Tom’s first practice with the team took place the next Monday. He had supplied himself with a uniform and felt both proud and a trifle self-conscious as he walked onto the field in company with Sidney and Tommy Hughes. Nothing very exciting fell to his lot that day. For a half-hour he pitched to the batsmen in front of the net, and later sat on the bench and watched Pete Farrar and Toby Williams work in the box. Mr. Talbot instructed him to observe the fielding methods and watch particularly the conduct of the pitchers with men on bases. Tom soon saw that a pitcher had more to do than pitch. He had to handle balls in his own territory, cover first base on many occasions, and run up to the plate whenever a ball went past the catcher. He also learned things about holding the runners on bases, envying the dexterity with which Pete Farrar, who, like Tom, was a right-handed pitcher, whirled about to step from the box and peg the ball to first or second. Tom did not get into the practice game at all that afternoon, Mr. Talbot probably thinking that it would do him more good to look on from the bench. Captain Warner was friendly in a rather chilly way, but Pete Farrar quite evidently regarded him as an unwelcome interloper. The rest of the fellows, though, showed him that he was more than welcome. His advent had caused a sensation and practice was attended by nearly the entire school. Had they but known it, Cummings and Wright had already received a good many dollars’ worth of gratuitous advertisement! On Thursday practice was harder and more prolonged than on any day thus far, perhaps owing to the fact that on the preceding day the team, with Pete Farrar pitching four disastrous innings and Toby Williams finishing the game, had gone down in overwhelming defeat before a nine composed of high school graduates led by Walter White. There was nearly an hour of batting practice, a good thirty minutes of fielding work, with Manager Arbuckle knocking fungoes to the outfield and Coach Talbot hitting balls to the basemen. Tom had his first practice in base-running that afternoon and discovered that he had a lot to learn. The first time he attempted a slide he landed a yard short of second and was easily out. Later the two teams played four innings, and Tom pitched again for the scrubs. Whether his previous exertions were responsible for his poor showing, I can’t say. But he got a severe drubbing that afternoon and went home surprised and discouraged. “What could you expect?” asked Mr. George. “You were tired. Seems to me funny that Bat would let you pitch after having you run bases. Maybe, though, he meant to show you something you didn’t know, Tom.” Tom looked a question, and Mr. George added: “That you can’t do good work in the box if you’re not fresh and fit.” Mr. George himself took hold of his part of the coaching the following afternoon. As it was a Friday, Tom was not on hand, but Mr. George told him about it when they met before dinner.