The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1883-07-26
A Funny Game Of Base Ball.

each but one leg.
The two mines were composed of
young and active men, all of whom,
with one exception, owed the loss of
their limbs to railroad accidents. The
one exception was William Young, a
Smoky, who lost one of his arms at
Gettysburg.
Both mines wore neat uniforms, the
Snorkys having red and the Hoppers
blue as their distinguishing colors.
About 1000 persons were in the grand
stand, and they laughed and shouted
and went wild over the game.
When time was called Morris Hines,
the pitcher of the Hoppers, went to the
bat and dealt heavily with the very
first ball that John Gormon, the one
armed pitcher, hurled at him. He
sent it between second base and left
field, and got two BASES easily.
Flick, the next batter, sent fly to
second base, which was muffed, and
thus brought Hines home and got a
base. The first inning resulted in
three runs for the Hoppers.
When the one-legged men took the
field it was noticed that iudicious dis
tribution of their forces had been made.
The pitcher, Morris Hines, displayed o
shapely wooden leg, such as-were wont
to be used by begging sailors The leg
looked as though it were full of life
and movement.
George Dowds, the catcher, had a
leg ef&smaller, dimensions, but was
as quick on his feet and as handy with
his hands as any catcher;
The first baseman, William. Knuff,
wore an aristocratic artificial limb,
which snlades him look much like
any other man, but all the
rest had legs of plain democratic
wood, fastened outwardly with straps
in the good old-fashioned way.
William Stewart at right-feld and
Paul Launce at centre-feld had each q
wooden leg. and crutch. Their run
ming after fly balls was something ex-
traordinary, especially when both, got
mixed up and fell on the ground una
bic to move, while the bali; lay few
feet away.
Pick !, it up!" yelled the captain:
Sock it to third cried out a SCORE
of voices, while the two players DELHI
erately unstrapped their legs to get ont
of. the tangle. BY that time the base
runner got home. One of the unfortu-
mates literally put his foot on his shout
der and went to dry spot to draw on
his leg.
Bothtof these gentlemen were suc-
cessfnl in batting, but lamentably lame
in running, and the scores they made
were the product of shrewdness and
persistence
One Stewart fell fiat on his face just
as he reached first base, owing to the
slipping of his cratch, and Launee was
run out at second by tripping and fall
ing over his crutch.
When these players made hit their
opponents refrained from throwing the
ball to the base, preferring the more
certain method of pursuing and over
taking them before they could reach
their bases. Ys
There were some funny incidents in
the fielding. Once when Flick. first
base, and John Lilly. second base, were
running to catch fly from Douds,
they got under it together, and, both
having only the left arm, managed tc
drop it.
Meantime Flick, who was hopping
from first to second at prodigious speed
suddenly stopped in his onward career
and stretched out his hands appeal
ingly.
'.Go on! RUM Go for it. Scoot fol
second, the crowd yelled and shouted
themselves hoarse.
''Why don't you goPn shouted the
captain, You've got to go if you want
to get it.
Il can't shouted back the poor fel.
low. ''My legs stuck in the ground. 7
Then the basemen fumbled around
with their left hands, got the ball, and
put him out, after which they obllging-
~ pulled his leg out of the mud and
helped him home. M
Then the game went on.
The one-legged long fielders had an
easy time of it, and leaned leis,lrely
upon their supports and watched the
game with a philosophic interest, but
once in while some lusty Smoky
would send sky-seraper out their way
and prompt them to jerky movements.
Ii was curious then to see the speed they
could make ON the soft ground with
their crutches, and the eagerness with
which they ran toward the approaching
ball. 1t must be said,. however, thai
they invariably missed it, and that il
pleasantly bounded past them. giving
Che batter and his one Armed comrades
q chance to exhibit their speed around
Che bases.
The one-armed men had all the ad.
vantage in running, and it was to this
that they owed the largeness of their
Scores
They stole runs audaeiously, taking
the chances of the fielding by the one
legged men. Now and then they were
caught at this game, and once we'll
managed double-play sent two of them
out and ended an inning.
In the first inning two batters of the
one-armed nine got their bases on
called balls and stole their way home,
thanks to q series of accidents among
the one-legged fellows.
a ball that was thrown by the catch
or to the pitcher passed that agile ath-
lete and rolled between the two felders
on crutches at left and center-feld.
They both grabbed for and missed it.
A