The San Francisco call., 1897-12-14
FOOTBALL HAS A
MONTANA ANGEL
Many Reliance Veterans
Planning to Reside in
Anaconda.
Rival Multi Millionaire, Whose
Fad Is a Winning
Eleven.
Three Players Already Gone-Alarm-
ing Outlook for Any Local Team
Next Season.

team may very soon move TO Anaconda,
Mont, for permanent residence and
steady and lucrative employment.
Anaconda is the rival OF Butte. 1t
has caught the football fever that Butte
contracted three years ago.
AS an immediate result of the recent
visit to Butte of the Reliance eleven three
of the players at once accepted positions
offered them i'll the neigh boring mining
town OF Anaconda. So they remained in
Montana while their companions re-
turned TO San Francisc CO.
McHugh. tackle; Bert Oliver, guard,
and Arlett, uilback, were the three men
who stayed and bece me citizens of Ana
conda. McHugh Is working In the mines
at So per day. Oliver is doing assa ying at
ST. a day. Ar!ett, following his trade, is
getting $6 day as a bricklayer, and,
though he Is a strict church member and
Christian Endeavorer he purposes, it is
said, to work every day in the month.
His first break for good impression with
his prospective employer was made in
Butte, when he consented to piav in the
Sunday football match between Reliance
and Butto.
Pete" Smith, Sexton, Hobbs. Tommy"
Code and Sheehy are all willing and ready
to transfer their allegiance to Anaconda,
provided they can be assured of perma-
nent positions sufficiently more renumer-
atlYe than those they are now occupying
In this city. They are waiting to hear
from Anaconda. Under the crcum-
stances they would like to spend the next
four or five years in Anaconda.
There are probably other football vet
erans that would, under similar condi-
ton, not be averse TO changing their
residence to the enteIprislng young min
ing town.
Leading up to this importation of foot
no. ainr, fxR a
of the rivalry and the patronage OF two
N muIti-milliOnaires. In that mining dis
strict of which Butte is the center every
person that makes his living directly or
indirectly from the mines Is supposed to
be either "a Clarke man" or "a DAILY
man." according TO which of the great
mining magnates he favors-
Clarke, 1t will be remem bered, is the
generous good angel" who irst stood
behind the Butte football club, and paid
the expenses in the seasons of '94 and '95
when the Butte team took long trips in a
private car 1t was through this early
support and influence that foot ball was
fosiered In Butte, and eventually became
wild and novel delight 10 the thousands
OF big hardy miner. The whole commu-
nliy was for the gridiron game, and every
player was popular faVorIte. So it easily
came about that several football men went
to Butte, and through the influence of
OF Butte business men secured good posi-
tions in the town.
Among the first to go to Butte from this
coast was George Mcmillan, then captain
OF Reliance and formerly a Stanford
guard. Percy Benson, then quarterback
and tor two seasons captain OF the Berk-
eley varsity, followed. Big jim"
Hooper, the red-headed giant from the
University of Michigan, had settled in
Butte little earlier. He soon induced
Hail, the giant Observation-Disclosures de-
ciared professional hete-to come to
Butte. And these two Michigan men.
while in this civ with the Butte team in
the winter OF '9), met Dygert, young
lawyer and former Michigan h4lfback and
easily persuaded him TO go back with
them to Butte and there hang out his
shingIe. 1t was in this way that the
Butte football club, recruited by many
powerful and willing miners, turned out
formidable team that for two seasons
practically overpoweTed all opponents
from the Mississippi River to the Pacific
Ocean.
With the withdrawal last year OF Mil
lionalre C!arke's patronage the power of
Butte began to decline. The Butte Olvm-
pic charity-game fiasco in this city on last
New Years day eventually had almost as
bad effect upon Butte as il did upon
olympic. For while the Oily npic Club
by drawing out of the Amateur Athletic
Union cut ltSeI1 ana It's team oil from all
T cogniZed amateur inter-team or inter-
club con tests Butte was officially debarred
for alleged professionalism.
Only recently and by special vote Butte
was restored to amateur standing. In the
meantime, however, Mcmillan, the cap
tain, Hooper, the ex-captain, and Hall,
the unrestored professional, had left
Butte.
For several days past Pete Smith.of
Reliance has been carrying on uegotia-
tions with the University of Nebraska for
match in this city on Christmas day,
but yesterday the plan was declared off
as Nebraska wanted all expenses guar
ant eed, and 1t was estimated they would
be about $1,000. So there will be no big
holiday gridiron match in San Fran CISCO
The Chicago papers, reviewing he foot
ball season Just closed, speak of PennsyI-
vania as the champion OF the East, Wis
consin as the champion of the North
west, Nebraska as champion of the
Middle West and Stanford as champion
of the Far West. 1t was suggested that
these teams decide the national su.
premacy. Wisconsin and Nebraska i'm.
mediately made overtures to Stanford for
game in this city on Christmas day, but
Captain Cotton, believing that al his men
could not be got in proper condition and
kept from their homes for he game, re-