The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1890-08-15
The Athletics, Of Helena, Are the
Owners Of That
Title.
What tho North Pacific League
Might Have Done for
Montana.
Some Talk About Base Ball-A Game This
Afternoon-The small Attend
anco Lately.

Inc small attendance AZ the base Dali
games lately has been very discouraging for
Manager Muth and his men. 1t cannot be
that this is due to any fault of Mr.. Muth
and his players, for the team has certainly
come up to everything that was expected of
it, and the manager has given his best
efforts and much Of his time toward fur
nishing base ball attractions this season.
Has the town become tired Of the national
gamer There is one thing to be
regretted, and that is the team
was not organized in time to enter
the North Pacific league. If this had
been done games would have been
scheduled on the home grounds with the
crack mines of Spokane, Seattle, Tacoma
and Portland. Butte and Anaconda no
doubt would have followed had Helena
made arrangements toward this end earlier
in the season. The thing could have been
done. Manager Barnes, Of the Spokanes,
announced early in the season his intention
of forming the North Pacific league and
expressed desire to have Helena and Butte
in the league. But it seems that those who
admire good game of ball and who are
able to crafty their desires in that direction
were slow and the project dragged along
until it was too late to do anything except
to organize home team. This was done
and everyone who has been out to Athletic
park this season knows that they are
lot of good players, probably about as good
as could be got together in Helena at this
season of the year. We have a crack team
with record Of but two games lost. They
have met Great Falls, Livingston. Anaconda,
Denver, Salt Lake and the Cheyenne team.
Everyone in Helena knows with what re-
anita q uok tho toQvO hA0 nlQvQ6 Init
off the home grounds which was when the
Smelter City team undertook to do up the
boys in red and met with defeat. Had the
team been formed in time to enter the
North Pacific league, the base ball attrac-
tions at Athletic park this season would
stand would have been filed at every game,
and money enough would have been taken
in to keep up the grounds and team and to
pay other necessary expenses involved In
sustaining a good nine.
We would have had the teams of Port
land, Spokane, Seattle and Tacoma here at
regular dates. Mr.. Barnes and his hired
men would have been given an opportunity
to make few dollars. The dates would
have been arranged so that while Spokane
and perhaps Portland were struggling at
Athletic park the admirers of the home
graphic news for reports of what the Ath-
letics were doing at Portland with the Seat
tie team.
It may be that the lack of interest in the
game which has resulted in such small at
tendance at the grounds is because there is
no pennant for the Athletics to win. They
are champions of Montana. but if to-day
they were struggling for the North Pacific
league championship the eyes of the people
of Helena would be on them and the team
would have been frst-class advertisement
for the town.
Manager Muth has decided to continue
the series with the Cheyennes and game
will be played this afternoon, commencing
at 4 O'Clock. There will probably be two
more games, tomorrow and Sunday.
Nothing definite has been done yet about
taking the team on trip to the coast. Th'
prospects have been SO discouraging lately
that if the trip is made The team will prob
ably be backed by few admirers who hav'
stood by the club during the season. Man
ager Muth feels that he has done every
thing that his position demands of him
but he cannot do everything. A good aud
fence is a necessary thing at a game of ball
and without it soon there will be no game
It will soon become imperative to releas
the players unless the association can &c
encouragement in the way of receipts at tn
gate.