At that moment Darbishire heard a whistle from the football field. "The game has started," thought Darbishire. "And nobody has come to take me to the football field." Time passed and Darbishire knew that it was a detention class. He decided to ask the round-faced boy about it. But when he opened his mouth he heard: "Stop talking there in the back row!"
This time the teacher looked at Darbishire at last.
"I don't remember your face. May I ask you what you are doing here, boy?"
"Please, sir, I've come with the Linbury football team, and..."
"Too bad, too bad! Of course, it's very easy to get into my detention class, but it is very difficult to leave it. Are you sure you don't want to stay with us?"
"Yes, sir, I'm sure I don't want to stay here! Thank you, sir."
"All right, all right. And if you want to visit us we'll be very happy to see you any time you like. And now you may go."
Darbishire ran out of the classroom and hurried to the football field.
But it was too late. When Darbishire arrived the winning goal had already, been scored by Temple, and that was the only goal in the game.
It was a good, fast game, too fast for Darbishire to use the camera. Because when the ball was near his touchline he had no time to use the camera, and when the ball was on the other side of the field the players were far away.
Jennings found this out on the train going home and was very angry with his friend.
Darbishire tried not to look at Jennings. lie turned away and put his head out of the open window.
"There's notice for people like you over the door," said Atkinson. "Can't you read?"
Darbishire looked at the notice, "It is Dangerous for Passengers to Put their Heads out of the Window," he read.
"I didn't put my heads out," he said. "I've only got one head to put out. That notice is nonsense. They had to say - No passenger must put his own head out."
"Very good!" said Bromwich. "That means that we can put somebody else's head out. Whose head shall we put out?"
"Darbishire's, of course,- he is only the linesman," said Atkinson.
Jennings decided to help his friend.
"What they meant to say is: All passengers' must not put his, her or its head out, respectively."
"You can't put your head out respectively," said Temple.
"Stop talking nonsense," said Mr Carter. "The train is coming into Dunhambury Station. Don't leave anything in the carriage. Have you got your gloves, Jennings?"
"I think so, sir. One is in my pocket, and the other is somewhere here, sir."
"Where are your football boots, Venables?"
"In my bag, sir. I wrapped them in my clean towel because they were very muddy, sir."
"What?" asked Mr Carter in surprise.
But at that moment the train stopped and Venables had no time to answer Mr Carter's question.
Mr Carter and the boys got out of one carriage, and Mr Wilkins and the other boys got out of the next.
"The bus to Linbury is leaving any minute," Mr Carter said to Mr Wilkins. "I'll hurry and ask the driver to wait and you, please, look after the boys."
"Come along, boys, come along," said Mr Wilkins in a voice that every football player of the Linbury team could hear very well.
Chapter Fifteen
Jennings loses and finds his glove
Jennings and Darbishire hurried to the bus stop behind all the other boys. Suddenly Jennings stopped. He dropped his bag and put his hands into his raincoat pockets.
"What's the matter?" asked Darbishire.
"My glove! I've lost it! I think I've left it in the train."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. I've got this glove in my pocket look, but I can't find the other one. Let's run back to the carriage and see if we can find it. We'll soon catch the others up, if we run."
The boys ran back to the carriage when Mr Wilkins with the other boys disappeared behind the station.
They could not find their carriage at once.
"It must be this one," said Darbishire, because it has that notice about passengers putting their heads out of the windows.
"They've all got these notices," said Jennings, "our carriage is much farther on."
At last they found their carriage. They lumped in and began to look for Jennings' glove. They found an old newspaper, a teacup, and a comb, but there was no sign of the glove.
"It must be somewhere here. Look!" said Jennings.
"I am looking, but I can't see your glove. Let's get off now. The train may start any minute."
And at that moment the train really started. Jennings and Darbishire ran to the carriage door. But it was too late. Jennings put his head out of the window and shouted for help.
"Nobody will hear you, Jen," said Darbishire. "And it's dangerous to put your head out: the notice says so."
Jennings came from the window and sat down.
"Don't worry, Darbi," he said. "We'll have to stay where we are. And when we arrive .it the next station we'll walk back."
"But how do we know the train is going lo stop at the next station? It may be an express."
"I'm sure it isn't an express," said Jennings. "Don't worry, Darbi. The trouble is that Mr Carter has got our tickets, so it will be difficult to leave the platform."
This time Darbishire really began to worry. Suddenly he looked at Jennings in surprise.
"I say, Jennings: there is your other glove look - on your hand!"
"No, it isn't. This is the glove I haven't lost."
"But it can't be. You said you had the other one in your pocket."
Jennings put his hand in his pocket and took out the other glove.
"Yes, you are right, Darbi. I was so busy when I was looking for the second glove* that I didn't see that I had it on all the time."
The train slowed down and the boys saw the station. Pottlewhistle Halt, they read.
"Let's get off quickly," said Darbishire.
It was a very small station. From the station an old porter came out and cried, "Pottlewhistle Halt."
But nobody else left the train. Jennings took Darbishire by the hand and the boys hid themselves behind large boxes that were standing on the platform. The porter did not see them, and as there was nobody else on the platform the porter went back into his room.
"He didn't see us," said Darbishire. "Let's go quickly, or it'll soon be dark."
"It's a wonderful adventure!" said Jennings.
"I think it's a dangerous adventure. It's more dangerous than to put your head out of the window. It's your fault we are here. So you must lead the way back."
Darbishire was right. It was all very well for him to speak, but the trouble was Jennings did not know which way to go.
Pottlewhistle Halt stood far from the nearest village. There was no bus stop near the station. People did not often use it, and' only the slowest trains stopped there. A country path led up the hill, and through a little wood.
"Let's go along this path," said Jennings. "I'm sure it will lead us to the Linbury Road after some miles."
"After some miles! Don't forget that I was running along the touchline for two hours. I think we must ask somebody if it's the right way or not."
"How can we? There's nobody here to ask."
"Ask the old porter - he's at home."
"Don't be silly, Darbi. It's a good thing lie didn't see us and couldn't ask us about our tickets. It could be more dangerous to ask him than to put 'your head out of the window."
So the boys went along the path which led up the hill.
When the five-o'clock bus from Dunham-bury left the town Mr Carter turned to Mr Wilkins who was sitting behind him.
"It's a good thing I ran and stopped the bus. There is not another bus for two hours," he said. "You counted the boys, didn't you?"
"Well... No, I didn't," said Mr Wilkins. "We were in a hurry - I didn't have time. Don't worry. Carter; they are all here. I'll count them now, if it can make you happier."
It was very easy to count, because all the boys of Linbury Court School wore red-and white caps, and Mr Wilkins could see them all from where he sat - Venables and Aktinson were in the front row, Temple and Bromwich were behind them, then he saw Smith, Jones, Binns and Crosby, and in the back row were Armstrong and Wilson.