The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1896-05-09
AMOS RCSIE.

ed the president. When told him that
some received 50, 600 for six months serv-
ice and yet were not satisfied, that catch
ing SMILE which Is 80 infectious, lighted
up his face as he aptiy replied, well,
Washington Is pretty full of people who
arr glad to get employment at $1,000 q
year." And yet Amos Rusic refuses e4OO
q month on q teohnicallty. No wonder
baseball players as GLASS have the repu-
tation of being the most unreasonable peo-
pie on earth.
The national character Of baseball was
sptly illustrated by the attendance ut the
opening championship game in Washing
ton. Three members OF the presidents
cahnet-Olney, Harmon and Smith-were
In the crowd of spectators, and q reporter
counted 40 members OF tho two houses of
congress among tho rooters, In spite Of
the fact that the senate and house Of rep
resentatives were both In session.
have often been asked to explain the
origin of the. terms Crank" and fan" as
applied to baseball enthusiasts. There was
wholesale practical ILLUSTRATION of the
appellations given at the second New
York Philadelphia game on tho Polo
ground. New York's Giants started the
season poorly, and in that game they went
completely TO pieces ns q nine. 1t was O
clear case Of Generalization, and the ma
5ority Of the 4 900 spectators became the
widest kind Of cranks and fans. Tho lat
ter word is O contraction for fanatic. A
crank, or q fanatic, Is one who throws
philosophy and reason to the winds. And
that Is what those thousands of spectators
did. Players who the day before were set
up by the same crowd as little removed
from demigods and who received applause
NO IL.
cessful war were now Missed, hooted, jeer-
ed insulted and assailed with the most re-
Wiling epithsts.
That Is your baseball crank in his true
colors. He worships his heroes one day
and denounces thom as "dubs - "stiffs"
and has beens'' the next Arson in his
day has met moreo of this species than any
man who ever played ball. and he will
tell you that the woods nre full of them
In 1894 tho season In New York closed
amid such an outburst and outpouring of
enthusiasm rs I never saw in nearly q
score Of seasons connection with the sport
New York players were carried from the
field by men who earlier in the year had
Kissed them and called them degrading
names from tho grand stand.
1t is the only sport which develops
cranks and fanatics by the thousand,
among whom not q dollar is wagered on
the result and who are fully aware that
bad playing is not tho result Of dishonesty.
Yet have been In the crowds at race
track after notorious and baYefaced
trick" had gone through, and one could
scarcely hear a murmur from the crowd in
which thousands of dollars had gone up in
smoke by reason of the prearranged race.
These were sporting men taking their
phannnc m IN har
didn't murmur. The baseball crank loses
nothing but his philosophy and his peace
of mind.
The usual number of surprises meet the
observers Of this years. National league
race start. Won der Ahe's despised foreor-
dained tail enders and the rated weaklings
at Washington went to the front with q
dash which took the breath away from the
handicappers. On the other hand, the
much touted BostOns and tho proud cham
pions met with moro than one disgusting
surprise. The uncertainties of the game
were never better shown than they were
In the two games between the teams OF
Seele and Hanlon ON April 90 and April
IL. On the first date Boston won by @
| score OF 81 to @. Next day the BaltimoYes
| woD-14 To 2. Do we need wonder, then
that 1873, 900 people saw the opening games
| In Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Wash
ington, Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Louisville
\ and ST. LOUISE
An impression prevails that the new
rules against kicking and excessive coach
| ing are Unusually effective because one
hears less about fines and removals from
the game this spring than usual. Let m,
tell secret. 1t ia not tho new rules which
] GresdoiDg all that, but the efficiency of tn,
| corps OF umpires The National leaQu,
never had suoh capable staff. -Four o
the six arc veterans, and n fitch Is gratlu
alto of the minor leagues. Presidep
| Young's mistake of other years was tn,
| trying Of too many new men In that posi-