, confidently. Five
yards more or only another play,
perhaps, and the game would be lost
and won. But Randall. who had di-
rected Harvard's play during the
long first half of the game still bar.
rem of score: Randall, who, in the
second, half, driven back, back, had
{, ct last inspired his team for the +
successful stand before their goal:
Randall, who. taking the bail, had
driven the unceas ng, unwearyine
line plunges, which regained the lost
ground for the crimson; Randall. who
had guided the play on past the cen
ter Of the field. on pa t Yale's TWEEN.
ty-hve-yard line and on to the very
shadow of the coveted goal; Randall,
who had never faltered and never
failed-was gone, and his team knew,
- the coach knew. who must take
his place. -
They had known from the week be-
tore. when Barstow the elder was
Aurt, that Barstow the freshman
would have to go into the game ii
anything should happen to the regu.
lar quarterback. But Dalton could
not have foreseen that the boy was
fated to make his first app arance
not only In the game against the
team, but to direct the very play
which would be the play to the forty
thousand straining forward from
their seats. 1t was not strange.
therefore. that during the seconds
which seemed minutes the head
coach hesitated.
Indeed, although few in the eager,
impatient multitude fully compre.
hended the reason for the delay, all
sat in a silence which Sc. med dcubly
still by reaction from the moment be.
fore. Only hero and there one who
understood more fn,,v mnttaro, ~
himself. "He,a onlv n frashmsn w.
only ! freshman. bnt-hm.,. ~
Dalton hals.heckoned with h,s
and as the lit+la anhs,t,;ta a,,as. au
hack snranp forward 90 ~ ~ 10 w..
nal. the rows of crimson honnas 1,
streamed higher and wava, trant,
callv as the thousands inrnnaa 80 ~
4 chasr him pnt porstow -, W ~
~,ard tbo wa,t,ne taanss haa.. ~
,ng h,. nc vo,ca -, tha aa asa.u "w.
ave.vard Inc" - sofa "Tba a. a.. i.
i,ne navid n.vidInsn,an w W.. =.
was all. - na'