The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-10-03
SMASH THE LEAGUE
THAT Is WHAT BRUsH IS CHARGED
WITH TRYING TO
DO.
SENSATION IN THE WESTERN
rfAGNATEs GATHERING At MIL
wAUKEE TO DISCUSS THE
MATTER.
First Game I'm the Temple Cup Sc.
ries Decidedly 81 One-Sided
Affair.

A dispatch to the GIob from Mil
waukee says:
President Johnson of the Western league;
Van Derbeck, of Detroit and Killilea, of Mil
waukee held a consultation here today to re-
view the application of Indianapolis and Min
neapolis to President Young to withdraw
from the Western league. Comiskey. of St
Paul, is expected here tomorrow, when in
tereSting developments expected. Tomor-
row night Johnson and Killifea Will leave for
New York TO attend the meeting of the ma
tional board of arbitration, which will be held
there Monday afternoon. 1t transptres that
Brush has offered the Milwaukee franchise
to II. d. Quin, of this city, who has accepted
It, and also the Detroit and Kansas City
franchises to other people than their present
owners. big grab is anticipated but Presi-
dent Johnson says the $4,000 in the league
treasury will be used to fight Brush's scheme
Manning says he will stand by Johnson, and
Milwaukee. Detroit and st. Paul will also
indorse his election to the presidency OF the
Western league again.
Ever since the present league has
been organized, Milwaukee has been
The center of pipe stories" of all turns.
and many a picturesque yarn has been
twined about the future fortunes of the
Western league or its individual men,
beers This last one is not whit less
picturesque than it's predecessors. 1t
assumes in the first place that John
T. Brush not only owns the entire
W estern league, but that he can wreck
1t il necessary to play favofites and
crafty his personal spites. 1t is true
that he has been credited with owning
the Indianapolis, Columbus, Mime
epoiis, and by some, the st. Paul clubs,
but even that would give him but four
votes out Of eight What hold he has
on Manning, Vanderbeck, Ellis or
KiIilea. it would be hard to explain,
and if Killilea is cheek by jowl with
$ Brush, even as he hobnobs with john
son, then the situation in the Western
league is pretty near as confusing as
the shake-up in the grand old political
parties this year.
H D. Quin, to whom the fairy story
gays Brush has offered the Milwaukee
franchise, is the old time impreSar1o OF
the national game in the Beer City
He has lost his grip on the ice saw
during the last few years and his oper-
ations can hardly be esteemed menac-
ing.
An Associated Press story from the
same town is to the effect that the
franchises of Milwaukee, Kansas City,
Detroit, st. Paul and Columbus, will
be annulled. AS they constitute more
than half the league, it will be seen
that the only way that this can be done
is for the other Pharisaic clubs to
Withdraw, and to appeal to the Nation
al league for the title, and the prestige
which the present Western league has
won If Brush can make this stick
with the magnates, well and good. The
other five would then be in position to
organize a league which would be free
from his ogre like incubus. The basis
OF the charges against the five clubs
to be dropped are that they voted to
place team in Grand Rapids in vio-
1ation of the national agreement and
are therefore no longer entitled to the
protection Of the big league.
1t must not be assumed that the
scheme is to dethrone base ball in the
cities named. They are too good to be
dropped, but by so severely disciplin-
ing the present managements the
players of the clubs expelled would
be thrown upon the tender mercies of
free Of the odious $500 draft provision
The animus is plain.
If the National league does take the
action threatened by the Milwaukee
dispatch, however, it will mean the
ruin Of minor league ball in Amer
lea, for the National league protection
will be even more like an iridescent
dream than 1t is now, and minor league
franchises would not be worth the cost
of having their letter heads printed.
1t is reasonable to presume that as
the National league realizes that it de-
ponds on national game, and the
interest in that Is largely fostered by
the widespread minor leagues, there
are too many long heads there not to
foresee that the precedent would be
fatal