The Snyder signal. (Snyder, Tex.) 1887-????, 1912-11-08
JoE'S TEST.
A Story With a Lesson.


Fetzer, the coach looked over the raw mate
rial with critical eyes. There were twenty-five
OF the new boys who wanted 70 60 on the team
and OF these, two-thrds seemed eligible. With
ont hesitation the eyes singled out the most
promising of them for men needed TO commence
immediate practice.
With one exception the impossible third stood
about for some minutes in sheepish ndecsion,
and then skunk off toward the fence to watch
the practice The exception, Joe Burke, with
hands thrust deep in his pockets did not bulge
a step from the position he had taken among the
iortunates who had or would be given chance to
show what they could do. He glared from one
to another OF the boys with scowng inquiry
What did that fellow skip me for" he de-
manded His eyes slipped over me as ii wasn't
here What iors Wouldn't / make a good man
for the team
Several OF the boys laughed
Whats your weight, joe one Of them asked
significantly, ninety or ninety-iive;
"A hundred and fourteen, shortly; and all
solid as nails ! was fullback on the high school
team at home and pitcher in baseball, and
can chin up TO the bar thirty times and do the
giant swing and row boat until the rowlocks
heat ! don't understand why that fellows eyes
couldn't sec me They had snap enough in EN-
That's just the trouble Joe grnncd big boy,
not unkindly. The snap sized you UP without
stopping 10 look Fetzer don't know anything
about YOU, OF course. not even your name; but
III somebody should ask him what the little chap
with red hair could tip, he'd tell within hall
pound, and add twas thirty pounds less than what
the team must stand for He amt thing against
YOU Joe, not a thing. only-wel you don't come
within range Of that snap in his eyes, so its
no use to try to make him see you. He won't
Best thing for you is to go back somewhere and
watch us and take notice.
The sudden anger had gone from Joe's face
almost as quickly as il came. But II lett his chin
square and his eye steady.
"I1l stay right here he said cooy, and I'll
get on the team, too See II ! don't played
football before I left off knee pants, and know
how. And-eXcuse me for saying it-but some OF
YOU fellows are chumps.
ooh know that good naturedly. 81 never
PLAYED a game in my life. But I've got the
weight. and YOU haven't, and I'm pretty quick
on my feet, too, for I've played baseball a lot
That will help me through all right, think
Zoe was silent. He had heard a lot about Cap
tain Fetzer, the coach. in the three days he had
been at school and all he had heard bore out
what the boys said Fetzer was as hard as nails
in his coaching and did it in his own way, witt
out influence or advice His last years team had
been the crack one OF all the schools around, as
had the team of the year before, end as he meant
this one should be.
Toe knew all this, but he stood his ground,
for that was his way Something would turn up,
must turn up, TO give him chance. Didn his
father love football almost rs we'll as he, and his
mother, too, in a milder way, and were they not
coming to visit the school in October Would
they think Of not finding him on the team Then
there were the high school boys and girls, many
OF them drifting of to other schools, as he had,
but all Of them interested in what he did, Tor he
had been popular leader in the school studies
as well as in the outdoor sports. He would keep
digging at the books, but he must make the
team