Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1900-12-15

serve Clause, Elimination of Farm
Ing Ont Clause and That Players BE
Consulted Before Being sold.
New York, Dec 13.-After trying for
two days, the National League mag
mates finally got into session at the
Fifth Avenue hotel last night The
committee which had been appointed
by the league TO hear the grievances of
the Players Protective association
previously went into session in par
Tor ID r. The committee is composed
OF Messrs. Rogers, Soden and Brush. The
players organization demand that the
session should be open was acceded to,
and when the session began the par
lor was crowded The meeting was
opened by Mr. Soden, of the magnates'
committee
In stating the demands Of the play
ers' organization to the league com
mittee Mr.. Taylor said there were just
three defects in the present form of
contracts that the players wanted cor
rected They are a modification of the
reserve clause, the entire elimination
Of the farming out" clause, and the
modification of the clause relating to
Tie DOWCI VI GiuD W buy anu
sell players or claim them without first
getting the players consent. Before
he would consent to present the play
ers' demands to the leagues commit
tee Mr.. Taylor exacted promise that
the committee would report the mat
ter to the league Immediately, and that
some action would be taken by the
league at its present session. After
securing a promise of immediate
action Mr. Taylor presented his case.
LAS to the farming out system, we
want 1t abolished altogether. There
is no justice in it at all for the player.
If man ceases to be valuable to a
club. or you have somebody that can
play his position better, don't farm
him out. Give him his release. Let
him have chance to play with some
club that needs him.
LAS to the system OF buying, sell
ing and claiming players the player
wants the contract modified SO that he
will have something to say in the mat
ter. AS the matter STANDS now the
contract is all one-sded The player
is powerless to do or act.
what we want is to help the mag
mates put the game on a better status.
The players have talked all these mat
ters over They agree with you that
rowdyism should be abolished at any
cost. In this respect the players have
put the matter up to the owners. The
players are human. In the heat Of a
game they lose their heads. But you
have the power to stop it. You have
the power to discipline miraculous
players. Why don't you administer
fines? The question of stopping the
rowdy ball is up to you. We want
these things put in the contract
I'VE believe" said Mr.. Taylor, that
the players and club owners can get
together and adjust these matters
without resorting to war. We are not
looking for trouble. We are simply
moving with an idea of putting the
game on higher plane. The salary of
the player, we know. is regulated by
the law of supply and demand. If we
can make the game more popular we
make it more profitable financially, and
then salaries will increase.
THE public has ideas about the ball
player Today, under the present con-
tract system, a ball player is looked
upon as a slave. He is slave under
the reserve rule. We know that the
reserve rule is the bulwark of base
ball. but it should not be abused. What
can be done to modify it? The players
suggest that it be limited, and that no
player may be reserved by a club for
more than five years.
I'VE don't think you have the right,
morally or legally, to hold a player
for an indefinite period Would not
baseball be improved by the chang
ing of star players from club to club?
What we want is modification of the
reserve rule. Let each club not re-
serve more than ten men.
At the conclusion of the hearing Mr..
Taylor submitted draft of the con-
tract the players wanted put in vogue,
The committee promised the players to
consider the matter at once and give
them a decision today.