The Portland daily press., 1896-06-02

Undertakers Find Portland Pitchers a
Good Thing-Worst Defeat of Season on
Home Gronnas-raIl River Clinches Its
Hold on First Plaoe-Augusta Defeats
Bangor and New Bedford BroclSton.
To tell you of yesterdays ball game, it
will not be necessary to begin at inning
amber one, and from that on until in
ming number nine, to recount the events
of tho race, telling how Portland forged
ahead here and lewiston there, and how
the tide we trrned from one side TO the
other. by s "a. brilliant play. by timely
his or smile Of fickle fortune.
You won't want to hear about the
whole of this game. Maybe you won't
care to hear about any of it, but even if
it is knowledge you are after, if you wish
to learn how it was that our people got
licked and our opponents marched off the
field to the tune of "See the Conquering
Heroes Come" 1t won't be necessary to
dwell on but one inning.
And such an inning that was! Nothing
like it has been seen in the New England
league this year; possibly nothing like it
ever was seen on the Deering grounds.
Goodness knows we hope not.
Even if we had the moral courage and
the mental stamina to bear up under it,
the fences wouldn't stand it.
They tell story of how Gentle Willie
Mains erstwhile of Windham, now of
Commonwealth avenue, Boston, wore a
hole into the sids Of his papa's barn,
blinking base balls against it whenS he
was learning to pitch, but Willie Mains
seniors barn, had soft thing beside
what Mr.. Murphy's fence did III this in
ming of which We speak, and in regard to
which no doubt you are getting curious
and want to learn all about.
Never mind, you shall know. 1t won't
do to break the news about suoh things
too quickly.
The game started out in a decidedly
Portland fas hion. 1t looked like our
game dead easy, and already there had
bagun to we'll up in our hearts feelings
of pity for the poor unfortunate old IN
dertakers.
OF course, reasoned more than one
sympathetic soul, we'll have to take the
game. We like Lewiston and feel sorry
for the t'hoodoed'' old town, but there
you are; it won't do to drop games, that
isn't honest, and besides this one will
make us just an even 500 per cent to go
away from home with, which is just
about right considering that what little
leo chopping We have done this year has
been since we left Massachusetts,.
| Portland was first at bat and Slater got
| first on an error of Frank Shea's.
Jack Leighton hunted one down to
Williams, which the collegian tossed to
Pettee, and which bounded off from his
hands like tennis ball on an asphalt
court.
ORourke sacrificed, Duncan hit safe,
and two runs came in, which only goes
to show what an easy thing it is to mako
runs off these Lewistons any how.
In the second we got another; a double,
single and a wild pitch contributing to
this agreeable acquisition.
| 1.-THE third, four more dropped into our
basket, and we didn't even have to shake
the tree.
Oh me, oh my! 1t was just like find
ing game.
The fourth Lewiston gave the first init
nation that they had any use for the
game whatever.
The black-a-moors earned three runs
that time, but that still left US lead Of
three, and Of course we were glad they
got them, poor things.
| The fifth neither side scored.
You will now obs erver that you have
been led up to the sixth inning, which
was given more less of notice in the
prelude to this article.
1t Is an easy thing to tell OF, though it
was hard thing to see. Messett was the
first man to bat, and led of with q
double, Williams tapped out single and
Fltzmaurice smashed the ball for another
double. Lippert hit fly to leighton.
Then Shea, singled, and Miller doubled.
Pettee sent slow ono to Cavanaugh,
who tried to throw the ball over the
fence and almost sue ceeded.
So far no allusion has been made to
runs, but please bear in mind as this tale
proceeds that they are coming in all the
while.
Mccoy had been displaced by Nc
Dougall when Pettee came to bat. The
change didn't affect the good intentions
of the visitors or their ability to carry
them out
Goodhart and Flack and Messett fol
lowed with singles. Williams reached
, first on wild throw by Magoon, Port
1