“The facts,” retorted Mr. Stone, dryly, “would be most difficult for the members of this Board to furnish.  Indeed, the only fact in which we are interested would be the name of the person who-----”

Ting-a-ling-ling!  As the telephone bell jangled Chairman Stone drew the desk instrument toward him, holding the receiver to his ear.

“Hullo!” hailed a voice.  “Is that the Board of Education’s office?”

“It is,” confessed Chairman Stone.

“Is our reporter, Spencer, there?  If so, I would like to talk with him.”

“Yes, he’s right here, Mr. Pollock.  And from the extraordinary information he has brought us, I think he needs a talking-to.  Wait a moment.”

Chairman Stone passed the instrument to Len Spencer.  The members of the Board felt curiosity enough to leave their seats and gather at the head of the table.  They could hear Editor Pollock’s voice as it ran on: 

“Hullo, Spencer.  Say, I’ve just had another ’phone from that same party.  He says that he sent in his information a bit twisted.  What he meant to tell us was that there are seven dead ones in the Board of Education who know so little about public spirit and pride in our boys that they are even considering the idea of forbidding High School football.”

“Oh, that’s it, eh?” asked Spencer, solemnly.  “Seven dead ones?”

“Yes; of course you’ve already discovered that there’s no real tragedy up at the Board, unless they’re actually planning some move against football.”

The seven members of the School Board looked at one another blankly, wonderingly.

“Who sent you that message over the ’phone?” questioned the reporter.

The seven Board members pricked up their ears still more keenly.

“I don’t know,” came Editor Pollock’s voice.  “But I suspect it came from the Business Men’s Club.  That’s a wide-awake and progressive crowd, you know, and full of local pride, even in our High School boys.  But, Spencer, I’m in just a bit of a fix.  I had already run out six lines on the bulletin board announcing that a sudden death had taken place in the School Board meeting.  Now, I’ve got to run out another bulletin and explain.  Spencer, you’d better come back here on the jump.  Good-bye!”

As the bell rang off, and the reporter laid the instrument back on the table, he said: 

“Gentlemen, I am ordered back to my office in haste.  Yet, before I go, as a matter of news interest, I think I’d better ask you whether any action is going to be taken forbidding football in the High School?”

“N-n-not to the best of our knowledge,” stammered Chairman Stone.  “We have—–­taken no action along that line.”

“Are you likely to take any such action tonight?”

“I—–­I—–­think not.”

“Thank you, and goodnight, gentlemen.  I offer you my apology and ‘The Blade’s’ for having intruded on you in this fashion.”