“Huh!  I don’t see it,” said Hi doggedly.

“I think Prescott has the better of the argument,” broke in Len Spencer, who had sat tapping his desk with a pencil.

“Then I don’t care much for your idea, either, Spencer,” retorted Martin.

“It may be that my idea isn’t any good,” nodded Len indulgently.  “I won’t even claim that I know anything about sports.  But you must surely know who the umpire is in any such dispute.  It’s always the editor of the local paper.  So, Martin, if you won’t agree with Prescott, and if you won’t admit that I know anything about it either, suppose we lay the question before the editor of the ‘Blade.’  I think he’s in just now.”

“As for me,” spoke up Bill Rodgers, breaking his silence, “it seems to me that Prescott’s idea is good and fair.”

“What do you say to that kind of stuff, Page?” inquired Hi quickly.

“I—–­I—–­er—–­well, I am agreeable to anything that pleases the rest of you,” stammered Courtney Page, by nature, a sail trimmer.

“You’re a chump, then,” Hi retorted elegantly.  “The whole reason why Prescott objects to one boy representing each school is that he’s afraid I can out-swim any boy that Central Grammar can produce.”

“And I take it, Martin,” Dick retorted, “that your reason for insisting on the one-boy race, is due to your belief that you can win from any one boy.  Very likely you are the fastest and strongest swimmer in any Gridley school.  But a race with seven boys on a side will better represent the average abilities of the two schools.  In baseball we tried to find out which school had the average best players.  We didn’t try simply to find out which school could boast of the one star player.”

“That’s right,” nodded Len Spencer.

“Prescott, you’re afraid to race with me, you or any other one fellow in Central Grammar!” exclaimed Hi indignantly.

“No; I’m not afraid to swim against you,” Dick declared quietly.  “I won’t have the championship between the two schools rest on any such race, but I’ll enter a separate race against you—–­any distance—–­this in addition to a seven-fellow race between the schools.”

“Now, I guess you haven’t a leg left to stand on, Martin,” smiled Spencer.  “Prescott proposes a seven-fellow race between the schools, the school responsible for the last man who comes in to lose the contest.  That is to be for the school championship.  Then, if you think you can outswim Prescott, he agrees to enter an individual and personal race with you.”

“If Prescott and I swim against each other, then we won’t swim in the seven-fellow race, anyway.” protested Hi.

“I’ll agree to that,” Dick nodded.

After some more talking the details were arranged.  Len reduced them to writing and the committees for both schools signed.

“I’ll publish this in the ‘Blade’ to-morrow morning,” said Spencer.  “Then the whole town will know the terms of the race.”