The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-11-18

bit, and who said "Oh. dearr' every time
anybody had his collar bone broken. He
had heard them from the field.
That was Billy Parker when his junior
year opened. One afternoon that year he
wriggled out of a scrimmage where he
had had his arms about the legs OF a
scrub tackle twice his size who had the
ball. with his face all grimy, and jumped
around to his end of the varsity line next
to Thacher at tackle. He got on his toes
and swung his arms and lunged in again
past three scrubs and two ends and a
tackle who had been told to stop him,
and started with the kick and slapped the
scrub quarter back on the ground with
a thud, while the fellows on the grand
stand ratified their feet and jumped up
with the play and yelled, 'Yea-a-a! long
cheer for Billy Parker!" 1t was then that
Tommy Nolan, chewing his pencil on the
side lines, where he was taking notes for
the News, heard a coach, knocking the
ashes from his cigarette, say to another
coach who strolled back smiling from the
scrimmage.
THAT dub Parker, at varsity right end,
Is a wonder If nothing happens to him
he will make the fastest end next year
this college ever saw"
Tommy Nolan, who took life seriously
only where Billy Parker and football were
concerned, told this to Billy that night
from where he sat on the window seat IN
Lawrance with Billy Parker's pipe that
Billy couldn't smoke.
There's some sense in that, for
coaches said Tommy Nolan. Don't you
go and let anything happenp'
"Shucks," said Billy Parker from the
study table, where he was making marks
on the edges of a Medieval History for
later reference, what could happen?
Girls said Tommy Nolan.
"GIrls?' Billy Parker snorted.
Yes, girls said Tommy Nolan.
They're the deuce. For instance. / know
one fellow who got engaged to girl just
before a boat race Her name is Pipkin
Just like his. Pipkin. He rowed No. 4
that year for Yale. He just sat in his
seat and imagined all through the race
that she wouldn't marry him II he didn't
win. He got groggy at two miles, or
course, and kept saying Stella to him
self every stroke. Stella! How was that.
Got 1t from the coxswain. The cox
thought the captain was yelling star
board'-he couldn't hear in the internal
din of the presidential gunboats, and
steered into a fiagpole at the finish"
Billy Parker looked up at Tommy Nolan
and wrinkled his nose Quite so,' he
said musingly.
Don't you go and let anything Ike that
happen to you that's ALL" said Tommy
Nolan.
"Shucks. said Billy Parker.
And nothing did happen.
That is: not until the next summer,
which was Just before his last year on the
team, when something did, as -oAows:
Her name was Letitia Louise Baxter,
and she was brown-haired and twenty,
and every evening danced in the Motel
hops, or sat out two-steps on the hotel
piazza, accompanied by small hickers or
cipa retfe light in the nearest cnalr.
Billy Parker met her one morning on
the piazza of the mountain hotel where he
was staying through August, and the mo-
ment he saw her he knew that she had
looked deep down into his soul and I'M
derstood him. And Billy Parker who had
never known any girls in his life before,
knuckled. Every day for month Miss
Baxter let Billy Parker walk beside her
around the golf links behind the hotel.
and carry her golf bags and row her un-
der the afterglow OF the sunset on the
dinky little hotel lake in boat that had
to have the cleats shortened SO that Billy
Parker could brace against them; and tell
her about Yale, and what fine place it
was. and what bully fellows went there,
and how he could look down from his
window seat in Lawrance and see the fell
lows playing niger baby on the campus
below; and especially what a great foot
ball team Yale had, and how Yale was
going to leave the Harvard eleven that
wear in a small round pool Of perspira-
ton on Yale field that November, and
how he was going to help do IT.
Which for thirty-one long August days.
was bliss for Billy Parker. He had never
met a girl.like that before.
When something happened.
This was on Saturday afternoon. and
Immediately after Miss Baxter had looked