The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-04-26
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New York. April 25.-Teu you about the
mascot of our base ball nine? Certainly
sir. Just take a seat on this bench. and
while we are waiting for the other boys
to get here, We can talk. Do I mind you
taking il down as go on? Not bit. sir;
We are not ashamed of our mascot, I tell
you.
Her name-her real name-is Nellie Hart
man, and she's Frank Hartman's sister,
but the name she goes by with US is just
Mascot" Since she has been with us,
you know We haven't lost q single game
of ball. and we've been playing for three
months every Saturday. That's a pretty
good record if I do say it. Frank is her
brother, as said. and our pitcher with
Banks substituting now, though once
there 1 go getting ahead of my story. Wen,
there isn't better pitcher in the city than
Frank, and he is getting 10 be we'll known,
too. He is only Is years old. but he's got
more muscle TO the square inch than any
two OF us put together. And Mascot is
just like him in that. She is
The strongest girl ever saw.
and 1t seems funny to think thar
only five years ago the doctor told Mr.
Hartman that If she didn't get more exer-
else and play out in the air more, she
wOuldn' live. She had always been rather
weak, though there was nothing in part.c-
ular the matter with her; but when the
doctor said that her father and mother
got scared and they turned her right over
TO Frank. Everywhere he went, she went
TOO. ana everything he did almost, she did.
too. The boys made fun of him at first.
Aor always having tag-arOund after him
but they soon got used to her.
Frank, Of course, was mighty fond of
her; and as for her. she knew-iust plain
knew-there never had been a boy quite
a perfect as he vast They were like
two chums more than like brother and
sister
When the Invincibles were organized
last May every game that came off you
might have seen Mascot there sitting in
the same place and watching the game as
world. Whenever Frank made a specially
good play which he did pretty often, that
being a little habit he had she would
cheer him and look so happy it would do
you good to look at her. lie used to smile
back at her every time, too. one day one
of the boys asked him why he did it, and
he laughed and said:
My sister is my mascot. boys, and /
don't believe I'd win game II l didn't
see her there"
We laughed at him then, but we don't
any more.
Well. ali summer long we PLAYED rs if
we were professionals, and as luck would
have 1t, we never lost q game 1t lust
seemed as if we couldn't lose with Frank
Hartman in the box and Smith-he's that
heavy-set young fellow coming now
catching. We began to think we were
invincible, sure enough, and, / guess we
SOL d lElnt 100 sure ana a little 100 proud
of our battery" The second one didn't
come up to Hartman and Smith by any
means, and we finally let them go, and
Frank and Smith pitched and caught all
tired and careless as you might have
thought they would, they seemed to get
better and better, and we left off think
ing about any possible accidents that
might happen, because none ever did
Toward the end of the season, how
ever, our captain-I wasn't holding that
a
worried, and one day it just seemed to
dawn on him that there wasn't boy in
the team who could take Franks place
so he went to him and said:
Look here, Hartman, what could we
do If anything should happen to you one
of these days? Do you know We haven t
got a man on the nine who could pitch
for you? 1t makes me fairly sick to think
how dead we'd be if you got sick"
Don't you worry" said Frank, smil-
ing. I'm not going to get sick; if any
thing should happen so that | couldn' t
play, the Invincibles will have a substi-
tute, who will give perfect satisfaction.
1 guarantee you that"
That's all he would saw though the
captain tried to make him tell who it
was. But just as if to make him prove
what he had said what did Frank do
the very next morning but fall and break
his leg. That was on Thursday, and Sat
urady was the day for our game with
the Red Stockings. The Red Stockings. /
forgot to tell you, were the strongest boy
team in the city, next to ours, and the
game was to be the biggest one of ali the
summer. We had never yet Crossed
bats as they say, and we knew the match
would decide which of us had the right
to the championship. You can imagine
our feelings when Nellie Hartman came
running up where we happened to have
met, and said Frank had broken his leg
Blues? We were the bluest set of bows
in the city. l knowi After weeks of prac-
tice preparing for this really big match, to
have Frank Hartman break his leg was
about the worst thing we could have
dreamed OF; and as for our captain, he was
just sick. He could hardly hold his head
up, for he knew he ought to have had a
second battery. But it was too late to do
anything now. We could not declare the
match off without being the laughing
stock Of the other nine, and we couldn't
go on with it without being whipped out of
our boots,-so there we were!
We felt sorry for Frank Of course
though we felt sorrier for ourselves-and
we all went up to his room and shook
hands with him as solemn so many owls.
He kind of smiled when he saw US, and
after a few minutes talk about the ac-
cident, he said, turning to the captain sud
You needn't feel badly about my being
disabled, Ed. You know l said | would
have a substitute, and 1 will. You won't
be disappointed, either; We'll win the
game"
but we didn't look quite so blue when we
came away. DO what we would he
wouldn't say where he was going to get
Whatever he's DONE" said the captain.
signing, Il only hope he knows what he's
about"
Saturday came, bright and warm. and
by o'clock the grounds were full; for the
Invincibles had lot Of friends, YOU see,
and they wanted TO see US win and cheer
for us; and the Reds had good big crowd,
too. But though we of the team smiled
and bowed to them all as we came out on
the diamond, there wasn't boy among
US whose heart was not as heavy as lead,
and who wasn't wondering what in the
world we were going to do without Frank.
We all believed he would keep his word,
but we hadn't yet seen the substitute.
A quarter of an hour passed, and the
crowd began to whistle and call Game!
Gamer Still the substitute did not ap-
pear, and at last Smith started around to
the house to find out what was wrong.
was standing near the gate as he picked
up his coat and walked through it, when
the long-looked for Sub" appeared.
1t was Nellie Hartmann For a moment
could only stare at her and open my
mouth in amazement. Dressed in a plain
little skirt and waist of red and black, our
clubs colors, with Franks own cap on her
hear, she walked quietly by me, with a nod
and smile and straight up to the captain.
I'm Franks substitute" she said.
We'll l don't believe Ed Brown has
gotten over his surprise to this day! With
his eyes about as big as saucers he look
ed down at her and then at the rest Of US
to- he .tsar 5-aa inc Thar ha CT