“I’m sorry,” answered the other haughtily. “I won’t trouble you to introduce me to any more of your friends, Gard.” “Well, don’t be waxy,” said Stan, good-naturedly. “There’s no harm done. You may like Blash better when you get to know him, and----” “I don’t think so. And it doesn’t matter, does it?” “N--No, except that it’s always nicer to like fellows than not to. You get more out of--out of life, Dick. Well, never mind Blash. Want to go over to Jud’s for a few minutes? It isn’t too late.” “I don’t know. Yes, I guess I will, but you needn’t bother unless you want to.” “Oh, I’ll come along. We don’t have to stay. Hope there’ll be some eats, though.” When they had turned back and were retracing their steps along The Front, Dick broke a silence of several minutes’ duration. “Anyway,” he said a trifle resentfully, “I noticed one thing.” “What’s that?” inquired Stanley. “Blashington took mighty good care not to say anything about that twelve cents he owes me!” CHAPTER V “RUSTY” Two busy days followed for Dick. Stanley was a great help, however, and getting settled into his stride was accomplished fairly easily. There was his adviser to see and his courses to arrange: he was required to take seven courses, one of them elective. For the latter he chose General History, not so much because he felt a hankering for such knowledge as the course afforded as because it entailed but two recitations a week. You see, he had to arrange so as not to have studies interfere too much with football! However, there seemed no danger of his not having enough school work, for, with History, his grand total was twenty-nine hours. He passed his physical examination with flying colours and on Wednesday set to work with the football candidates. Of these there was a startling number, he thought. The field that afternoon was so thickly sprinkled with fellows of all sizes, shapes and degrees of experience that there was scarcely room to move about. Dick found himself simply one of many, doomed to go through with the usual routine of the beginner. At first he felt somewhat impatient and even peeved, but presently he decided to view the thing as a joke. They would very soon see that he belonged in an advanced squad, he thought, and meanwhile it wouldn’t do him any harm to practice the kindergarten stuff with the rookies.