The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-07-20
Y. A. DURREII.

wipe it out before the abuse rot tho better
of them. Tho warning was not taken, and
the National league is now confronted byo
condition which must necessarily give
It extreme concern.
The magnates have seen this growing
danger, but had not the courage TO take Ii
by the throat and choke it into nonexist-
ence Last year thoy had q 500 maximum
penalty, but umpires were loath TO use it on
account Of its after effect They knew that
clubs md not the offending players were
paying the big fines, and TINT, therefore,
they were storing up against themselves
the enmity Of the clubs and not of the
players This year the heavy fines Were
repealed, and n removal from the game
was substituted In only half "a dozen in.
stances has that penalty been imposed,
though it has been mcrited hundred
times. The rule IL avoided 10y the umpires
for the same reason which made the sl0c
fine q useless weapon. .
At the last annual meeting Mr.. Robi.
son of Cleveland proposed a rule 10 pro.
hibit coaching and TO make 1t unlawful foI
any player TO question an umpire's deci'
sion except where it involved the interpre-
tation of playing rule This proposition
did not get vote. And now, before the
half of the playing season is over, Mr..
Robson Is defending bis captain and man.
ager from the punishment of the League
for the gravest of al offense under disci'
plinary rules Of the ballfield
/ believe this theory advanced by Mr..
Robson last winter Is bound TO become
law and practice in baseball Something
must bc done to crush senseless kicking
against umpire decisions or the interest OF
tho game will suffer severely. i saw the
Princeton and Yale teams play one Of the
deciding games in 10 college championship
last month, and the umpiring was very
faulty. Both teams knew IL, and yet there
was not as much objection made in the
whole gamo as there Is usually in halt
inning Of National league game. When
men wcro called out, they retired quickly
and without even word of protest, even
i'm few instances where the decisions were
so close that tho victims must surely have
believed themselves 90 be wronged
You can never get professional ball on
that plano Of field dcccncy until tho mouth
of every player Is locked mp tightly. There
seems TO be n raging belief in all profess
sional teams That unless they mck as much
or little more than their opponents they
get the worst of the decision. It, there
fore, becomes cross fire of bulldozin9
with the poor umpire ut tho junction OF
the angles.
Keefc resigns, Hurst whips two Pitts-
burg players after the game, and Teheau
gets out an injunction to restrain the
League from collecting n fineof $500 for
disordcrly conduct on tho ballleld, all In
ono week That shows exactly the demor-
alizing extent Of this umpire batting.
Tho public does rot know half of the
abuse which players heap upon u'npiros for
tho moro purpose Of offscttlrg or destroy
ing tho effect OF tho bulldozir2 by the 9TH
er side. If the baseball lawmakers do not
hurry up and squelch this spirit of disorder
on tho boll0old the national game will
soon simmer down TO a "scrapping
match
Tho old cry Of "bascball slavery" hns
been raised again through the Rusic con-
troversy, and one hears tho assertion that
the noted pitcher is deprived of making
his livelihood az his chosen profession. or
course the assertion is not truo, for et no
time this year has Mr.. Rusic been donied
the privilege OF sgningn contract with the
Now York club nt $500 q month man
I'm these days who has S400 a month job
ready 10 his touch IS hardly slave.
Without rigid laws Of thcir own 60 con-
troll thoir peculiar business baseball capt
talists would not dare invest dollar per
monently In the sport Dali players arc,
az n class, legally irresponsible, and n club
could have no recourse az law for brokon
contracts, rs was shown when Mccormick,
Glagcocl end Briody deserted the Glove.
land club In midscason Of 1884 and hank
ruptcd the gamc in that city. The ma
tional rgrccmcnt and reserve rule made
the game business, spread the territory,
multiplied clubs, opened tho profession 20
triple the number Of players ard increased
salaries 100 pcr cent Ia 1850 the Cincln-
natl club. mcmbCr OF tho National
league, paid S1i, 900 frrits bali team. Two
years later the American association club
engaged an entire team against League
competition at a total salary expense OF
$1,000. Today nearly every League clu'
Inys three times that amount In salaries.
Il i IL 49,