The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-09-21
REFORM IN THE PRESS BOX.
The Men Who Criticise Others shou ID
Begin at Home.

The Men Who Criticize Others shou Id
Begin at Home.
While writers on baseball are busy at work
setting forth the evils connected with the game
aud suggesting remedies, the idea of reform in
the press box seems to have presented itself to
very few. Especially in the minor
leagues is there too much offensive
partisanship shown among the men who
are supposed to be quiet spectators and
impartial judges of the play. Even from Wash
ington City, which has had years of experience
in the major leagues, comes a report of repre-
sentatives OF the press INDUCING in the barbar-
Gus practice of jeering at umpire and players.
In one instance matters went so far that Umpire
Jim Davis attempted to have one reporter ex-
PEELED from the grounds for his abuse.
The press box is the place for work, and the
attention of its occupants should be taken up
with their duties, with perhaps temperate dis
cussion among themselves of any points of play.
Habit should school them to restrain their i'm
pulses, and although men of exeitable tempera-
ment may be reused to high pitch of enthusi-
asin by some dne play, under no circumstances
Is abuse OF the participants in the game excusa-
bic. These discreditabe methods are not con-
fined to demonstrations at the ball park. Blind
prejudice leads the reporter to putting
into print greatly biased and wholly inaccurate
statements. The Pacific Northwest League has
suffered more particularly from this latter men
toned evil. There are not n few writers who
seem TO think themselves in duty bound to up
hold the home players aud to abuse and belitte
all others who hold to different opini ons. They
evidently fail to recognize the fact that their
duty is 10 rid their minds of every trace of bias
and as far as possible give accurate state
ment of what actually occurs. The spirit OF
fair play should never be lost sight Of
One of the most glaring examples of unfair
treatment has been that accorded Manager
Maskrey, of Tacoma, by the baseball writers of
Portland Not only through the local press.
but in letters to Eastern sporting papers has he
been charged with every ofiense known to the
baseball decalogue, for no other reason than that
he has dared TO lay claim to the services of a
player who is wanted in Portland. 1t is no
secret that the league directors who awarded
Jack Darrah to Portland were of
the opinion that he regularly
released to Tacoma by the secretary of the Port
land club, and allowed him to remain in Port
land to maintain harmony in the league ranks.
Had the Tacoma club pressed its suit it could
have had the man. but it reasonably withdrew
all claims. Notwithstanding all this the Port
land writer's, without considering the clean
record of man who has been in baseball for
years, make the most unheard of charges against
him, without any foundation, aud without pro-
ducing the slightest evidence to support their
position They even went so far as to charge
him with throwing games to Spokane in order
to beat Portland out of the pennant.
The sooner such practices are suppressed the
better for the game. The press is the arbiter of
public opinion and its influence is great in
baseball as III other affairs. Its representatives
are looked to by the public as guides in their de-
Ineanor toward the players and umpires, and
the attitude of the former ought to be as fair
and dispassionate as possible