Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-04-01
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BASE BALL.
What a Gardiner Gentleman Thinks Of The
Matter.

Editors kenneDec journal:
| read with great interest the interview
with President Murnane Of the New Epg-
land League, relative to the placing of a
ball team in the city of Augusta. II
seemed to me that there was much practi-
cal sense in what Mr.. Murnane had TO saw
upon the matter and | agree with him
| fully that if the move were handled
properly there could be little doubt of its
| success.
Gardiner people would be very glad, in
deed, to see il league team in Augusta. |
/ venture to say that there is no city of this
size in New England that has more
genuine base ball enthusiasts. The fact
that we were able to run our strong teams
OF 1888 and 80 is proof of this fact.
have no doubt that lovers of the national
game in Gardiner would be ready to CON
| tribute their share to the support of New
England League team in the kenncbec
valley. We are not jealous of tie capital
| and would be glad to co operate with the
people of your city in anything that would
secure us the privilege of seeing some first
class base ball games the coming summer
You will PERMIT me. however to make
a suggestion that has grown out of my
own experience in this matter. The great
difficulty in the running of a ball team in
a small city I, the lack of a continuous in
terest There is 10 one of the four cities
of the Kennebec that could not furnish
fine audiences for certain number of
games / seriously question, however,
whether any one of them, even with the
great advantages Of the Electric Road,
would be able to furnish good audiences
Il rI,oro =
however, that there is practical way to
obviate this difficulty, and one which
would go far to insure the success Of Il
New England League team in Kennebec
county.
The great desire of the league, as l I'M
derstand it, is to have team midway in
the State which would enable the men to
break the long jump from Lewiston and
Portland to Bangor 1t would make no
practical difference therefore, in accom-
plshing this end, whether such team
We're located in Gardiner, in Augusta, or,
for that matter in Waterville | would
suggest, therefore, that a New England
League team be made representative not
of any one Of the cities of the kcnnebec
but of all of them, and it might very ap-
propriately be called 1.-The kennebecs. -
The headquarters of such team might
very properly be at Augusta, which would
be the most central place III the county
A portion Of the regular scheduled games
however, might be played on the Ran
dolph grounds; portion of them at the
Augusta driving park, and q portion Of
them in the city of Waterville. if suitable
grounds could be obtained there, and very
likely the grounds of the Colby University
team might be secured for such games. 1t
seems to me that in this way we should
be able to secure for a league team the
united and cordial support Of four cities
with an aggregate population of nearly 30. =
900 people / have no doubt that during
the yeas 1888 and 80 enough money was
expended on the national games in these
four cities to have paid the bills of two
teams in the New England League.
In MATES Of sport the interests of Ken
nebec cities should be one, and earnestly
believe that if this thing is taken hold of
in the right way we may have q team here
in Konnebec in the New England League
that will be credit to Central Maine aid
of which the people of kenneboc county.
irrespective of locality, may feel heartily
proud BY having the games in the three
cities, Urge continuous audiences would
be assured as the teams would not appear
often enough in any one of them to cause
any loss of interest. In this way [ am
sure. sufficient money encourage mcnt
could be secured and all financial difficult
tics fully obviatcd.
would like to hear further from base
ball men in relation to this view of TIE
subject. j. G. IL.
Gardiner, Maine, March 80.