Washington High School - Little Prexie Yearbook (Washington, PA)

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SESAME '11 the crowds hollering for-Bob. Immediately he knew that Bob was not there. He read the note again, jammed it into his pocket and set out for the Haunted House. He had been traveling for the last five miles at the highest rate of speed he could when suddenly, bang! and his left hind tire was flat. That would happen now, said Alec jumping out. He looked all around for some available thing to continue the journey in, but as it was a seldom frequented road the only thing he saw of much account was a mule in a nearby field. Well, here goes, said Alec running towards the mule preparing to jump on. But when the mule saw Alec coming he started running in the other direction. Whoa, you dumb-bell! yelled Alec. The mule did not stop and Alec chasing him, finally caught up to him. He man- aged to jump on and the chase proceeded. About a quarter of a mile from the Haunted House the mule stopped deadin his tracks. The impact was so sudden that it threw Alec to the ground. No amount of persuasion on the part of Alec could make him go. So Alec, tired of coaxing, walked the rest of the way. Before he quite reached the house he 'broke two dry branches from a young tree. g When he arrived at the house he saw Bob's sport roadster standing in front of the house. He quietly went up the steps and looked in the window from which the glass had been broken. Inside -there were cobwebs hanging everywhere. He could hear the low hum of voices somewhere at the back of the house. Very quietly he traced the voices to a small room otf the main hall. Next to this room was a small closet. Just as Alec was ready to open the door of the room where the voices were coming from, a board creaked very loudly. Alec stepped into the small closet. Listen ! exclaimed one of the voices in the room. What was that? Oh, dry up! You're always hearing things, said an- other voice. 1 I Well, anyway, I don't like this business, said the first voice. After this there was silence. Alec stepped out of the closet, very careful not to step on the loose board again, and quietly opened the door of the room from where' the voices had come. He saw Bob sitting in a chair gagged with his arms and legs tied. There were two men sitting an a small table in the

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10 SESAME floor so he went over and picked it up. He opened it'and drew back startled as he read the contents which said: If you wish to see a certain young lady alive again bring S500 to the old Haunted House to-day at 2 p. m. There was no name signed and hence no clue. Bob laid the note on the dresser and immediately went and called J ane's sorority house. But when he asked if Jane was there, the answer was no. Right away Bob supposed that this certain young lady was Jane. He looked at his watch and saw that it was just 1:30. He ran down the stairs and jumped in his car which was standing in front of the house. He went to the president's home and asked to see him. He was ushered into the library. In a few moments the door opened and the President himself came in. Why, Bob, what brings you here? he asked. Bob told him about the note being thrust under his door, but forgot to tell him of the man he had encountered earlier in the morning. The President trusted Bob and gave him a check for the desired amount. Bob thanked him very kindly and promised to return it as soon as possible. He left the house and hurried to the bank. He arrived there just two minutes before closing time. He secured the money and started to the Haunted House. It was a journey of eight miles over a cobblestone road. Meanwhile game time drew near. The team was in the dressing room. All were present except Bob. They all looked anxious every time the door opened. But no Bob appeared. Finally the game was ready to start, but still no Bob. Coach Williams called up Bob's frat house, but there was no answer. He then asked the referee to hold the game up for a few minutes. The referee consented, but when at the end of ten minutes Bob had still not appeared Coach Williams had to send in a substitute. The crowds were going wild. They kept yelling: We want Collyer! Collyer! We want Collyer! The outcome looks doubtful, said Coach Williams to one of the players on the bench. I can't imagine what hap- pened to Bob, but I never thought that he would throw us down like this. In the meantime Alec Bowden had returned from his class to dress for the game and he spied the note. He read it, ran out of the house and jumped into his old Ford, and raced down to the stadium. Before he had gotten inside the gate he heard

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12 SESAME far corner of the room who were so intent on a game of checkers that they had not heard the door open nor seen Alec standing in the doorway. Bob started to squirm in his chair when he saw Alec, but Alec motioned him to be quiet. Alec stepped outside the door and broke the two branches which he had brought along. The sound was like that of a gun being fired. When he did this he exclaimed: Hands up. Throw your guns out here in the hall. The house is surrounded so there's no use to resist. The men jumped up startled, but did as they were told. When they threw their guns in the hall Alec picked them up immediately and stepped into the room. He ordered the men to untie Bob. They seemed reluctant to do this, but did as they were told. When Bob was free he rushed out to the car and Alec ordered the two men to follow. Bob and Alec got in the front seat and the two men got into the rumble seat, although Alec kept them covered from where he was sitting. Bob started the car and stepped on the gas. When they arrived in town they stopped first at the Police Station which was but a few blocks away from the stadium. Alec took the two men in and told the story, Bob rushed on to the game. When he ar- rived there he parked his car and ran into the dressing room. Hurriedly changing clothes, he rushed out onto the field. When the boys on the bench saw him coming they set up a great cheering. The score was 6-0 in favor of Colgate and only four minutes. left in which to play. The coach asked no questions, but patted Bob on the back and sent him into the game. When Bob's team mates saw him coming their faces brightened up. They got together and planned their next move. It was Fordham's ball on Colgate's 35-yard line. A forward pass was tried and Bob caught the ball. He raced down the field, but was tackled five yards from the goal line. They tried again. Bob broke through the line and rushed over the goal line. The crowds went wild, but the great moment was yet to come. Fordham prepared to kick. There was com- plete silence in the crowd. The moment came and the ball went over. The game was over with the score 7-6 in favor of Fordham. - Bob's team mates rushed to him and hoisted him up on their shoulders. They carried him over to Fordham's cheer- ing section and there in the front row sat Jane. When she saw Bob she exclaimed with tears in her eyes: Oh, Bob, I was so frightened!