The times., 1898-09-05
stpnding of the Clubs.

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The ambition of a BAH player reaches
its zenith in the Spring of the year, after
a hard Winters struggle to pull through
on a salary of S35 per month; he reports
for duty with the air and confidence of
a man thoroughly imbued with dis
position TO honestly and faithfully earn
his salary; he assures the manager that
he was never in better condition. that
there is no glass in his arms, nor barna-
cles on his limbs, and that he is simply
aching to get into the game. The news
paper boys plug his little game along and
he becomes too important to be allowed
to run at large for fear of accidents.
A little latter on, after he has hood
winked the manager and signed his con-
tract, and drawn a Sl00 in advance,
change comes over the spirit of his good
intentions. He becomes ''chesty'' and
sporty;-he puts in his evenings and rainy
days in the indulgence of his natural pro-
clivities, a little game of draw, with
craps on the side-that IS the acme of
his desires-just TO keep his blood in cir
culation These social pastimes are more
interesting to him than baseball; morn
ing practice upon the ball field becomes
irksome; he suddenly imagfnes that he is
not feeling well: that his arm is getting
CLASSY, and that Charley Horse" is be-
numbing his legs; in other words, his con-
dition is such that absolute rest in i'm
perative. He throws this con into the
ears of the manager with q pathos that
fcci1
for an indefinite lay off-at the expense
of the club, of course, as the manager Is
too liberal and kind hearted TO take ad-
vantage of the clause in his contract
which provides that any lay off of play
er, for the reasons stated, will be at the
players expense. Should the magnate en-
force this clause and require the player
10 lay off al a loss of salary, there would
be a concert of protests and denuncia-
tions from one end of the qDuntry to the
other.
To follow the history of the average
plaver further: After squandering two
or three weeks of valuable time, he final
" gets back into the game, but for want
Of practice his work is exasperatingiy
bad. and many games are lost because OF
his wretched performance; still, he is
kept on the team under the belief that he
will eventually come around all right. He
is taken along on the Eastern or Western
trips, at a, heavy expense, and his playing
instead of showing improvement grows
worse Finally il dawns upon the mind
of the manager that he has been artisti-
calIy goldbricked and he then sits about
to get rid of the player. No other mana
ger in the league wants him. They have
watched him attempt to play and know
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ager is forced to give him notice of re-
lease, and pay him for ten days more
work that he does not perform.
The magnate then sits down and does
some figuring He ascertains that this
man who came encircled with rainbows of
promise in the Spring and from whom so
much was expected, was the most fla
grant of all false alarms; that the club
has paid him hundreds of dollars for SER
vices he never performed; that the money
might just as well have been thrown into
the gutter SO far as the benefits were
concerned.
This picture is not oyerdrawn; the facts
are not confined to one isolated case;
there are several identical instances in
every club yet The Times does not know
Of any other team that has suffered more
in this respect than the Washington
club Earl Wagner has been heard to say
was touted as a wonder of this base ball
age played eleven games for his club and
cost him in money seventy-three dollars
per game before his reputation" was ex-
ploded.
And yet there are players in the league
who are always complaining that they
are oppressed and unfairly treated. AS
a rule this is not true. Ball players make
their own trouble. If they can play good
ball and honestly give a club their best
efforts they never get out of the game
until the raYages of time impair their
usefulness. The old timers who have
been playing ball for years and are still
playing ball are men who have not only
been capable but honest and conscien-
tious ball players.
AS a matter of fact, managers expect
to throw money to the winds in the selec-
tion of teams. They are compelled to in
vest large sums in trying out unsea-
soned players. II is necessary part OF
the heavy expense required in establish
ing winning club, but it is very exas-
perating after spending vast sums OF
money TO fail in accomplishing the de-
sired results The remedy lies with the
magnates, and self protection may drive
them to more economical methods.
The proposed organization of the bal
players upon the lines suggested will no,
subserve any interest they have at stake
No organization that they may establish
can prevent the magnates from transact
ing their own business in their own way
II the players believe the terms or condi-
tions under which they are compelled to
play ball are unjust or oppressive there is
no law that will compel them TO sign con-
tracts. IL the magnates attempt illegally
to enforce their contracts or to violate
any Of their provisions the ball player al
ready has legal remedy which he car
invoke Therefore an organization would
only be troublesome and expensive and
afford no manner of relief from real OF
fancied wrongs An organization, how
ever, like the one suggested, would work
infinite harm not only TO the game, but tc
the players themselves 1t would make
the gulf-already too wide-between own