Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-11-30

mlnent players OF merit Will always De III ue,
mand, and this demand as in the past, Will
secure them the highest salaries that the mar
ket will allow. When this is secured. surely
ball player needs nothing more, and, IN IacL ne
cannot get anything more, because captalisCs
are not going to pay high salaries If the re-
ceipts will not permit it. Without going Iuly
into the matter, there is nothing to convince
me that when matters have become thoroughly
than In the past For a. season, OF II
may be two seasons, salaries may De
kept down by the force Of circumstances.
Everything in baseball is in an abnormal con-
dltion, and only lots of hard work and sacritces
will bring matters again into their normal
state. The condition down to which oaseDau
has been dragged is a very grave question 1or
ball players and some of their friends TO con-
slider. We can all see the injury done and the
enormous losses sustained. 1t will take long
time to redeem these losses and surely paH
players from now on should be the most con-
servative of men IN dealing with masters tnat
propose to change the status of baseball
s%&
The Football Boom.
Well, we certainly have had great week Of
football. Within very few GAYS two of the
greatest contests of the year have taken place.
and as a result the glory of Princeton has been
bedimmed. While it may remain an open
question to some extent as to whether or not
Harvard is superior to Yale in football play
ing it seems certain to me that princeton Is
Everything that Princeton has done this year
goes to prove this. Why, it seemed to pc more
by good luck than good management tnat
Princeton defeated the University OF PennsyI,
var ia team. / don't think that anybody Will
dispute the fact that in football playing
this year Princeton is far behind either ale
or Harvard. This being so it would be super
fiuous to argue the matter. But 1t is dlnerenG
with Yale and Harvard. While We are all
bound to admit the fact of the wearers or the
crimson defeating the blues, we are also bound
to admit that victory might just as easily have
been on the other side. 1t was one OF these
contests in which victory does not absolutely
prove the victors to be the better players. The
truth is that there are just as many people TO-
day who believe that Tale's team is as good as
Harvard's as there were before their game was
played. This is SO true that were another
game played between them 1t would De
one of the most interesting contests
would be lots of money behind Yale. The
games, however, show that football is under
going remarkable boom, and when next sea-
son comes the names of leading "klckers" Will
names of popular ball players. Locally the
sport is still becoming more popular, and,
Judging from the meeting held yesterday, we
may expect league to be organized here
shortly. Association rules are taking strong
hold, and the proposed league is to be governed
by those rules. They are contrast to The Rugby
code, but while am not at present disposed to
find any fault with the Rugby rules do claim
that ANYBODY who patronizes Rugby game of
football cannot conscientiously or consistently
object to public boxing contests with gloves.
In the administration Of punishment the former
exceeds. Mark l am not saying
this to disparage the Rugby rules, but am
stating it to show that those who desire
public boxing contests ought to be listened to.
am not an opponent of Rugby rules nor OF
public boxing but do support fairplay and
Mr., 0Denverr Smith.
The past week has to some extent been re-
in the pugilistic world because OF the
very signal defeat of ED Smith. of Denver"
He met George Godfrey a few nights ago in
glove contest and was very badly defeated in
g rounds. Two weeks ago 1 had a few words
to say in advance about the fight think then
that nowadays tits not safe to take for
granted the statement about this man or that
man being a wonder and a phenomenon"
l advised this precaution because of the ex-
travagant things that we're said about Smith.
He had been heralded through the country as
the great coming man" who was going to
pulverIze Slavin. jackson, Sullivan and in short
everybody who would stand before him. This
mode of advertising was all right, consider
ing the fact that Mr. Smith was on
the road giving exhibitions under a manager.
However, he has been stopped. and miserably
stopped and his effort to cope with Godfrey is
one more proof that Mr.. Muldoon. the wrestler,
knows nothing at all about pugilism. don't
Tor a moment contend InaI Smlln Is d COWaTu
He is not; he is quite game man, but he is not
a fighter any more than making good display
in a boxing contest is concerned. 1t is reason
able to say that the Denver man would have
made a much better stand had he been at all
properly trained. He was in very poor condi-
ton, and to make matters worse that great au-
thority, Mr.. Muldoon, almost filled him full of
whisky and brandy. Smith couldn't have been
seconded in a worse way than he was. One
very good authority writing on the battle
says: ''Smith was fat and fabby. The won
derful course of training the Denver man was
reported to have gone through under the per-
sonal supervision of Muldoon did not show in
any of his actions He was several pounds too
heavy. The layers of flesh Quivered on his
chest and body when he was aroused to activity.
Had Smith not trained at all he would have
looked just as well prepared for test of en-
durance. and he certainly would have made a
better showing"
Smiths Bad Trainer.
Afte- the training of Smith, let nobody talk
to me about Muldoon's knowledge of fighters
and the ring have always argued in this
strain regarding Muldoon, even when he was
reaping false praise about his alleged great
training of Sullivan. In a word, it seems to
me that Muldoon has only been instrumental
in making a fool and victim Of well-int ten-
toned and ambitious young fellow named
Smith. But there was nothing in the fight to
show IL Smith had been in the best of condi-
tion and handled by the best possible seconds
that he would have won. He is not class
enough yet as a fighter TO defeat Godfrey, and
that does not say much for HIM, because God
frey was literally terrified when he faced Jack
son. Smith has a most Objectionable method
of fighting, much to the discredit of that
great authority. his trainer, Muldoon. When
facing an opponent he bows his head and body
down low and fixes his eyes apparently on his
opponents feet. There cannot well be worse
method. Of course l am aware that George
Rook INDUCED in it to some extent; that is be
raf,fl wQfQhinr n 0nnnnanfiS fnaf
But Rook was not much of a success at it and
would certainly have been better had he stood
in a position to command all his power and
activity at any moment Smith by this crude
position managed to deceive Godfrey once or
twice, but the colored man soon caught on"
and Mr.. Smiths style became absolutely use
less. The hight proves that we haven't 20 ex-
pect anything great from Smith for a
long time, at least 1t also shows
that he has all along been an overrated
man. Muldcon has now to rely on Kilrain, and
to next fight Godfrey. Already the latter has
polished of two of Muldoon's men, Ashton
and Smith, and it will be amusing if he causes
the great trainers" champion to take a back
seat also. However, if Godfrey meets Kilrain
he will tackle much superior man To Smith.
After all, kllrain is good second-class man,
and if he were rightly put into condition and
well seconded he certainly ought to defeat q
man like Godfrey.
jackson and Goddard.
Since we had our last weekly talk Peter
jackson has had "go'' with Goddard, and as
result the great coIored champion was con.
tent to have the affair called draw. This no
doubt would be great surprise to the follow
ers Of jackson, because he had a following of
people who couldn't be convinced that anybody
on earth could stand before HIM. However his
draw should give all those out and out be-
levers in jackson to understand that he is
not the irresistible man they deemed him to
be. I am now more convinced than ever that
there was time in the history of John L Sui