“And he is a big bluff,” asserted Emery.  “The other day he was telling how he once sat at the table with kings and queens.  I told him that I had—­and with jacks and ten spots.  Here comes the amber.  My!  I won’t do a thing to it!”

The waiter placed the glasses of ale before them, and Emery eagerly grasped his.

“Here’s more to-morrow,” was his toast, and he seemed to toss it off at a single swallow.

“By Jawve!” drawled Paulding.  “You must be thirsty!”

“I am.  Have been all day, as I said before.  It was hard stuff last night, and we went the rounds.  My head needed hooping when I arose from my downy couch this morning.”

“Well, you shouldn’t have gotten intoxicated, in the first place,” said Parker.

“I didn’t.  It was in the last place.  If I’d gone home before we struck that joint I’d been all right.”

“Wow!” whooped Tad Horner.  “You seem full of ’em!”

“Oh, I am.  I’ve been eating nothing but red pepper lately, and I’m hot stuff.  Let’s have another one all around.”

More ale was ordered.

“Your neck must be dry enough to squeak, old man,” said Parker, addressing Browning.  “It doesn’t seem natural for you to go thirsty.  Won’t you have just one?”

“Not one,” smiled Bruce, lazily.  “I’ve got too much flesh on me now, and I’m trying to get some of it off.”

“Going to try for the football team—­or what?”

“Nothing of that sort—­but I have a reason.”

“We know.”

“You do?”

“Sure.”

“What is it?”

“You’re laying for Merriwell, and you mean to do him.  I am right, am I not?”

The king of the sophomores smiled in a lazy way, but did not reply.

“That settles it,” laughed Parker.  “I knew I was right.  Well, somebody must curry that young colt down and it must be done right away.”

Browning showed sudden animation.  He looked around at the faces of his companions and then said: 

“This crowd is straight, and I am going to make a few remarks right here and now.  I feel just like it.”

“Drive ahead.”  “Go on.”  “We are listening.”

“I am not inclined to talk this matter over publicly,” said Bruce, “but I will say that the time is ripe to get after these confounded freshmen, and we must do it.  I want to tell you what I found this morning.  Open wide your ears and listen to this.”

His companions were quite prepared to listen.

“You know I am getting up every morning and taking a stiff walk.  I turn out at daybreak.”

“Good gracious!” gasped Tad Horner.  “How do you do it?”

“Well, I’ve got one of those electric alarm clocks, and I put it just as far away from my bed as possible.”

“Why is that?”

“So I won’t get hold of it and smash thunder out of the thing when it gets to going.  You know it won’t stop its racket till somebody stops it or it is run down, and it takes an hour for it to run down after it starts in to ring you up.”