Daily Yellowstone journal., 1891-03-15
NOT 50 SERIOUS.
How the -League-Associatio
Quarrel Stands.
WILL BE GUERRILLA WARFARE

Individual Clubs RAiding Each other.
The Law to lie Invoked to settle Con-
trAets-The Recent League Meeting.
Cincinnati to Have a surfeit Of Base
ball Law.
The breaking away Of the American as
ISOLATION from the protection Of the na-
tional agreement has. as il was expected IL
would, made new complications in base
ball, and will probably get the game into
the courts again, and the players too; in
deed il has already resulted in getting one
Of them into Jail for a brief period, Pitcher
Mark Baldwin, who has been arrested In
st. Louis for alleged conspiracy.
As compared, however, with the recent
Players league movement, the Association
break is not much more than a tempest in
q teapot There is no similarity between
the two movements. One was a fight OF
players and capitalists against capt. lists,
and the other Is merely a fight between
capitalists. At best the warfare will only
be Of the guerrilla nature. A. IL will be
confined mainly To Boston and Cincinnati
Hence IL will have very little effect upon
the interest in our national championships,
so that there need be no fears of divided
interests and inferior and careless playing.
This, / think, il a conservative statement
Of the situation
Both League and Association are doing
work against each other that is greatly 70
be deprecated, and yet IL Is a tit-for-tat
business that might have been expected.
The Association made a great outcry and
signed a number Of the Leagues reserved
players. Retaliation came. Of course, and
1t has not stopped yet. The virtuous pro
tests Of the Association against contract
jumping are absurd 20 those acquainted
with the facts. The Association having
got all the League men 10 j. likely 70,
is making a great outcry because the other
fellows do not stop.
After the pronunciamento Of the Asso-
citation. and after IL jumped a solemn con
tract entered into only a few weeks before
on a trivial excuse Of the failure OF a base
ball court 10 decide a case in it, favor. il
would seem a. II the League was justified
In taking all IL could get
The League AS a body has done moth
ing. some Of its club members have.
and their deeds he upon their own heads.
/ do not approve Of persuading men 70
Jump contracts they have once signed
But my ~disapproval or yours, reader,
has nothing to do with the case. The
presidents Of the Pittsburg. Cleveland
and Cincinnati clubs have signed certain
well known players who are believed and
alleged TO be unde contract 70 other
elubs. There isn't any question that they
nave signed something. The courts must
decide what IL is.
In the Cincinnati cases II Is claimed thai
the players signed 70 play ball for a cor
poration never incorporated, and in the
Player league only, and hat they are
void. In rms other cases the contracts con
tain a clause in which both parties agree
that the player shall play under the ma
tionAl agreement and its protection. This
/ claus. which IL IL claimed invalidates the
contract, is No. :, aud bids fair 70 become
as famous a. clause IS was a year ago. II
there j. really any luck in odd numbens
the League has the best Of IL.
The recent League meeting was not a
mine for reporter, for there were few
leaks, and none Of the organizations plans
got into the paPen- Imagination ran riot,
however, and the guessen wrote long
stories. Nothing but routine work was
made public. Hereafter the visiting clubs
get 20 per cent. Of the gate receipts and the
home club %. The other 10 per cent. goes
into a fund 10 pay League expenses hereto
fore covered by assessments. When the
amount accumulate 10 10000 IL will be
divided equally among the eight clubs.
Some tw-uty-eight minor changes were
made ia the constitution, and a schedule
Of game wi- adopted under which the
season opens ApSi y in New York. Phila-
delphiA, PittsJurg and Cincinnati, and
closes Oct. 3 In New York, PhilSdelphia,
Cleveland aud Chicago.
The League occupied three days on the
above. or pretended 70 do - They wisely
refuse 70 make their plans public, but they
show by the schedule that the Cincinnati
fight, legal and otherwise, will not be de
layed. Mr.. A. l.. johnson. Of Cleveland.
will hze an immediate opportunity 70
make good his terrible threats about the
myriad Of lawsuits he has promised %
bring. His SaS will get a hnA settle
ment. The baseball public Is getting tired
Of this mans boasts and bomnnst
In regard TO the Association the League
took no action, deciding that each club
must look out for itself and dght It's own
battles. Whether this applies u the hnan-
cial backlog Of the Cincinnati club also Is
not d., -.tsly known, although Messrs.
Abel Of Brooklyn, Robson Of Cleveland
and O'Neil Of Pittsburg were appointed a
committee 10 aid Mr. Brush. Whether in
an advisory OF Pecuniary way, or both,
will ~transpire with events.
There il fairly good authority. although
not authentic, that proceedings will com
mence az once 70 find out what the syndi-
cate bought Of Aaron Stern, and how John
son claims 70 control it when the National
league bold ga 500 Of the S4O,OOoof stock.
Cincinnati will get baseball and law from
nov to October.
Il will thus be seen thai the Association
and League fight will be largely a pre-sea-
son one, and its arena will b. in the courts
j - MwaNHr. III ANNA