glad to hear put forward. No shirking; every effort bent on excelling,
and every man to keep his own body as strong, clean and wholesome
as a body can be kept. Why, that alone is worth more than victory.
It means a fellow's victory over all sloth and bad habits!"

"Luce meant all he said, too, and the fellows know he did," declared
Dave Darrin. "I wonder what effect it will have on the size of
the squad?"

There was a good deal of curiosity on that score. The five minutes
passed quickly. Then Coach Luce called for the division. As
the new baseball squad gathered at the right-hand seats there
was an eager counting.

"Forty-nine," announced Greg Holmes, as soon as he had finished
counting. "Five whole nines and a few extras left over."

"I'm glad to see that Gridley High School grit is up to the old
standard," declared Coach Luce, cheerily, after he had brought
them to order. "Our squad, this year, contains three more men
than appeared last year. It is plain that my threats haven't
scared anyone off the Gridley diamond. Now, I am going to write
down the names of the squad. Then I will ask each member, as
his name is called, to indicate the position for which he wishes
to qualify."

There was a buzz of conversation again, until the names had all
been written down. Then, after Coach Luce had called for silence,
he began to read off the names in alphabetical order.