The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-12-21

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to talk to men who had the best inter
ests Of the game at heart, and were not
men who wanted to hog everything in
sight and would be willing to talk on
business lines and listen to reason,
could settle the whole complicated base
bali situation in forty-eight hours" said
F. H. Abel, treasurer of the Brooklyn
! club
THE Brooklyn club is not looking for
fight" continued Mr.. Abel. 81 have
been through baseball wars before, and
| l know what they are. They mean the
ruination of the game and its hackers.
( The game is not benefited by all these
sQuabbles between the magnates. The
public wants to see baseball, not all the
! strife, and these petty chickering's disgust
the baseball public
There has been no price put on the
Baltimore clubs franchise for the simple
reason that no one in authority has ap-
! preached US to ascertain our terms. We
have not met one Of the circuit commit
! tee since the league meeting. Frank Rob-
ison has had several conferences with our
people, but only merely to obtain our
feelings on the subject, but there has
been nothing authoritatively given out
I'VE naturally feel that our Baltimore
! franchise is worth something, and we
! want to get all we can out of it, but we
| will not be Unreasonable in our demands
All we want is a fair and honest consid-
Grafton for our holdings, and then we
| shall be willing to enter into negotiations
for what we want to SELL
Il will not deny that we desire and
think that 1t would be the best thing for
baseball for an elght-club National
| league to be formed, but we want a fair
| and honest consideration of our demands.
| We will be reasonable, but we want the
| other side to be reasonable, also Under
those conditions we will be willing to do
! business"
When asked if the observation-disclosures
| syndicate would refuse to negotiate for
reduction Of the league If the Wrigley
fine was not rescinded, Mr.. Abel said:
No; that does not necessarily block
| the deal We think we have been wrong
ed, yet we will not make it an issue
which cannot be overcome
You can say for me that the Brooklyn
end of it, and also the Baltimore. is for
anything that will benefit the game
where our interests are not jeopardized"
that the demands Of the public shall be
listened to.
Col. Rogers today made one statement
that gives a good line on the real mean
ing Of good deal Of the rumpus that
has been raised He said a ten-cIub
that at the expiration of the ten-year
agreement, New York. Boston, PhiladeI-
phia and Pittsburg would undertake the
formation of new league
This, of course, means that Brooklyn
and Baltimore will be frozen out, and
that Cincinnati may be invited to come
in. The latter Is not a certainty, how
ever 1t is no secret that Dreyfuss,
Rogers and Freedman have not forgotten
the fights made against them in recent
years by the Cincinnati magnate. and re-
port had 1t today that Mr.. Brush is tir-
ing of the role of Saviour of the
League"
If he should decide to abandon the
cause of Freedman, the fight will be more
furious than ever, and the outlook for
the game itself more gloomy This is an
admitted fact SO the urgent appeals of
the hOpe-to-be pacif1ers and defiance of
the principals are appalling, amusing and
apparently hopeless.
I'VE should. of course, desire to retain
se1 eral players of the present Baltimore
team if we can, as with an eight-club
league we don't consider the champions
would DE overstreng, but even that con-
sideration would not block the deal If we
are met in the right spirit"
FREEDMAN IS DETERMINED.
Col John / Rogers, of PHILADELPHIA,
says Friedman refuses to put up a cent
to pay for the franchises and players of
the Washington and Baltimore clubs. He
demanded that the league circuit be re-
duced without cost or inconvenience to
him, and a little thing like revolution in
the ranks or the prospective death Of
the lighting of a fly on an elephant. The
four owners of the Brooklyn and Balti-
more clubs are as calm and determined
as Mr.. Freedman, and would-be concilia-
tors declare bringing the North and South
poles together would prove as easy a task
as persuading these bitter rivals to come
to terms Freedman has given it out that
the reserve rule may be abolished and all
of Brooklyn and Baltimore's players sign
ed by New York Philadelphia, Boston,
etc, at much smaller salaries.
John T. Brush, the so called Napoleon
| Of baseball. still insists that the reduc-
ton will be made even though much
money be needed. He declares that base
bali shall be put on a good footing, and
PRESIDENT YOUNG's VIEWS.
WASHINGTON, D. c., Dec 2o.-"There
wifi be no fancy figures paid by the Ma
tional league" said PRECEDENT Young.
WIN d View TO securing franchises
| which practically have no value whatev-
! er. This Is particularly true in regard
| to the Louisville club, whose players have
all been released to the Pittsburg organ
ization TO do with as it deemed best
Inasmuch as a good sum was paid for
these releases, all of which have been re-
ceived by me at the league headquarters,
there does not seem to be any reason
for further negotiations looking to the
purchase of franchise thus rendered
worthless. AS for the Baltimore club,
the $4,000 asked in that direction will
prove q bar to satisfactory settlements
among the magnates of the National
league. The four clubs depended upon by
these anxious to secure a reduction of the
circuit have overreached themselves and
it is simply preposterous To talk about
$1G2, SOC being subscribed by the league to
bring about such result. There would
be no money in it for anybody. Under
those circumstances some other plan must
be proposed looking to a reduction of the
circuit, and nobody need be surprised If
the old twelve-club schedule is adhered to
for the ensuing two years beginning with
| the spring of 1900
HANLON BELLIGERENT.
BALTIMORE, Md.-Ned Hanlon talked
forcibly and bitterly regarding the base
! ball middle
1--WE have no intention" said he, "of