Evening star., 1901-10-25
BALL DELEGATES MEET In new YORK
Women's Golf Association Tourney
at Philadelphia.
PORTS IN GEN AL

| idhth tHSiits ~tWo VI tlic DeSl 1ueIt LII Lie
4 ranks of the National League, and is after
4 fifteen more of equal magnitude. This
much the fans know already, but the fan
does not exist who is not deeply puzzled
over the fact that the National League
| magnates allowed these men to get away
| with hardly an effort to restrain them.
! Not three men in the whole procession
! would have jumped to the Johnson fold
\ had their former employers met the raises
! offered by the American. With some little
| show of ill-feeling but without the offer of
| a dollar to stem the tide, the owners of the
Philadelphia club stood calmly by and al
! lowed their team to be wrecked nine men
! out of sixteen passing from their control
and including in the lot such men as Del
ahanty, Mcfarland, Orth and Woverton.
The owners of the St. Louis club did not
even make howl while the bone and
sinew of the Cardinal nine was being lifted
| The Robisons did not say as much as boo
did not come within $500 of any of the
prices offered by the enemy, and allowed
their heaviest batsmen and finest fielders
to go over in body. Even Jim Hart, much
as he would like to retain Hartsel. Hughes
and Green, has given no sign of heart
breaking eagerness to meet their vast de-
checked desertions to the American
League. and hence. too, the stupefaction Of
the ball cranks the country over.
National League Passive.
'It does not seem probable that National
League club owners. already stung severe
ly by the American League invasion.
would stand calmly by while such giants
as Delehanty and Burkett were being
stolen. Almost any fan would expect to
see them dig into their jeans for the ex-
ira money rather than tamely pass these
men over to the opposition. Yet the Ma
tional people stand still, make no efforts
at offensive warfare. and allow the sack
of teams to go on unhfndered.
'If any fan imagines that the concerted
silence and passiveness of the National
League is either a confession of helpless
ness or of miserly shert-sightedness, he is
missing the mark by seven stadia. The
National League is working one of the
largest, coolest and nerviest games it has
attempted in all it's long career. 1t pro-
poses to adopt the policy of non-resist-
ance-and to let the American bump it's
own head upon the rocks of financial sor-
rCw.
Don't see the players demands for a
minute Let them CO. That is the
National League watchword at the pres
ent hour, and while the JohnSoniteS are
falling over themselves to offer the stars
huge salaries. the National crowd is get
ting ready for money-saying season
Straw bidding, too, is going on briskly be-
tween magnates and players Every man
who has been offered $1,000 by the Ameri-
can has received an offer of something
like $3.50 from the National In cases
where the man is known to be avaricious,
as much as So, 100 has been offered. The
greedy player thereupon HES him to the
American League, tells of the raise, and
gets 5000. Then the National, smiling,
lets him go.
THE idea is one of the simplest imagi-
nable. If the National can force up the
prices. without ever accepting any Of the
exorbitant terms, the American VIII take
the field loaded down with high-salaried
players while the National retaining good
H. &c. L..
nevertheless, have far the cheaper teams.
Add to this the difference in admission
prices and the plot Of the willy old National
is as plain as day.
Just why Rogers and Robson stood placid
ly and let their men pass from their hands.
Salaries Purpose1y Doomed.
1.-The American, with the straw bidding
and silent competition-inflated as a gas
bag less real than a vapor, and yet effec-
tive-gong steadily on, can do nothing but
give the stars their swollen figures. Teams
that cost $4,000 to run in 1901 will cost
$50, 600 in 19o2-and a 25-cent admission to
pay the piper. The National teams. which
averaged about $4,000 this year, will be as
low as $4,000 next season-and 50-cent ad-
missions to make good with. 1t is to the
interest of the National to let the Ameri-
can have seven costly teams full Of stars,
and to cripple but one club-that at Boston,
where the crowd has forsaken Soden's
gang for keeps. That club, accordingly,
has already been Sorely Stung by taking
Parent and Winters for Cincinnati where
there is no competition and it is to the
Nationals interest to have winning nine.
IF each American League club is
swelled up to cost of sS5,OO0 for next
season-S6S0, 900 for the lott will take
2,T20O 900 25-cent admissions to square the
bills. If each National League team costs
but $4,000. or $580,O00 for the bunch, it
will take but I.120,o00 50-cent admissions
to make good.
''If consolidation on peaceful terms can
be arranged this winter. the old National
is willing. If not. the National will let
the American whack against the stones
which wrecked the Players League-high-
priced teams of overpaid stars, internal
| jealeusies and lack of admission receipts
| The American talks of making good by
going up to the National prices. The mo-
ment that is done the crowds Will begin to
| divide their favors, to the advantage of
| the Nationals, for the cheap rate attracted
many thousands of the Nationals custom
ers away from the older body last sum-
mer.
| I'm a nutshell, then, the policy of the
! National League this winter win be: Let
| the other fellow buy"
What Knowing Ones Say.
| The Importance of the above article lies
! In the fact that it is inspired. President
| James A. Hart of the Chicago club evil
| IDENTIFY being the person quoted. To per-
l
ness the statements made therein have q
plausible look. but the knowing ones say
| there are flaws observable In almost every
paragraph.
In the first place. the enemies of the
American League have never charged
1 President Johnson and his followers with
being stupid business men, quite the con-
contrary. Magnates Manning. Comskey
Mack. Stallings and McGraw are not mil
lionaires and why should they take chances
\ of losing their savings Of lifetime unless
| everything favored their efforts? These
| magnates are all good housekeepers and
Will save on an average OF $1000o a.
season where the National League people
will lose through extravaganza. And then
| to bring up the poor. mlsmanaged brother
hood movement as precedent! 1t would
| be hard to see where the two bodies COM
| pare in the smallest degree. But even the
] brotherhood had the big league whipped to
standstiH in 1880 and the liberal-minded
| magnates will confess this
| As to the salary lists the writer of the
above has inflated the figures to almost
double their actual amount A salary list
| OF $4,000 is something extraordinary and
Ia an.tt,f al ,hoft,