“Prescott, throw your feet up behind better.  You’ve been jogging, but that isn’t the gait.  Holmes, straighten back more—–­don’t cramp your chest!”

So the criticisms rang out.  Luce was an authority on short sprinting.  He had made good in that line in his own college days.

“Jennison, you’re not running with your arms!  Forget ’em!”

Jennison promptly let his arms hang motionless at his sides.

“Come in, Jennison!” called coach.

Jennison came in.

“You mustn’t work your arms like fly-wheels, nor like piston rods, either,” explained Mr. Luce.  “Keep your elbows in fairly close to your sides; fists loosely closed and forward, a little higher than your elbows.  Now, all runners come in.”

Gathering the squad about him, and demanding close attention, Mr. Luce showed the pose of the body at the instant of starting.

“Now, I’m going to run to first and second,” continued the coach.  “I want every man of you to watch closely and catch the idea.  You note how I hold my body—–­sloping slightly forward, yet with every effort to avoid cramping the chest.  Observe how I run on the forward part of the ball of the foot—–­not exactly on the toes, but close to it.  See just how it is that I throw my feet up behind me.  And be very particular to note that I keep my hands and arms in just this position all the way.  Now, then, when you strike at a ball, and expect to hit it, have your lungs inflated ready for the first bound of the spurt.  Now—–­watching, all of you?”

After an instant Mr. Luce shouted, “Strike!” and was off like a flash.  Many of the boys present had never seen coach really sprint before.  As they watched during the amazingly few seconds a yell of delight went up from them.  This was sprinting!

“Did you all find time to observe?” smiled coach, as he came loping in from second base.

“We all watched you,” laughed Dick.  “But the time was short.”

“You see the true principle of the sprint?”

“Yes; but it would take any of us years to get the sprint down that fine,” protested Darrin.

“Don’t be too sure of that,” retorted coach.  “Some of you will have doubled the style and steam of your sprint by the time you’re running in the first game.  Now, don’t forget a word of what I’ve said about the importance of true sprinting.  I’ve seen many a nine whose members had a fine battery, and all the fielders good men; yet, when they went to the bat and hit the leather, their sprinting was so poor that they lost game after game.  From now on, the sprint’s the thing!  Yet don’t overdo it by doing it all the time.  Take plenty of rest and deep breathing between sprints.  Usually, a two-bag sprint is all you need.  Now, some more of you get out and try it.”

Rapidly coach called off the names of those he wanted to try out.  Some of these young men did better than the starters, for they had learned from the criticisms, and from the showing of Luce’s standard form.