Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1888-08-14
DAILY RECORD UNION
BASEBALL qRoUBLEs.

concerning the drift Of the national
game" approaches the eve of fulfllment
The criticism then made upon the game
wac that the evidence all indicated the
danger Of decadence Of the athletic sport
to the level of the show, the atmosphere
OF the gambling ring and the tactics of
iockeying. Whoever has watched the
progress Of the game for year must have
observed that it has suffered not only in
public favor, but in the character Of its
conduct The majority of the more noted
of the game contests are now simply
shows; they do not represent athletics
in the sense that do generally those en-
gagged in sports for the development of
strength OF limb and bodily endurance
while afFording healthful recreation and
agreeable entertainment. The scenes on
the baseball ground ON Sunday in San
Francisco, where an umpire was mobbed
aud the game closed in disgraceful riot,
were the result, if We are to believe the
local press. at least of grave suspicion of
ball iockeying, trickery and dishonesty.
OF course, back of any chicane and fraud,
injustice and unfairness, was the bettor
with his money. AS one of the journals
put II, honest baseball received a serious
setback" 1t will be still more seriously
harassed and cease to have public counte-
nance if the gamblers are permitted to
even touch its skirts. 1t is a degradation
Of the game that it is played by hired
players. IN the Grecisn arena athletes
commended for laurel Yreaths and the
honors Of physical proves. 1t is not rea-
sonable to suppose that for any great
length of time the American public will
he content to smile upon muscular and
ag;le contests between men.where the sus-
picion in the faintest degree attaches
that there is joc1eying or trickery.
a strong effort has been made by the yari-
Gus leagues to prevent this stigma attach
ing, but as human nature is pretty much the
same everywhere, and the gambler neves
misses an opportunity to ply his vocation,
1t win prove a heroic undertaking to pre-
serve the national athletic game from the
faint Of dishonesty Ii is bad sign for
the game, as San Francisco journal well
says, when onlooke rs begin to ask each
other as this fair ball ?" "Was not the game
thrown ?" If the promoters of the game
are TO preserve it from rapid decline they
must put all its exhibitions so far beyond
the possibility of the charge of corruption,
that the veriesttyro will see that the contests
Of even the employed players are sincere
and without preooncert as to who shall wiz.
REPORTS that command considerable
respect are to the effect that the Chinese
Government has decided to reject the
treaty negotiated by Mr.. Bayard and that
China will hereafter claim for her subjects
all the rights and privileges enjoyed by
subjects of European Governments as to
emigration and travel abroad There are
very many reasons for according credence
10 the story. The treaty itself is weak
affair and lacks sufficient vigor to inspire
respect for it. What little energy it has
was injected by the United States Senate,
on the report of Republican majority of
a committee to which it had been re-
ferred. We are very much inclined to
believe that the Chinese question will be
sooner and better settled if the treaty is
rejected. We will then have application
Of curative rather than alleyiating RENE.
dies for social i'll Partisanship would
lead Republicans 20 hope the official
news of rejection will be delayed until
it IS too late to enact new measures
this year, to fortify the present Restriction
Act. But the interests of labor and civili-
cation are altogether too important to ex-
cuse such hope. II will therefore be the
wish Of all friends Of American labor that
the official news Of rejection will come to
hand sufficiently early to enable some of
the amendatory measures TO the present
Restriction Acts to be taken up and con-
sidered in the present Congress.