CHAPTER XX
THE TRY-OUT
By the first of June Hillman's baseball team
had settled into its stride. Four successive
victories had restored the confidence of
players and adherents alike, and the final test of
the season, the game with Farview Academy,
played this year at Orstead, was being viewed
in prospect with less apprehension. Laurie had
somewhat solved the science of throwing to
bases from the plate and was running a very
even race with Elk Thurston, a fact that did
nothing to increase the entente cordiale between
those two. Elk seldom missed an opportunity
to make himself disagreeable to his rival, and
since Elk was both older and bigger, and possessed
also the prestige of being a member of the
upper-middle class, Laurie had to keep his
temper many times when he didn't want to.
After all, though, Elk's offenses weren't important
enough to have excused serious reprisals.
