"If you can beat this time you're welcome to," was the reply, and Adrian seemed a little nettled. "I reckon you won't walk away from the Lafayette boys as easily as you did last winter," said Jim to Ed. "We beat you the year before, and we can do it again, and Cardiff too." "Don't holler 'til you're out of the woods," advised Adrian. "I've put new runners on our bob." "You'll need 'em, from the way she hung back last winter," laughed Edward, who had been captain of the victorious Onativia team the previous year. The three-cornered race had been won by Lafayette two years in succession, and, as in the contests over which Adrian had been commander, his crew had lost in the struggle, their hearts were not exactly happy, though neither captain nor crew was discouraged. "Shall we say Saturday for the race?" asked Adrian at length. "Suits me," came from James. "I'm agreeable," assented Edward, and thus the three captains arranged. This was Tuesday when the date for the contest was set. After making up the details with his opponents, Adrian proposed a few more coasts down the hill, and then he and Roger trudged off home. "Do you think you'll win?" asked Roger anxiously as he plodded along the scarcely broken road. He was almost as interested as Adrian, for, though he had so recently come to Cardiff, he already felt himself one of the boys there. "It's hard telling," answered Adrian, after a pause. "The Onativia boys have a very swift bob, and they usually manage to get off a little quicker than we do. We'd have won last year, if they hadn't got to the narrow part of the road before we did." "What happened?" asked Roger. "Why, we couldn't pass 'em, as there was only room for one sled there. So they came in first. But I've got a plan for this race, though, that ought to bring us in ahead, if I can only work it out. You just wait, that's all." Roger thought Saturday would never come. There was little to do about the farm now, so he and Adrian overhauled the big Cardiff bob, which was stored in Mr. Kimball's barn. In this work they were assisted by such of the crew as could spare time from their duties. The runners of the sled were filed, and polished bright and smooth. Several extra braces were put in to stiffen the long board. The carpet, on top of this, was stuffed again, so as to afford a softer seat going over the bumps, and the foot-rests were altered a bit. Adrian also put on a louder sounding gong.