6 HOW THE GREAT "QUEERITY" PROBLEM WAS SOLVED ARTON MORGAN LANGWORTH PRAIRIRVILLE ACADEMY and Groveville preparatory school had competed in 1 a grnnddual athletic meet every year as fur back as any one could remember. The results were nlways close, as the schools were most evenly matched, and rarely was a' contest won by moro than a margin of one or two points; so you can imagine the keen rivalry be tween", the two scats of learning. Another thing that gave an added In terest to' the annual meet was a pecu liar ."stunt", that' marked each struggle. This was the vent called the queorlty. introduced years ago to. add: a bit of fun to the struggle, it made such a hit that.lt became a recognized fea tured It; didn't .count as much as the other events in the, scoring, but on sev eraloccasions the winning of the queerity 'decided the meet. So each school regarded it pretty seriously, even if the public took It as a joke. ; ! Usually itconstituted a roaring com edy to s the spectators. The queerlties of the pnst; included handspring races, stilt races, "chariot" races on oval "wheels," etc., and the .^queerity ,of 1910 was called the. great barrel^ dash. Don't- you think itmeantjust rolling a barrel.' No .such easy.; thing as* run ning a barrel, was allowed. The racer had to run on the barrel: and stay on' top "of . it.. Each racer must have considerable* acrobatic ability, for! it is qulteja circus ;feat'Ho balance .yourself on, an overturned barrel and. propel.it forward at a fair, clip., In order to re volve the barrel --so -it will roll: forward you' must' keep stepping; forward some what as if you. were trying^to run back ,wafd on "a /treadmill." 7 *"";; ;\u25a0;.. \u25a0So ' when ahe; joint' athletic committee an riounf ed .; what the next'; Qu'eeri ty was to v. be: the' whole academy \ ! .7 naturally turned: to 1 ' Bob .Edwards to • uphold its ; honor. 'ln? this .event,. ; for; Bob -was the | greatest A acrobat .and - contortionist; in the school: He' could donumerous-bal- 1 ancifig acts and 'could even walk a tight rbpe;as^far as\2o' feet.; But, with^all his "attainments:;^. he; '.found .barrel " : rolling needed?a' great 'deal "of tralnirigto"'; at tain^ the 'necessary, control' and, balance, and'. so \u25a0" formed r the habit ; of practicing *on • * any ng r; look ing ?< barrel he happehedj,tD < find.~}"Ai^d''hißrj^^wH'eru}i.!i 'enthusiasm^dvercarhe>hlsr judgment and he ;- met \ with the "disaster j that fdirectly resulted in ; the .great :.que'erity /problem. J A It; happened this way: 'About a "month before the • athletic f meet; Bob,; happened to; pass* through ;.the" academy* hall and spledi the* big. barrel: that; usually! stood under,; the 'stairs, v\ into,- which, the .waste paper -baskets ; were -emptied. nately it^wasiempty. ' Bob knew.that at 'this hour Mr. Hackett,; the principal; was x >upstalrs with iai class in, "algebra. Bob: rolled 'the '.. barrel 'out 'from under the ; stairs, JhoppediiponAit and' began his'lessoh'ln'this new-branch;of athletic learning. All would have' been well had "Hack'.'-j-fas the boys: irreverently called hlrn-^-been^where; Bob "thought he .was, and /Had Jther barrel) responded \u25a0 properly to , the ' control* of ' Bob's jflancing; feet." -j ,~ Bob's ; idea 1 , was .to; propel; it downline hall.r The": barrel; didn't see -It 'that ;way, so : lt^suddenly." turned | at right angles, rolled .[out | from ; under '\u25a0 poor jj Bob;; and shot the door' ; of ; the „ nearest classroom just as Mr. Hackett opened it. • That -barrel not only, upset Mr. Hack ett fright ! before .the ; whol i laughing class,-:but ; it upset; his' dignity^ so , that when* Bob .passed "through ', the cyclone t hat i followed the young acrobat' found himself i, condemned \u25a0'::. to ; remain ' after school each> afternoon for the next 30 days.V/ : / ••' \ '• '.\u25a0'- :".. ' "".;";',' • All pleadings for pardon were re jectedby Mr. Hackett. - He was a stern disciplinarian, who,. believed In .ruling with a.'rod of' iron. ".,<•' .When a -deputation composed of the leading /athletes , of' the \u25a0 academy ven tured: to * appeal ' to his ."school spl rit'.' he; dismissed' them curtly, telllngthem that, while he was sorry it. interfered .with their plans discipline \u25a0 must be maintained even .if . the school lost a dozen ,•".-. •"-..\u25a0' .'Frank . Williams knew the principal's peculiarities probably as well 'as any one' in the school. '?SS»g^feS , "No, It " Isn't so much that' he don't care whether we win or not," remarked Frank-afterward,- "but Hack can't for give; Bob' for making such a chump of him before the class. That's whqt's tha rear trouble, lie's been Interested enough in the other track meets, even if he did make everybody , 'sore* and uncomfortable, but' he used to give us good points at that. Now the thing to do is to fix up a- scheme to win out anyhow," "But how are you going to get Bob In. shape if lie has to stay in every afternoon? You ; know Mr. Hackett locks up that .'Classroom tight as a prison. He'll do just what he's done to every one of us some time or other — lpck him in and then come back around 6 to let. him out. ilow are you going to do it?, if it was any of us' we* could ' train; at 'some other time in the day, but Bob's father nearly works him to death In his store, be sides making him do chores up at the furin. . Ho never has any time off ex cept that little bit after school," said Ned Wilson gloomily. "And here's Hack gone and tnken it all away by jailing him for a month! What chance has he got to get trained properly, with the qu«erlty coming off THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, MAY 8, 1910.— THE JUNIOR CALK Vlmt Barrel Sot Only UpMet Old Hackett, bat It Upwct III* Dignity. | only a couple of. days, after his jnonth's up?" added Groggy, Gordon. "Well." boys, I don't say I can solve the .problem, l">ut I'm" going to try. I've got an idea already. It may get us Into trouble If Hack finds It out, but the athletic, honor of the school, is in peril, and .when it comes, to choosing between defending that or knuckling down to discipline, me for honor every: time!" cried 'Frank; eloquently, if .not very grammatically, and' then he told them his; plan. . . '/•'•.'"\u25a0\u25a0.\u25a0'\u25a0'.\u25a0 \u25a0\u25a0•"\u25a0'l-A- The. -next, day. half ~ an? hour before school opened Frank Williams dodged from behind , the hedge' that bounded the" school grounds "and rapidly- rolled a'large sugar 'barrel/ across the yard, disappearing into' the' rear' basement door,, which 1 was /always left, unlocked, as are. most doors in .the, country. ; That : same day. half an hour after school closed; if' Mr. ; Hackett ; had sud v"denly decided to return (after locking Bob '"< in .his classroom he would have found it ; \u25a0.\u25a0empty.". : Bob ' had 'escaped 'through the transom. The transom' was {part of , Frank's : scheme. , | For 'jailing \ purposes.Mr. Hackett had put a lock on lit from the : outsider b.ut Frank. planned to "slip up stairs and unlock the ; transom 1 every j afternoon "after the' departure. This 1 he did. -Bob climbed over and .. the two 1 "streaked fit',! to '\u25a0 the big, cool, cement paved basement, where a suppressed- shout "greeted them from the training committee. . . "-\u25a0;.'\u25a0 "Welli'l l guess this comes pretty near solving the* problem," chuckled Frank, as they proceeded: to ; put Bob!' through his^first afternoon's .work." The cellar afforded a' broad span of smooth space perfectly .adapted to the gyrations of the rolling barrel, >and the initial tryout proved a grand success. nThe athletic prisoner 4 trained faith fully, day' after day.'' Of course, the boys couldn't-be there all the time, as most .of them"! were; in daily training themselves at Prairie Oval track, where the' meet was to.be held... But a lookout was always posted in the road to signal the i principal's ."'.: approach'; 'then Bob would hustle upstairs and pop through the transom In time to receive his jailer; .barely In.time more i than. once. J One day Bob got an unexpected hurry call to "break training."* Mr, Hackett had come by a different way, across the fields, surprising /the lookout in the road. Bob literally hurled himself Into the transom opening in a wild effort to get through, but his haste was fatal, for he stuck, fast, while Frank, who happened to be with him, tried des perately to shove and pry him through. Frank' didn't desert him until they heard Mr. Hackett's key fumble in the main: entrance, and then he rushed for, the basement, forced to leave Bob's waving legs^o greet the principal. By The "Candle Tree" One of the wonders of the vegetable kingdom is undoubtedly the "candle tree" of Panama, known to botanists as parmeritiera cerifera. This tree, says Prof. H. F. MacMlllan In the Au gust Strand Magazine, produces from Its stem and older branches a great profusion pf yellowish,, cylindrical, smooth fruits, 12 to 18 inches long, which appear exactly like wax can dles, as thoxbotanical'«name Implies. So close Is this resemblance that travelers, seeing the tree for the first time, are likely to be temporarily puzzled as to whether the candles of shops are made In factories or grown on trees! The candlellke, fruits /are suspended from the branches and bare stem by short, slender stalks; dangling In the air they readily give the impression of the chandler's shop. As night falls, and the numerous fire flies move among the fruit, this impression is intensified. The inexperienced traveler is not In frequently Informed that the fire files perform the duty of lighting up these "caudles" at night when light is re quired by -the denizens of the jungle. Pointed Paragraph Many a man has kicked himself out of a good Job. this time Bob was 7 yelling at the top of his voice,, for the sharp edge of the transom dug into him terribly. As soon as he recovered from his surprise Mr. Hackett promptly grasped Bob by his legs and. giving one mighty yank, pulled the tortured youth out of the transom. \u25a0_ "Trying to escape, were you?'.' thun dered Mr. Hackett sternly, taking Bob by the collar. "Well," we'll haveto lock you up in safer quarters. Next time I'll flpd a place where you can't; get out. I'll put/ you, in the .basement. Come down wlth.me now. while : I take a look at It." -And the principal, with one big hand on. Bob's shoulder,, forced the ter ror, stricken prisoner down the stairs to inspect his new dungeon. Surely all was discovered; now. The other boys had escaped through the \u0084 unlocked basement door,; except Williams, who daringly ' re mained behind, crouching; on the base .ment stairs to ; witness poor Bob's "fin ish.". So .thus : it . happened that Mr. Hackett's decision to "'explore .the base ment nearly resulted; In Frank's dis covery. He had just* time to run down the. stairs, roll the- telltale, barrel^ into an empty coal bin'and dive behind It. . "I can't understand /how Hackett missed seeing me or the barrel/He irnust be getting awfully near sighted, 'cause he looked right" into the bin. There was a window there, and I know my legs stuck out from behinjl the barrel." said Frank afterward as he told of his escape to. the others. But Mr. . Hackett * passed by, and. after poking around the basement had al lowed Bob to go home. How the boys laughed at the way Bob's transom disaster, worked out! In ,stead of locking him in the stuffy class room the next day the principal had put him in the cool basement exactly where he wanted to be and had locked the door leading to the stairs! Mr. Hackett, of course, saw that the door opening f rom ,the basement ; to the yard was locked,' too, and while this barred out Bob's trainers ;it also dispensed with 1 the need of a lookout. Bob com plained -of being lonesome, but . ac knowledged.even that was batter than being almost squeezed to death every time he tackled the transom. And so the. month passed, until the 30 days were finally up and Bob was released from his prison three days before the track meet. If there had been any doubts as to the I efficiency of the school training course they were quickly dispelled when the late prisoner was "tried out" by his- trainers at Prairie Oval track. He proved himself in fine condition, and as for barrels he was master of them all. The day, of the meet found the stands He Knew '. In western Kansas a teacher In a primary grade was instructing her class in the composition of- sentences. After a talk of several minutes she wrote two sentences on the black board, one syntactically wrong and the •other a mlsstaternent of fact. The sen tences were: "The hen has three legs," and "Who done it?" "Willie," said the teacher to one of the youngsters, "go to the board and show where the fault lies in those two sentences.",, Willie slowly approached the board, evidently studying hard on the tangle. Then, to his teacher's consternation, he took the crayon and wrote: "The hen never done it. God done it." — Cosmo politan Magazine. Down to Hardpan In moving and settling down, the family had subsisted on short rations, and one morning Mrs. Drew found her self facing an unknown deficit. "Nora," she said to the maid of all work, "what is there in the store room?" "Every blessed thing Is given out but the tea an' coffee," Nora informed her; "and sure they will, If they last long enough."— Youth's Companion. at Prairie Oval packed with the pupils from both schools with their friends and families. Each event counted n total of six points, except the quecrlty, which counted only ono point. The other events counted throe for a first, two for a second and one for a third. But the queerlty winner only scored one, and second none. The scoring was close as usual, and the crowd worked Itself into a frenzy of excitement as the contest proceeded. The quoerity took place about the middle of the program. Mr. Haekett had attended the meet invested with his accustomed dignity. All through the contests he never even changed the expression on Ills severe, face, and n stranger watching him would never have dreamed lie was principal of ono of the contending schools. In fact, the Grovevillers-Jeerlngly said it gave thorn chills to. look at him sitting up there In the grandstand box; but thnt was Mr. Ilackett's way. Finally, the queerlty was reaphed. The two contestants mounted the over turned barrels and each barrel was set on the starting line. The official an nouncer then explained the .new '.'stunt" to the audience. The dfstance wag 100 yards, and the boy who made the distance still a-top of his barrel won. Every fall was penalized six feet. Crack! barked the starter's pistol "They're off!" cried the crowd, and literally one_was. For no sooner had they started than Bob's rival contestant swerved violently and ran his barrel directly into Bob. That racer Mew into the air and he landed heavily on the ground., , "Get up, Bob! Get up!" screamed the academy, and right then and there the strange thing happened. Frank was busily engaged trying to stand Bob (who 1 was dazed by. the fall) on his barrel,' when a deep voice shouted a command, and the next minute Mr, Hackett— of,- "all was at his side steadying Bob! , Perhaps it was the shock of discover ing who 'this . new assistant was that worked over, the partly stunned Bob. Anyway, he straightened out wonder fully and;ln a few: seconds was rolling along after, his "field", in grand style. But the other had a big start. Everbody's eyes' were on Mr. Hackett, and, realizing the- undignified position this sudden; betrayal -'of inter est had put -him in, he- walked stiffly - back into the" grandstand, where he watched the remainder of the race. j It was a \' splendid finish. • If the open ing '\u25a0' fall' had not put Bob so far behind there; would/ liavo been no race at all. But instead it resulted in making him a "scratch man." The Groveviller reeled along on his barrel, falling more than once and earning the setback penalty. . But,, as Frank said, "Bob's style was faultless." If there ever was a barrel trained to roll under a boy's feet that barrel was. He grad ually overhauled the other boy until he brought his barrel up within a few feet of him.- • They were now five feet from the fin ish line. Superbly balancing himself on his wabbling' perch,, with one su-. preme effort, in which his dancing. feet flew so fast you could hardly see them. Bob rolled his barrel over the line— winner by six inches. Academy had won the queerity. ,•\u25a0• By winning it they also won the track meet, as it afterward turned out, for the final score was so close that the one precious point it gave -enabled Academy to just beat Grovovllle. "Btit what puzzles me is the way Mr. Hackett acted when Bob fell In the queerity t Here he tries to help htm to win, after doing everything to make him lose for a month." observed Jim Spencer, after it was all over. "I'm not so sure about that!" ex claimed Frank. "I think that what he did at the queerlty just gives him dead away." \u25a0 "What do you mean?" demanded Jim. "Simply this. I'm going to put you some questions. I never mentioned it, but that morning when I sneaked the barrel into the basement I'm positive Hack saw me through a window, v He got there early that day. Then, why didn't he ask me what I was doing with that barrel? "Now for the next question. Why did he transfer Bob from the room to the basement after he caught him red handed, or rather legged, in the tran som? "Also,* why didn't he discover me in the coal bin? He's 'nailed' me for things I've done in class that are a hundred times moro secretive. "And lastly, why did ho act the way he did at the queerlty?" ':. " "I'll answer 'em all for you in just one plain statement," remarked Frank, while his listeners look at him with a new light dawning on their surprised faces. "I'm no Sherlock Holmes, but any body who uses a little common sense will figure it out this way: "First of. all, Bob made Hack so mad that he lost his temper completely. He went too far and then regretted it. He wanted Academy to win. but It would be bad discipline to 'buck water,' and he did the next best thing — he gave Academy 'a show' by letting us alone. So don't be too hard on him!" '.'And boys," concluded Frank, "1 thought I had solved the greal queerity problem, but I'm positive most of the credit ought to go — right to Hack!" Don't you think so, too?