Daily Yellowstone journal., 1890-01-12
TROUBLE begun.
The Brotherhood Of Players Is
in Disturbed Waters.
HOW W. l. HARRIS SEES III.
He Says Jealousy, with Its Green Eyes, 10
Already undoing Much nj Has Been
Done-The situation at the Present Time
summed Up.

The Players league is beginning Il realize
that it has some rough roads to travel before
1t reaches anything like success. 1t is already
having some hard lines aud will have a good
many more before a ball is thrown in its
opening season. Jealousy has already begun
10 get in its work, aud the discussions 1t is
causing threaten TO make serious gaps in the
line of battle.
The leaders in the new movement are find.
ing that their anticipation Of easy running
was a tribe previous. The principal trouble
is, Of course, the lawsuits, but these they are
confident they will win, or al least they APP
pear 10 I've sure Of victory. Just the same,
the suit against John Ward, which will cone
up during the term Of court which opens
Jan. d, is giving them some unrasiuess, owing
10 the supplemental contract which Ward
has with the New York club aud which he
drew up himself.
In this document he practically acknowl.
edged that the club had IA right 10 his SER
vices in 1870, because he inserted in il a clause
that he was not 10 BE- held for lsgO at II less
salary than 5000. The natural inference
Is that unless lac believed the club had a right
TO so hold him he would not nave used the
words ! have put in italics. This supple.
mental contract viii have an important bear.
| ing on the ease, although the brotherhood
leaders affect tn think otherwise.
Another difficulty, aud Ule which the
Brotherhood men are willing 10 admit is in
juring them ard their raus,. Is the ~ra,aCity
of SOM Of the players, which is ~ "A large ey-
tent sup~erinducrl Icy Jealousy, 1t Is this ra.
lacity which is causing many OF the deser-
tions that are occurring from time To time.
Those meu who have he'll off from signing
regular Brotherhood contracts are striving
Ia work the new league for large increases OF
salary.
Mr.. Ward claims, and he is no doubt cor.
rect, that there was a thorough understand.
ing IN regard 10 the salaries 10 b. paid wlrn
the original agreements "a secede were signed.
1t was definitely stated that all players were
TO receive from tue Players lrl-ar tne same
salaries they had in ls,J, except IN tie eases
Of men who had been classiiipl. AMI thee
men were L. get the salaries they received ~
lsSs, This Was the agreement. made a, plain
as possible, and Ward and the other leaders
say that the players must stick e. IT, They
argue, and with justice too, that il would lie
unfair 10 those who have signed In good faith
10 allow those who have not signed 10 boom
their salaries at the expense of the faithful
and Of the Players league. II was in pur-
suance Of this policy that Herman, WEIGH,
Myers and Thompson were refused their de-
mands, and the result was that three of them
deserted TO the League, and WEIGH will surely
follow.
Welch, it appears, they were willing ~
give a little more money, but his other terms
were deemed to be preposterous. WEIGH
wanted $4,000 a year, with a strong personal
guarantee for three years and a proviso in
serted in the contract that in case Of his
death the salary for his unexpired time
should he peid % his family. Tim keefe, ia
speaking Of it, sail: I'VE want ~ do the
square thing by WEIGH, but we couldn't
agree TO such demands. Ii was not a ques-
tion Of salary. We were willing to give
within a few hundreds Of what lac wanted,
but vi could not guarantee hlm any more
than the others, which is year sure and his
salary for such other time as he might be in
our employ: but rs for insuring his life for
his benefit. that is simply absurd 1t viii
be seen that Welch must moderate his terms
if he expects to be with the Brotherhood.
Other men are insisting on large increases
in violation of their agreements, and are be-
ing ''called down" by the Brotherhood lead.
ers.
Those who are charged with taking g!yan-
tagc Of the situation brought about by the
Brotherhood movement TO squeeze their
friends are not silent under these attacks.
Their argument Is unique, to say the least,
aud will set a good many OF the players TO
thinking. They argue that the leaders,
knowing that rebellion was certain and hav-
ing determined on il long before thuy signed
in 1859. held out for Increase Of salary and
played the limit ON the League in thai re-
spect, and Of course men like Ward, keefe,
Ewing. Hanlon, Pfeffer AMI O'Rourke, who
got all the way from 5000 in 1889 10 $500,
are quite content not TO ask for increase Of
salary. They knew what was coming and
got in on the ground floor. The rank and
file did not. and they claim that where they
have been getting les, salaries than men who
are no bctter players, they are entitled TO
have their compensation equalized.
These arguments are scoffcd at by the
Brotherhood leaders, who do not hesitate TO
charge that they emanats from the League.
Whether this be true or not Is immaterial.
The arguments work, and with others, SINH.
lar, are fostering that jealous spirit which is
fatal to success. Some men who have already
signed are beginning to discover that other
men, no more entitled 10 IT than they are,
have been granted AN increase, and they are
sore in consequence. The men who ave not
signed have un" unhnswerable argument. IL
is this: II any unclassilied player is entitled
10 AN incrcas, over bis 1889 salary all are en-
titled to all tn" Increase they can get.
The multiplicity Il managers is proving a
bad thing in Philadelphia. Already two
prominent Jaclers, Mcssrs Whitial and
Taggart, the latter Il newspaper proprietor,
have become disguised with 80 much Jicler
ing and have rull their stock aud Withdrawn
from the movement. Mr.. Tagglrt says that
''too mnny cooks spoil the broth aud he has
had enough His stock has been promptly
taken up, bu' his detection has caused a feel
ing Of insecurity among the Brotherhood men
In Philadelphia.
In Chicago the Players League club has
| lost its grounds, owing 70 the opposition OF
the citizens who live IN the vicinity, who OBJ
jected 20 the closing IT the street that runs
through the grounds and have persuaded tho
mayor 10 veto the order u the aldermen per.
hitting the Use Of the grounds. | am told
that the Same difficulty threatens the Brook
Ign Players club grounds and the Pitttsburg
a a