The evening times., 1898-12-01
THE NATIONAL LEAGUE
BOARD OF DISCIPLINE
MEMBERS ARE LIKELY TO RESIGN
VIII Ask for Greater JurisdictiOn.
Want Full Power to Punish Of
Tending Hall Players.

The board of discipline of the National
League threatens to resign unless given
greater Jurisdiction. This win furnish an
other issue for the magnates to act upon
at the meeting in New York on December
13 1t will be remembered that at the
spring meeting of the League in st. Louis
a board of discipline was created to en-
force the Brush resolution. This board
was 10 hear all cases reported under the
resolution which was enacted to rid
the game of all profane, indecent and vul-
ed and the board. consisting of Messrs.
krauthoff. Kramer and Stearns. was ap-
pointed, ii was thought that the board
for time would have it's hands full. and
that soon the players would conduct
themselves on the field as they should.
However. this turned out to be only
sweet dream. While the spectators were
relieved of the mortifying sensation of
hearing the players use filthy language,
| the players among themselves were as
| foul-mouthed as ever, and the evil was
only half abolished. Through all this
| the board OF discipline awaited their first
| case. but it came not, simply because the
umpires would not report the players,
and the players would not tell on each
! other; in word, the board of discipline
/ was frost" simply because there was
] no way offending players could be cor
raled and the board had no power TO 20
/ after them. The gentlemen of the board
, are tired of this sort of thing. They want
! to be something or out of the game al
together. And it is with this point Of
view the board submitted to the national
/ board of arbitration at its last meeting
/ an ultimatum of more power or their
designations This matter will be acted
! upon at the coming League meeting.
Mr.. Louis Kramer the attorney. of Gin
! cinnau, who was president of the Ameri-
can Association at one time. and who is
! secretary OF the board of discipline is
| like the other members OF the board dis
! pleased with the manner in which the
! board figures in the game. ''As we now
are, said Mr.. Kramer, we are nothing
! and unless the League sees lit to enlarge
J our powers-to make us something more
! than fgure-heads-we will resign. AT the
! one meeting which we have held since
I we were appointed we framed rules to
govern. our actions that were strictly in
accord with Mr.. Brushs resolution, and at
the same time gave any player that might
. come before us every opportunity to prove
| tion We had nothing To do. simply be-
cause We had to wait until a case was
! brought before us and because our pow
! ers were limited To this"
Mr.. Kramer and the other gentlemen are
entirely right in the position they are TAX
ing in the matter If they are To wait
until one player complains of another US
ing obscene language on the field they
might as Well not be existence at all.
for such a thing never will happen Mr..
Kramer belieVes-and all IaIr- minded low
ers Of the game will commend his be-
lief and recognize in IL the one thing that
can save the game from the destruction
TO which 1t is drifung-that the board of
discipline should have the powers that
now are given the board of directors in
the matter of Furnishing players for any
/ offenses. The last three cases handled by
the board of directors-the Rusie case.
the Tebeau case and the Holmes case
made this body the laushingstock of the
country and demonstrated that player
was not given an even chance in any con-
! troversy with the magnates