Ole looked around him sadly. He kept on running as he did. "Aye ent care
to stop," he said. "Aye kent suit you, Master Bost. You tal me Aye skoll
du a teng, den you cuss me for duing et. You tal me not to du a teng and
you cuss me some more den. Aye tenk I yust keep on a-running, lak yu
tal me tu last night. Et ent so hard bein' cussed ven yu ban running."
"I tell you to stop, you potato-top," gasped Bost. By this time he was
fifteen yards behind and losing at every step. He had wasted too much
breath on oratory. We picked him up in the car and set him alongside of
Ole again.
"See here, Ole, I'm tired of this," he said, sprinting up by him again.
"The game's waiting. Come on back. You're making a fool of yourself."
"Eny teng Aye du Aye ban beeg fule," said Ole gloomily. "Aye yust keep
on runnin'. Fallers ent got breath to call me fule ven Aye run. Aye tenk
das best vay."
We picked Bost up again thirty yards behind. Maybe he would have run
better if he hadn't choked so in his conversation. In another minute we
landed him abreast of Ole again. He got out and sprinted for the third
time. He wabbled as he did it.
"Ole," he panted, "I've been mistaken in you. You are all right, Ole. I
never saw a more intelligent fellow. I won't cuss you any more, Ole. If
you'll stop now we'll take you back in an automobile--hold on there a
minute; can't you see I'm all out of breath?"
"Aye ban gude faller, den?" asked Ole, letting out another link of
speed.
"You are a"--puff-puff--"peach, Ole," gasped Bost.
"I'll"--puff-puff--"never cuss you again. Please"--puff-puff--"stop!
Oh, hang it, I'm all in." And Bost sat down in the road.
A hundred yards on we noticed Ole slacken speed. "It's sinking through
his skull," said Harris eagerly. In another minute he had stopped. We
picked up Bost again and ran up to him. He surveyed us long and
critically.
"Das ban qveer masheen," he said finally. "Aye tenk Aye lak Aye skoll be
riding back in it. Aye ent care for das futball game, Aye gass. It ban
tu much running in it."
We took Ole back to town in twenty-two minutes, three chickens, a dog
and a back spring. It was close to five o'clock when he ran out on the
field again. The Muggledorfer team was still waiting. Time was no object
to them. They would only play ten minutes, but in that ten minutes Ole
made three scores. Five substitutes stood back of either goal and asked
him with great politeness to stop as he tore over the line. And he did
it. If any one else had run six miles between halves he would have
stopped a good deal short of the line. But as far as we could see, it
hadn't winded Ole.
Bost went home by himself that night after the game, not stopping even
to assure us that as a team we were beneath his contempt. The next
afternoon he was, if anything, a little more vitriolic than ever--but
not with Ole. Toward the middle of the signal practice he pulled himself
together and touched Ole gently.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account