Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-09-28
A BASEBALL FRAUD.
Severe DenuneiatfOn of Last Weeks
HipPOdEOminE In Chicago.

Severe DenunetatfOn of Last Week's
HipPOdrOminE In Chicago.
Chiclgo Tines
The game on yesterday, on the Twenty
third street grounds, between the syria
cuse Stars and the Alleghenys, completed
the series of alleged games for the cham
pionship Of the League Alliance. Per-
haps never in the history of baseball
has so g%lsriug a fraud been perpetrated
upon d long suffering public. Begin
ming with the six games in the series at
P~ittsburg, it was remarked upon as
rather queer hat each club should win
just tive games, leaving them exactly
where they we're when they started out.
However, it was setdewn merely as some.
thing out Of the usual, and the announce
ment that an additional series would
be played here was received with pleas
ure rather than otherwise. 1t was not
known then, as it is now, that ell the
betting was done in the direction of the
pool-box; that the throwing-of games
as we'll as of balls-was in the same me-
farious direction. People did net know
then that the entire series was prear.
ranged, and hat those who were on the
inside we're in the enjoyment of a dead
open and shut in the matter Of bets.
They did not know then that the fra
grant crowd of ball thumpers, from man
ager down 10 official scorer, were ION
the make" They did not know that a
couple of St. Louis gamblers had been
retained to work the pool.rooms here for
all they were worth; or that another one
was employed at Hoboken to do the
same there; or that another was %oficiat-
ing in a like capacity in Philadelphia;
or that individual players from the
clubs engaged were going about max
ing arrangements with the sporting
fraternity for giving them a dead
steer" provided they would "whaek ~
on profits; or that these SAINT men were
" giving it away, up and up to one man
that one club could win, and to another
that the other was SURE OF it, in order to
increase the receipts at the pool box,
knowing that they would ,hus get a divvy
out of the money put in by the loser and
winner both, They did not know then,
as they do now. or win before they have
finished this sentence, hat at least one
OF the managers was shameless enough
to 90 into a nool room, and while brag.
ging on bis club aud loudly asserting
that it was sure Of winning, buy seve-
raj hundred dollars worth of pools on
the other club. And the club on which
be bought the pools won. They didn't
know that he came very near get.
ting smashed IN the nose by
a big Irishman for his hypocrisy.
They did not then know all these
things, but they might have conjectured
them if they had stopped for a moment
TO consider the character Of a very cou-
siderable number of the men engaged ia
the professional contest. They might
have made a very shrewd guess at it had
they remembered that these men were
among the shamelessly open game throw.
ers, whom the not over virtuous league
found it necessary to throw overheard 10
order TO preserve a necessary semblaDce
of decency. What else could be ex.
pected OF these harlots Of the athletic
arena, these courtesans of the diamond
field, who had undertaken to play ball
honestly, but earned their high salaries
chiefly by contracting with pool room
keepers and gamblers not to do what
they were paid for.