Page 31 - The Adventures of a Freshman

everybody guys? Bah! he hasn't any more class spirit than my pipe."

Everyone at college is called a student, but a poler is one who studies to excess.

"Poler or no poler," answered Lee, "he's got muscle all right, and he stood by me in the rush in great shape!"

Promptly at ten o'clock Young slammed shut his Homer and the Greek lexicon and started for University Hall,
a big rambling place full of noisy, whistling students that scrape their feet along the wide carpetless corridors.
He had done a good evening's work for himself; now he was going to work for Lee and for the class.

Some Sophomores at the foot of the third flight of stairs said, "Quack! quack! Freshmen!" as Young went by,
but he did not mind that, and they did not dare do more because Sam, the night watchman, was downstairs in
the main hall.

"Wasn't that Deacon Young?" said a man joining the group. "What did you let him go by for?"

It was Channing, of course, and he went hurrying upstairs after Young, to show off how bold he was.

"Channing certainly has nerve," said one of them.

By the time Channing caught up, Young had turned down the narrow corridor which led to Lee's room.

"You'll have to come back," said Channing, in a matter-of-fact way, which made it all the more irritating.
"Here! I said, 'come back.'"

Young might have done it ordinarily, but he had promised Lee to come to his room at ten o'clock and he was
accustomed to keep his word; he did not even look around.

Channing, catching up with him, laid a hand on his arm, and said, sneeringly, "Come back, or it'll be worse for
you," and called Young a name that he should have known better than to call anyone unless willing to fight in
consequence.

For answer Young turned promptly about, grabbed the little Sophomore by the shoulders, then taking both
wrists in one of his strong hands and shaking the other fist in his face, said, "You little reptile, you're too small
for me to hurt, but I'll give you what I wanted to give you since I first laid eyes on you."

With that he quietly picked up the small Sophomore, turned him over his left knee and gave him a good sound
spanking with his big right hand.

"There," he said, holding Channing upon his knee a moment. "That's what I think of you. Now run and tell
everybody." And he gave him a gentle push which was not as gentle as he meant it to be.

Channing got up from the floor hastily, looked about, saw that no one was near, and then sneaked around the
corner in a hurry toward the stairs. He hadn't said another word. As he drew near his friends he slackened up
and began to whistle carelessly. "Couldn't find him," he said, "the old cow must have heard me coming, and
scooted into some room." Inwardly he was thanking his stars he had not been seen.

But he had been seen. The door of one of the rooms along the hall had been ajar; two upper-classmen within
had just put out their lights to go to bed, the whole scene had been enjoyed, and before Channing was many
days older the whole college was to know the story.

Meanwhile Young had gone on to Lee's room, where he said nothing about what had happened. The room