Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-04-12

together do not turn out winners. then surely
there is little encouragement to try and
get winners. There may be dangers
of internal dissensions. / say there may be,
and if there is it will be pity They should at
all hazards be guarded against. There was an
other matter referred to. in yesterdays DIS
PATCH, viz. the admission fee to the grand
stand on the opening day and on the Fourth OF
July. The directors have resolved to charge
81 a seat in the grand stand on the days named.
President O'Neil opposes this arrangement,
and claim with great force and reason the re-
solve is not q good one; indeed the policy is
very bad and it is not too late to change It.
BY the plan proposed the additional quarter
will not yield $500, while the enforcement OF
! the condition will create very bad public I'M
preston. True, the impression may, to some
extent, be erroneous, but bad impression Will
without doubt prevail, and that will not be
counterbalanced by the small financial gam
By all means the very lowest admission fee
possible ought on all occasions to be charged
In this city. To me it is very open question
as TO whether 25 or so cents should be the gen.
eral rate OF admission here.
The Association Opening.
Nationally speaking, the great event of the
week has teen the opening of the champion
ship season of the American Association. That
organization is not endeared in the hearts of
Pittsburgers, nor has 1t any special or par
ticular charms for me; but what am going to
say regarding it will be entirely free from
spirit of partisanship. want this to be under
stood. The Association opening day was not
by any means a satisfactory one to those who
look at it from the outside, and am inclined
TO think that 1t was not satisfactory to those
whose interests are summed up in the Assocls-
tion. There we're two leading features that l
have to complain about regarding the Associa-
tion's inaugural events. One ls the rowdylsm
that characterized some of the principal games
and the, generally speaking, poor attendance.
Let US take the former first. II there is any
thing that would prompt me TO believe In the
speedy downfall of the Association, or, IN fact,
anv baseball organization, it is such scenes as
were witnessed at St. Louis Wednesday. II we
are to be guided by the newspaper reports, 1t is
safe to say that even the customary rowdylSm
of Association ball-Dlaying was outdone. That
much.advertised mOuutebank, Nike Kelly,
and some of his players really gave
sample of the kind of conduct that we
may expect during the season if the Asso-
ciatlon continues. To say the affair was
disgrace to the national game is only mild
way of stating the fact. But players of the
Kelly class are in the Association almost en-
trely to make themselves conspicuous. and
depend upon it, they'll do it regardless of how
the fame of the game is tarnished or how the
spectators are disguised. Lack of discipline
has always been one of the great defects OF the
Association, and the laxity that prevails
on that score is exactly suitable for
prominent in scenes that set all rules of
respectabilIty at defiance. And the Associa-
tion at present has no way, that is. no way safe
to ITSELF to chastise these baseball blackguards.
cont hesitate to say that its leaders dare not
enforce to any great extent rules of discipline
simply because there is nothing to protect the
association. 1t has shut itself off from all out
side help and must take the consequences of
the bad conduct of those who have entered
under its "black flag" We all know of the
questionable conduct OF players last year. 1hat
conduct was suffered because there was tim
idity IN suppressing it for fear the chastised
players would take themselves off to the op-
posing forces. There was no general and COM
mon system of protecting the gooo features OF
the game. In such plight the American As
soclatiOn finds itself to-day, and depend upon
1t, evil results are sure to follow.
About the Attendance.
Taking everything into consideration the at
tendance at the Association opening games
could not possibly be satisfactory. Of course 1
don't for one moment intend to build up any
theory on the assumption that the figures of
attendance as given to the newspapers were
correct. Not at all. take 1t for granted that
they we're much higher than the actual figures,
and keeping in view the fact that the admis-
sion fee is only Is cents, the grand result could
not be very pleasing to the Association mag
nates Now, to show that feelings of partisan
ship are not prompting opinions merely as far
as j am concerned, make this prediction: The
Association clubs will lose more money than
several of them will stand" Just put pin in
this, and am, to some extent, basing my opin-
ion on the facts of the opening game. Bear in
mind that expenses of the ASSOCIATION clubs
this year are larger by far than ever before,
They are larger il it is intended to pay large
number of players salaries contracted for. And
while these increased liabliuIes have been
shouldered, there is nothing to show to me th at
a larger attendance may be expected. The re
are many reasons which lead me to believe tn o