When it became known that Lefty had been fined and suspended, some of his teammates attempted to condole with him in a cheerful, joshing way, but not one of them repeated such advances; for he cut them short with such snappy, savage abruptness that they were justified in their resentment of his manner. The second game of the series between the Specters and the Blue Stockings proved to be a slugging match, in which each team used three pitchers. Pink Dillon, starting for the visitors, was pounded off the mound in the second inning and replaced by Orth. He lasted until the seventh, and then gave way to Grist, who took up the burden with the locals leading by one run. Even “Old Reliable” was not respected by the Specters, who slashed his slants mercilessly. Nevertheless, by a great batting rally in the ninth, the Blue Stockings tied up the score. But Grist was forced to work like a horse for three more long innings before his teammates got to Jim Donovan and hammered out the run which finally gave them the game fourteen to thirteen. The newspaper reporters called it a “swat fest.” In his wire to the _Blade_, Jack Stillman, on the road for his paper with the Blue Stockings, vaguely hinted at future trouble for Carson on account of the condition of his pitching staff. Besides Carson himself, no one realized better than Stillman the peril of this crucial period in the great struggle. Under suspension, Lefty Locke was not on the bench with his teammates. Stillman, who had twice tried to get an interview with Lefty, saw him soberly watching the struggle from a portion of the stand near the reporters’ section, and wondered what really had happened to change this fine, open-hearted fellow into a gloomy grouch. “I’ll get at him again,” thought the reporter. “He’s got to talk to me. He can’t stand me off like an iceberg.” But after the game Locke disappeared with the crowd that disappointedly melted away, and Stillman was compelled to postpone his interview. With his ears open for everything connected with his business, the newspaper man that night heard something which sent him in search of Carson for confirmation. However, he obtained little satisfaction from the manager. Then, remembering his desire to have another talk with Locke, he tried to find Lefty, and failed. The southpaw was not in his room, and none of the players seemed to know where he could be located. In Dirk Nelson’s room Stillman found Kid Lewis and Jack Daly lounging and talking things over with the catcher. Being well liked by the entire team, he was invited to join them. “We was just figgerin’ on our chances to-morrer,” said Daly. “We’ve got to have another one of the games here to keep us afloat on the roller.” “If the Specters play the way they did to-day,” said Stillman, “you ought to cop one more, anyhow.”