The times., 1897-04-04

If the season is dull, they have plenty OF
time for amusement in the afternoon, anu
the cost OF seeing a baseball game Is not
so serious a matter that it is. going 10
keep many people away, even If the times
are hard The matter Of business activity,
ofcourse, does notaffect Washington, where
there are $4,000 or 10000 men and wo-
men from the departments that have fin
ished their labors every afternoon at L
O'Clock There the popularity OF the" home
club makes the success of the season. And
the matter of business depression does not
affect most of the inland cities so much
as it does the larger commercial cities as
before mentioned.
What managers are figuring on chiefly
is the fact that there is no election this
year to distract attention from baseball
Last year, beginning in September, the
election excitement, the afternoon par
AIDES, etc, kept people away from the
bali grounds. But in spite Of this fact,
the season was a little better than the
season of 1895. Now that we have got
through with the election, there sh ould be
an even greater Improvement in the busi-
ness of 1897.
There has been n steady improvement
| in ha SebaIl business from 1871 TO the pres
ent time The most prosperous season
ever known in the old National League
was 1888 Following that season came
the Brotherhood war in 1891, and the
American Association war in 1892, and
in those two years the business was a total
failure The National League lost be-
tween $500 900 and $500, 600 in these
fights We know the Brotherhood and
American Associations lost more than the
league 1t is likely million dollars was
thrown away. Salaries went up to alb
Surd figures Clubs paid their men from
81 800 to s., 900 for the season, where
they now receive from 81 200 to 50 400.
There was no discipline to speak OF.
The men felt independent of authority,
because they knew If they W ere released
from the league they could go to theother
association. Today the morals of the men
are much improved, and the class OF men
who join the clubs has improved a great
deal, too a great many college men
have gone into baseball. They are nat
uraIly easier to manage and better be
haYed than some of the old recruits were.
Besides, a man knows today that if he
Jumps out of a club he must retire from
the business altogether: and as most OF the
players are making financial success OF
their chosen profession, they act very
wisely in considering their own interests
and obey the rules
I'm spite OF the fact that baseball has
been placed on a business basis and salaries
have been made reasonable and uniform,
there are no such profits in the business as
some people think. OF course, a very few
men get something extra for acting as field
captains and so On, but So. 400 is the maxi
mum limit of regular salaries paid to the
players, and the players receiving such sal
airy must be especially expert. None of
them receive less than about 81 200. The
average is from 81 900 to $4,000 for six
months work, and the salaries OF the clubs
average more than $4,000 for each club
of sixteen or eighteen regular players and
whatever extra men the manager thinks
necessary The clubs travel each season
from o2, 600 to los, 900 miles. Each club
travels from $500 to 5000 miles, With