The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1901-01-06

r''+t a IIollllt Nttl'r ana pubic speaker.
lie never managed to put anything so wei
and concisely. and Lit the nail 50 fairly IN
the head. as when he said:
There IL nothing 50 urariSomr
md n~nuscniing M 10 he Obliged 10
perIsrfuaIiy discuss some ALLEGED
probability which has no possible
chance Ia occur
Mr.BryaHs episrafnmatic settlement Of the
matter applies with sreat force to the pres
Ont endless. fuiilc. puerIic and ode ST e
journalistic discussion OF ALLEGED. prl,osed
rumorei and imagined baseball league,
baseball nights. IIgIl baseball f,vpz T.,
which men Of small personality and Soma.
what erroneous conception 81 their own
ruht:c value continuously ICurr.
Thc baseball editor 81 Tine RspublIc does
not believe that people WHO pair5uiZc and
~" interested III the game care "a whoUp in
ft"dcs about the rival leagues. rival Guns
rival carpetbagEers and rival idiots vbn al
present mdnag" 10 fill 50 much space in
usually woil-cOnducted newspapers. In t1"
player ami III the same. perhaps. many per
ms take a great deal Of interest. That mis-
interest Is ,Iccayins thsr" Is not any dornf.
It's decay has been attributed to the omen
SlVe public self-assertion of these league
builders. so-,alici inaEnatcs.
The sporting editor does not acree with
those wno hold this view of the affair Trr
phhlc mas never taken enough interest IN
the bulldiIg Of leagues. big or small. In the
game 20 become even disgusted with them
IL Is Tar more probable that horse racing
Is. TO a. greater extent, RESPONSIBLE. for no
decay Of public interest in has. han tbao
anything else. Wild winter shriekiuy 0f a
81 OF lnconsequental owners or clubs en-
nave ncthing 10 do with il. The actions ~
these men have no effect upon the nrhIir
nllnd. ior the men are not of any public ac-
Ii is n very great pity that otherwise VOL
conducted sporting apartments Of the great
journals OF America should deem IL exnaJf-
en- 10 publish a lot of twaddle about The
HEnt bet Wasn this ra.uHa. ..V "
trouble between MIR. Pinhead of the Oshknsh
cluD and MI. BiEchcst of the FIapdooJe
ieasug. 1t Is especially a pity when it is
matter Know full well that IT IS rot aud
~i"dudle. OF interest To no one. and nor read
by any one save a small minority OF trc
90 hdil players who belong 10 the yarious
leagues of the United States.
LAST year the metropolitan newsDapers
~ Anerlca spent more than $1,000 col
Itctlns. colat4ng. setting and printing ana
SIrculating the news Of the moribuud Amer
ican Association. which every newspaper
HAN Knew never had a chance t. opelaie.
Iiau inns SlVO.Vy been I'm the hands of the
Ithhliess organizers Of the league they
might have been able to do business r,
Touid nave paid the publishers Of the
United states to give the stillborn
American Association S75.Ocl not TO starr
WORK. TO call At off at the beginning as T.
mere; bHt tht publishers paid slt0.Vo0 for
IEe privilege OF discussing something which
never had a chance TO exist. and which vs.
hot at any period Of any moment. nor OF
III shS AAfSA plblt interest DaVnOd fvIor
CouId nave been satisfied in a dozen lines
Ihls year. with rival leagues. the publish-
e 81. seem bound to stand for the same
hold up" In fact. they have been .soaked'
lor n large part of IL already.
Last year The Republic saved some tan
or sfD By refusing to print the tw1dJIe
about the alleged Organization of The -
American Association. IL is going 10 ave
mat much this season by refusing TO print
any of the fake news now being r,,shad
around about fake magn4taG f.H. t.-.-
take nights and fake ideas OF fake perSonai
importance. In the player. the performer,
the people have some interest. In the
people The Republic has a large interest
sporting writers are prone to abuse these
camp followers of baseball for monopoIizing
100 mEeh space In the public prints. Yet
significant cumbererS Of the diamonds sur-
FACE 10 monopolize space that is worth
money?
The sporting writer's have at hand the
means 10 prevent these small fry Of base
ball from crawling out Of their holes and
playing on the sand OF the base lines Under
the welcome warmth of the public eve.
Ihey should apply them. The sporting
of America constitute the most DOW
erful force In baseball. They can choke the
space-devourfng poseurs of the game, the
coffee coolers of the diamond, in a minute.
1t would be a good job and no trouble at
all to do IL. Winter baseball is at best.
players and all. a very tame matter
for discussion. There was a cay when there
was but one sport in America-baseosll. II
was the game in season and out of season.
sports are becoming seaSonabIe,
There are hunting, coursing. shooting, foot
ball and ~otherfall and winter sports TO take
the place OF baseball. Give the old summer
a rest. 1t needs 1t.
There is much more money invested in
tracks than in professional baseball.
Last year in Chicago, New York, ST. Louis
and everywhere else the two sports came
into competition, racing outdrew baseball
three to one without an effort. Yet owners
of race tracks do not find IL necessary to
spend the winter calling each other names
and telling reporters what they are going
summer. They do not need to boost"
their game that way. Yet It thrives and
Just the same. Mr.. Keene. Mr..
MIR. Dwyer. Mr.. Croker. Mr.
Hankins, Mir. Lucas. Mr.. TITLES. Mr.. Mont !
gomery, Prince POnitaowski. Mr.. Wilkins
and other owners of large race track prop
at any season of the year. Their exc cu:iye
receive scant attention from the
press. Yet three people go to see their
game where one goes to see the game Of the
anto-assertive baseball "macnatss" who are
so clamorous for advertising. as they call
II, and who feel that that game cannot get
along without 1t
There il also more money invested in
golf than in baseball, that is. I'm professional |
Golf has grown in public favor |
baseball has decayed. Yet promoters |
Of golf never sought advertising in such
outre ways as promoters of baseball. But |
the game grew and fOurished apace.
Amateur baseball has not decayed in IA |
vor. There are more men playing baseball
now than there ever were-many more. |
More college nines. more amateur mines, l
more scrub mines and more boys playing !,
''ketch" upon the streets. But there has
been no increase OF professional baseball
among the patrons of professional baseball |
in fifteen years. Why?
There exists no doubt on earth tina the
game as played by professionals is steadily |
,onsideratioE as the public feels justified in
giving it. Not a BIZ more. \
Several years ago, when the Pittsburgs 1
lad the reputation all over the circuit for
being the fairest opponents OF the game
IF baseball as IL was written. they turned
many a trick away from the green diamond !
ocular player. nor even was punished. says
raggartG's Times. One Of the members
If that old aggregation confessed that UNI
Jires were the particular prey Of the oil
'rowd-umpfreS who had not given the team
what ii thought was coming TO II. zone
of getting even with the umpires that
lid not please US was most amusing" said
his player. "tmpires. you know, leave
heir uniforms in Il dressing-room at the
ark when they are officiating in a city.
Well, when an umpire whom We dIslked 4
along We would get some strong lin
ment and pour IL in those portions OF the
that would be most liable To be |
ubbed when the umpire was In actin. 1
Wien the Imminent got I'm its work by be-
4 misery that we players enjoyed i'm
nenSsIy- IT was our revenge The great