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Dick Prescott's First Year at West Point
Or Two Chums in the Cadet Gray

By H. Irving Hancock

The Saalfield Publishing Company
Akron, Ohio New York
Made in U. S. A.
MCMX

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I. "TWO TINY SPECKS OF NOTHING"CHAPTER II. THE TYRANNY OF THE CADET CORPORALCHAPTER III. THE "LUCKY" ONES TAKE UP THE NEW LIFECHAPTER IV. GREG'S CASE OF "BLUES"CHAPTER V. CANDIDATE DODGE IS CRITICALCHAPTER VI. IN THE HANDS OF THE YEARLING HAZERSCHAPTER VII. A SUDDEN GRIND AT MATHCHAPTER VIII. DICK BONES TROUBLECHAPTER IX. PLEBE PRESCOTT'S FIRST FIGHTCHAPTER X. THE "BEAST" WHO SCOREDCHAPTER XI. HOW CADET DODGE HELD POST NUMBER THREECHAPTER XII. PRESCOTT GETS NUMBER THREECHAPTER XIII. THE SENTRY MAKES A CAPTURECHAPTER XIV. POOR GREG CAN'T EXPLAINCHAPTER XV. GREG OVERHEARS A PRETTY GIRL'S TRIBUTECHAPTER XVI. TAPS SOUNDS ON SUMMERCHAPTER XVII. MR. DODGE GOES CANVASSINGCHAPTER XVIII. THE PLEBE CLASS CHOOSES ITS PRESIDENTCHAPTER XIX. THE PROWLER IN QUARTERSCHAPTER XX. CONCLUSION

DICK PRESCOTT'S FIRST YEAR AT WEST POINT

CHAPTER I

"TWO TINY SPECKS OF NOTHING"

"How do you feel, Dick! As spruce as you did an hour ago!"

Candidate Greg Holmes put the question with a half-nervouslaugh. He spoke in a whisper, too, as if to keep his agitation fromreaching the notice of any of the score or more of other young menin the room of Mr. Ward, the aged notary at West Point.

"I'll be glad when I see some daylight through the proceedings,"
Dick Prescott whispered in answer.

"I'm glad they allow us to talk here in undertones," pursued Greg.

"If we weren't allowed to do so, some of us would go suddenlycrazy, utter a whoop and spring through one of the windows,"grinned Dick.

For the tenth time he thrust his hands into his pockets—then asquickly drew them out again.

All of the young men now gathered in the room were candidates forcadetships at West Point; candidates who had been appointed by theCongressmen or Senators of their home districts or states, and whomust now pass satisfactory physical and mental examinations, afterwhich they would be enrolled as cadets in the United States MilitaryAcademy. Those of the cadets who thus passed the preliminaryexaminations, and who maintained good health and good standing intheir classes during the following four years and three months wouldthen be graduated from the Military Academy and forthwith be appointedsecond lieutenants in the Regular Army of the United States.

Hived in this room, awaiting their turn, a spirit of awe had grippedall these nervous young men.

Some of them dreaded a failure in the coming bodily tests beforethe keen-eyed, impartial surgeons of the United States Army.

Probably half of the boys in the room feared that they would fail inthe academic examinations.

Boys? Some of the candidates didn't look the part. They had thephysiques and general appearance, many of them, of men; for acandidate may be anywhere between the ages of seventeen andtwenty-two years of age.

From all over the country they came. When the new, or plebe classshould finally be assembled and put to work, that class wouldrepresent practically every state in the Union.

Readers of a former series of books, "THE HI

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