“I was dead tired when we got to the boat-house, but I think I pulled just as hard on the tired stretch as at any other time, excepting, of course, the race. I think Caffrey raced us to give us confidence and to get us into the habit of not getting rattled. And now for the most important thing of all. _I was promoted to the second._ It was because I pulled so hard and didn’t give in or weaken. Pete told me so while we were dressing. Weld must take the pair-oar. I’m out of that. I may get kicked back in a little while, but it will not be from lack of effort on my part if I do. I would rather make the second crew than anything else (except the first), as that means something; for our crews are in a different class from any of our other teams, and 2d crew this year means _1st crew next year_ (if I can possibly make it)!
“That was on Tuesday. Since then I’ve been rowing on the second every practice without being kicked, but I live in a continual state of terror that some one will oust me from my place. Of course there’s only Wilmot and Weld, and Wilmot’s too short and fat to be any good, while Weld is not supposed to have the staying power, but I shan’t be free from worry until the race starts (and that’s still nearly three weeks off). Even if I can hold my place, I might get sick or hurt somehow, and so be thrown out.
“On Friday we went out in the worst weather we ever had. The rain blew so fast that sheets of it would go into Mike’s megaphone, so that he really spent more time in blowing out water than in talking, though this was only when we were bucking the wind. We were all soaked about five minutes after we left the boat-house. The waves were very bad, often piling right over the boat. The rain came down so fast that it looked like a mist, and you couldn’t see the shore from the middle of the river. We didn’t stay out long, for there was no chance for good rowing. When we came in, we found that the roof leaked. Little Mike was down on the Newbury bunch because some one of them pinched his collar buttons one day, so that he hadn’t anything to button his collar to. So he put the clothes of the Newbury crews, who were still out, under the leak.
“This is a terribly long letter and will cost something to send it to Buenos Aires, but I wanted to tell you all about the crew business even if it does bore you. It means a lot to me. If you went to Westcott’s, you would understand. You can read between the lines that my health is good and the studies are going all right. I got 82 in a history exam, on Monday. Love to all.