Omaha daily bee., 1902-07-13

At the beginning Of the season President
particularly enjoined on them their
duty to enforce the rules and maintain
on the grounds during the game.
the ST. Joseph meeting Of the league
on July 2 the magnates decided that new
should be employed and that
rowdyism must cease. When President
went back to Denver from that
he told the papers there; W
are paying National league salaries and
must have National league ball. Our play
ers must behave" Umpire Swigert began
his connection with the Western league at
Milwaukee on July 8. and from the very
start the Denver team made him a target.
On July 4 he had to declare one game for
feited to Milwaukee because Of wilson's
conduct. and in the second game he had
to fine seven players in order to maintain
peace. On July 5 the Denver team and
swigert came to Omaha, and from the frst
inning Of the FIRST game to the last inning
Of the last. the Grizzlies acted more like
a lot OF hoodlums than any team ever
seen here. Again and again they gathered
around the umpire, heaping on him the
vilest Of abuse. obScenity and verbal Nth,
delaying the progress Of the games and dis
gushing thousands Of patrons who went to
the park in expectation OF seeing a ball
game and we're treated to the spectacle OF
a lot Of hlgh-salaried ball players wrang-
ling like a lot Of drunken fshwives. Their
conduct eliminated in the assault on the
umpire by the manager and his arrest and
removal to the city Jail, The Denver
u~t~-.. 49,, r,au eovs - -vo0 nptfouwOrG
on part Of the Omaha management that
permitted the police to remove Parke Will
son like "a common thug" Wilson acted
like a thug and was arrested like a thug
and The Bee has Manager Rourke's au-
thority for stating that any player who
assaults an umpire on the Omaha diamond
will be treated the same way. It Is base
ball the Omaha people pay for, not hood.
lumism. Umpires may be mobbed In Den
YER, but not In Omaha and we have to put
UP with the same men that go to the home
Of the Grizzlies.
And now comes the most humiliating
spectacle Of the whole affair. President
Sexton, forgetting ali his high sounding
instructions to umpires and his authority
as president Of the league, wires to Presi-
dent Packard asking II he knows any reason
why Parke Wilson should not be suspended
for his conduct. Packard replies that he
does not, but says II Wilson Is fined he
must insist that the umpire be fined, too.
So Sexton dlsmlsses the umpire from the
service OF the league and allows Wilson to
60 unpublished. What a spectacle that is!
The very frst opportunity the president Of
the league has to assert his authority he
quits. Did Ban johnson ask anybody's
permissionsvhen he suspended Clarke Grif-
nth or when he suspended Muggsy McGraw
and Joe Kelley? Or were Hart and Drey-
tus consulted when Tinker and Conroy were
suspended 1t looks on the surface that
Mr.. Sections spinal column IL made OF rub
Der, and a mighty thin strip at that. His
course so far has merely put a premium on
umpire batting and h~oodlumism. What UNI
pire is safe II this is the protection he Is
to have from the president Of the league?
OF course, Denver can III afford to lose the
service Of Parke Wilson. but that Is an
other reason why Wilson should have be-
kaved himself. AS 1t lie, he should be pun
ished severely. and would be II the league
had a head worthy Of the name
It Is not impossible to secure good um-
pires. Other leagues have them and the
Western ought to have them. Here II
Omaha Is a man who has shown his fitness
for the position In every way, but his serv.
Ices are only asked In emergencies. Bucl
Keith knows the game in all its raminca.
lions, knows players and knows how to ge
along with them. Yet he is only allowet
TO act when one of Mr.. Sections misfti
fails to show up or is disqualified. VIII!
doesn't Sexton give Keith a place on tn
regular staff? Buck would be a hit will
his work all around the circuit. A goo,
umpire is well worth his price to an,
league, and the Western ought not to let
few dollars stand between It and a com
petent umpire.
1t Is not only In the Western that tn
umpire has his troubles. In the America,
league Bobby Carruthers we thought 8
much Of last year is being denounced as in
competent because he put Collins out Of tn
game. In the Hickey league Ward. our oil
friend Piggy" IL being called all name
Of names. and SO It goes. But Johnso
and Hickey give their umplres protection
and Sexton can well follow their example.
Signs of the smash In the Hickey leagu
; are becoming more and more numerous
Crowds have not got to the paying mar
In any city. save Louisville. Columbus
team has taken a slump, owing to dissips
tion and Jumping. and the people are dis
gusted with the OUTFIT. st. PauPs teal
made eleven errors in Thursdays game
. Minneapolis, which is q good indication
the feeling there. Players are desertin
8 the teams almost daily. and 1t begins I
look like the end is not far away. Fox
George Tebeau will land on his feet a
: right when the smash occurs, but the rel
OF the magnates are hopelessiy involved
the certain disaster.
1t cannot be said that the National leagv
> is much the gamer by the acquisition
. Muggsy McGraw OF all the out-for-tht
stun players In the country. MeGraw is
: the head. He has not shown any e
. pecial managerial ability. He was q fai
ure at st. Louis last year. and at BaltimoI
I this year, and II he doesn't prove a go
brick for Andy Freedman II will be Il
most remarkable reversal Of form on recor
( And he certainly will have to deliver Il
goods now. He cannot hand the "cS
: talk to Freedman as he did to the RoI
49, - - -