Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-06-09


| curve. The ball started apparently for
Jim's stomach. Jini doubted it would agree
with him-he jumped very far back from
the plate. Just as the ball. twisting like a
serpent sailed right; over the middle of
| the rubber.
Three strikes! Strikers OUT" bawled
| the umpire. Batter up!'
| The crowd was ut first too amazed to
| applaud. 1t could hardly believe it's eyes.
A stripping had struck out the invincible
| Jim Bunker. Jim SUNK toward the bench.
growing at what he called the empire"
he was promptly sfienced by the assertion
| that the empire was all right-it was
himself, Jim Bunker. who had an oyster
In his forehead in place of an eye.
When Centerport's captain had said that
| smiled Back at college 1t had been said
| that Brent HARDWOOD won at ball as much
by his grin as by his curves. The grin was
SLOW. insihuatlng. eHasperating. calculated
to drive the coolest batter wild. HARDWOOD
| stood a half minute rubbing the ball and
gr1nnfng at the captain.
Aw GIT a move on We, there, kid"
| snaried the batter. HARDWOOD glinned.
| Needn't be 'fraid I'll bust the burned
| thing! Gimme er crack at 'er an I'll show
| ye TICK with hole in it. Ye amt pitch
| in to no blind man this trip" the captain
went on.
The parson kept on grinnng
Inc batter got explosively red. HARDWOOD.
watching him narrowly, gave the ball a
| niue hlrt. and pitched wabbling dew
man was too disguised and too mad to see
It The ball went over the plata strike
was promptly called. Then HARDWOOD re-
peated the pitch. 1t seemed an easy ball.
Really 1t was a hard one The Centerporter
iunged at it like wild bull before it came
in six feet Of him. All he did was to tear
a Dig, ragged hole in the air. His eyes
glared as Reed came close behind and
crouched in his shadow. Harwood drew
back pack J. his arm as If to deliver another dew
drop. The captain fumed. suddenly
Brent shot his arm across his body and
the ball sped over the plate like bullet.
out-t yelled the umpire. Batter up!'
Gallia City went suddenly insane. 1t
STOOD up In mass, yelling. bowling. cheer
was like a cricket piping In face Of a
storm. But when, In the midst of the din,
third man walked to the plate. whacked
the rubber with his bat and squared him
ser, the noise huShed as suddenly as 1t
had begun.
HARDWOOD delberated. Should he give this
new man a chance, or clinch things, with
the game thus young? He did not quite
know how it would be with the Gallias at
the bat. so decided upon the latter course.
Ihree wide outshoots, sent as fast as he
could deliver them, yet give Bill time to
come up, bewildsxed the new batter, and
put Centerport out.
1t was while the players were changing
and pandemonium reigned that the phe-
crowd. At first all Gallia City gasped, as
from cold plunge. parson, in knee
brooches and red stockings, pitching in
game OF ball! For a quarter of a minute
Gallla CITY was stricken silent. Then down
In the bleachers a whisper began. and
swelled and grew. until bold man leaped
on the rail and called: Three cheers for
the little parson!" The cheers came with a
will. From end to end the fair grounds
rang with ''Harwood! HARDWOOD! What's
the matter with Ha-ar-woo-od? He's all
right! Nor would the cheering cease until
HARDWOOD stood upon a bench and took or
his red cap to the crowd.
Faith in their unparalleled pitcher made
the Gallias all superbly confident: BIZ
Reed. the first man up went to the bat
like Trojan going to battle. Centerport's
pitcher had tremendous speed and no
curves. His third ball met Bits ashen
stick with noise like the splitting Of
mast. When the fielder recovered 1t Bill
sat at second. tanning himself with his cap.
The next man made a sacrifice hit and ad-
vanced Bill to third. Colonel leaned against
the ball for single-and Bill came home.
amid the shrieks of the fans.
'One run! One man out!' said tho scorer.
Hollis reached first on balls.
Jones to bat. and HARDWOOD on deck!'
called the scorer.
Jones walked to the plate. Brent select
ed his stick. A bad tumble gave Jones his
life. and advanced each man a bag. The
bases were ful-Colonel on third. Hollis on
second, Jones on first. Harwood stepped to
the plate. He was a safe batter, but never
hard hftter-he was too light besides
phenomenal pitchers do not, a rule, bat
well. But this was Harwood's lucky day.
The first ball pitched came at him like
rifle bullet, exactly where he wanted IT, and
the parson raped with all his might. 1t
started on a low incline, rising as 1t sailed,
passed over the heads of the felders who
had edged in, struck the ground far back
of them and rolled and rolled as though
it couldn't stop.
Then Harwood made his first. last, only
home run. To this good day he does not
know how he did it. When he came putting
and painting across the plate the Gallias be-
came a cyclone. which filled the air with
hats. coats. canes and umbrellas. A loco
motive whistle would have been drowned in
the hubbub. The grand stand and the
bleachers Joined hands and carried Har-
wood on their shoulders. And Harwood
grinned.
AS chronicle of sport the game after
ward was quite too one-sided to be inter-
esting But Galla City sat watching 1t,
gorged almost drunken with JOY No
game could be too one-sided for the Gal
lians. They owed Centerport much. you
see! What did they care for close scores
and fine points? Every one Of the forty
of Gallia was to them an increment Of un-
alleged bliss, and as such hailed with tu-
multi and shouting
The Centerports! They played like old
women, and were trampled into the earth.
Their two poor runs were earned by the
rankest errors and gave no sort of COM
fort Their glory had departed along with
worse. And they laid 1t all on that
blamed little parson," as the captain said
sententiousy that night. "Gallias! Moth
in. The Centerports can wallop them
easy"
Thenceforth Parson Harwood was Gallia
City's idol. There were exceptions, 1t
is true-people who were scandalized by
the bare thought of a minister play
ing base ball. They made him ali the
trouble they could, but that is outside this
story. He had won the mass of citizens
and could do what he pleased, and have
whatever he would take that lay within
their gift. The church no longer lacked a
congregation 1--WE went to see the little
preacher pitch" said the people Now we
must go to hear the little pitcher preach"
Everybody went. All sorts and conditions
of men and creeds squeezed into the pews
and even sat upon the pulpit steps and
overlooked the choir loft.
Do you ask the sum and resultant of all
this enthusiasm? Better ask the mothers
of Gallia C1ty-mothers whose sons are
good citizens because Brent Harwood came
to Galia and played ball with them For
there has reigned a new era in Gallia City
ever since the day her nine defeated Cen
terport. Perhaps 1t would be more accu-
rate to say the new era began upon that
night when Brent HARDWOOD made the nine
promise to be gentlemen If ever fate
takes you to Gallia City do not forget to
ask about the little preacher who
pitched You will be sure to hear that no
evangelist has ever converted SO manv men