The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1883-08-25
BAsE-BALL's PARENT.

We played for fun and we had fun
There is no fun in a play that must
follow set Of rules as complex as the
rules Of Congress, and concentrate
skill in throwing balls that nobody can
hit. Now, when we played "town
ball" forty years ago-town ball is the
parent of baseball, but not so aptly
named-we made it 4 rule that the
"thrower" we didn't call him "pitch-
or" or "batter"-should give balls
that could be hit. Ii was 4 point Of
honor TO throw fair, let the striker
have a good chance for long lick,
and trust to catching him out in the
field, or by the catcher after mislick,
or To "crossing him out throwing
the ball between him and base-on
his running to the bases. Just as SEN
siblc proceeding as getting the ball
to base ahead Of him and putting him
out that way. The more runs we made
the more fun we had. That was what
the game was for. Now baseball
seems to be continued for nothing in
the world but to prevent runs, and a
contest is absolutely perfect when nine
innings on each side end with no run
for either. The whole game in its
ideal excellence is 4 reduced contest
between the pitcher and striker. That
is the point to which il is tending.
"The best game Of the season." was
that in which the Cleveland nine made
one run by a blunder, and our nine
made none. Why, there is no amuse-
mcnt and precious little more exercise
in that sort OF game. II is very little
more than two boys standing up hun
bred feet apart and throwing the ball
back and forth as hard rs they do.
The striker is only a rare and accidental
interruption. The fun is all refined
out of the game. Town ball, he con-
tinued, enthusiastically, was incessant
motion. Everybody was on the run
al the time nearly, and the shouting
and laughing, running and stumbling,
falling, the "tick" and instant catch,
the ball caught away off two hundred
yards, the quick cross out and the yells
that hailed it, were such scene Of
healthy exercise and healthy amuse
ment as would make 4 formal game of
baseball look sick"
"Had you fixed number OF players
or of innings in gamc?" asked an
amateur baseball PLAYER.
"No. We could have, and did have,
twenty of side sometimes in the old
seminary games, and every man was
allowed to strike. An inning or two
for each side would be all that could
be played in any school interval. But
it didn't take long to thin out the bat
ting side TO two or three old hands,
The raw ones would hit high and be
caught out with iolerablc invariability,
and when they missed a ball, the catcher
close behind, would be pretty sure to
get ii, and that was out, while with
brisk fielding, cross outs were as frequent
rs base-outs are now. a dozen on
each side was about the same strength.
We had great deal less science and
skill in town ball, admit, but we had
infinitely more fun. We had good
players, though, hard hitters and sure
catcherS."
"You spoke of dozen ball games.
What had YOU besides town ball?"
"Whcn there were but three players
We tossed up for the bat, and one boy
stood behind as catcher. the other on
another base rs thrower. When the
striker made a running hit he ran to
the other base, and the thrower be-
came the catcher. That was single |
handed "cat." How the name came
is more than can guess. II there
were four players We put two on bases
with bats and the other two were
alternately throwersand catchers chang
ing bases 1t hits. This was two-handed /
"cat." Then we had "9nte.over," or
"antc and o,er," one party on one
side of house throwing the ball over
the roof wherever they pleased, and |
the other catching it il they could,
and when they did, running around |
the house, with the right, like John
PhGnix's round in San Diego, "to hit !
the first Teller they came to-" Then |
we had "bull pen," the fayorite after
"town ball." -Four players stood on
four corners OF forty or fifty foot
square, and half dozen of the other
side went in for the "corners" to throw
at. II he missed one he was out. II
he hit, the "corners" ran, and the boy |
that got the lick, or any other boy in |
the bull ring, could get the ball and
hit any Of the "corners" he could, and
that would put out the one that was
hit"
"Well, what other games of ball had
you when this old hat was new as the
song says ?"
owe had 'hand ball. knocking a
ball up against wall with the hand,
and above all We had Skinny, the king
Of all ball games, and foot ball. Shin. |
ny was the favorite, and many a lame
leg and bruised hand and lumpy head |
and "barked" shin its devotees got |
from it. A broken finger or nose, or
head laid open, was not wholly I'M
known incident Of this fiercely exciting
and often dangerous game. You don't |
have half the fun with your formal
games and rules and umpires and regu-
lation balls that we had when we were
young"
-
sarSir John Herschel, in an Essay
on the Power Of the Telescope to penc.
trate into space" a quality distinct
from the magnifying power, informs us
that there are stars so infinitely remote
as to be situated at the distance oftwelve
millions of millions Of millions of miles
from our earth; so that light, which
travels with velocity of twelve mil
lions Of miles in minute, would require
two millions Of years for its transit
from those distant orbs to our own