The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-04-01
IN IN PlNG. ! O. GRIP
81
The Game Has: Fascinated Many:
3. Well-Known .Minneapolitans..
A. SUDDEN RISE TO POPULARITY
= j.



they've all got ping-pong going from morn
to night whenever they're at leisure.E By
THIS 1t is meant to say that the game
which: started out with all the hallmarks
Of a fad. seems toS have come to- stay
for quite while at least in Minneapo-
lis. fs.S ~ :.
1t is becoming the thingenot only in the.
draWing-rooms of the swagger set, but
in the clubrooms, hotels, and other places
where people congregate:
f1Fhe SameeWas' little late in striking
Minneapolis, but it has more than made
up for lost time. A month: zort. soy ago
there was scarcely a ping-pong set in
a C tive service in Minneapolis. 4. NpWsthes
dealers are unable to keep up, WITH the
at, least one contracting firm shas found
it an object Ito manufaGh1ressspi ping pong
sets for the local markets, Last week
this firm turned out fifteen .sets and a.
special force OF men are busy hammering1
out more tables this week. sd
Among the popular downtown pings
pong parlors are those at the West Hotel
and the Minneapolis club. The hotel and
club are each provided with two tables,s1
and the plaintive ping pong ofsthe balls
as they strike thet]racket ior table keeps
up steady monotone the livelong day.
not to speak of the night.
When a man like Lac Stafford yields
to the fascination of the game and fairly
haunts one Of the tables, there must be-
something peculiarly IA ttractiTe about it,
1t was in a Joking mood that Addisons
w. Bronson, manager Of the West; sug-s
gested to Mr.. Stafford soon after the
tables were installed. a week ago, that,
they have a game. In a. moment Of
weakness, Nj. Stafford yielded. That was
at 4 o'clock p. m. Mr.. Stafford soon beT
gan to get the hang Of the thing and
countered so. skillfuliy with both right:
and eleft that his more experienced ad-,
versary had much ado to keep pace with
his pupil AS Mr. Stafford became morel
and more absorbed in%,the game, he bera
gan to- remove his wearing apparel until
coat, vest, collar and cuffs We're thrown
aside and he bent to hiss work in earnest.
He took no account Of time. Thus the
hours glided by. TIE late afternoon
shadows grew steadily. longer and finally
daylight faded into. darkness: When the
electric lights shed their effnfgent glow
over the tables, MIR. Stafford still played
on. Some one ANNOUNCED that dinner wasS
served, but he. heard it not, At g. O'CLOCK
two games of ping pong were an full blast.
and no one wanted to stop A.
Then Mr. Bronson arose, rto the oc-4
casion and had dinner served, In the clubs
room and the players managed OCCASIONAL
ly to snatch bite to eat, but tended
Stedully 10 Lu6lf .SsAC-Io y
in the morning they were still at it,
though almost ready, to drop from ex-i
haustion. Some one finally took pity on
them and compelled al cessation Of hos-s
tilities by turning off the lights. "a
This instance is cited simply to show.
what a power ping-pong wields over it's
victims once it has caught it's yielding
prey. - - = :, :.
Mr.. Bronson now has large class
hi doll ,+o1o ND 4
coming ON rapidly. He expects to- have.
Mr.. Stafford In championship form in an
other week and will then match him with
any local heavyweight in, the game. g
The tables are provided with both wood
en- and drum-head ,raokets. Mr.. Bron7tt
son says the wooden rackets are the cor
rect thing, and he knows, for he saw, ping
pong as it is Played at the Waldorf AS
toria during recent trip asst. or 4
The winning game is, played by driving:
steadily at ones opponent so. as to keep
him side-stepping lively and by serving,
the balls as low over the net
as possible. In serving the balls:
to the greatest advantage, j. the cons
slant aim should be to put them as near
as possible to the edge of the, table,:
which makes their return much more
difficult than If they are. bounced we'll
up in the, courts, when, as in tennis. the.
skilful player can invariably smash them
out of the reach Of his opponent. 81
! Better results are: 4 alsot,l attained by
standing we'll back from the table, po-
sition which enables player to cover
more ground and to return with greater
facility. Generally speaking, the fine
points of tennis can be applied with
equal advantage to ping-pong.
Such fast players have been; developed
here already that there is talk of or
ganizing ping-pongt league. A ping
pong tournament will be one of the, at
fractions of the Immediate future at
the Minikahda club.
Perhaps the three cleverest players In
the city are H. J. Moreton, DR.. Paul Hig
bee and Frank Heffelfnger. Mr.. More
ton is said to have acquired. back
handed stroke which completely battles
his opponents.
Other players are Billy Morse, sewell
Andrews, DR.. Mercer, Dave Chute, George
H. Partridge. Phil Brooks, H. ]. Burton,
Ward Burton, I. l.. Corse, Lou Newell,
Dan Raymond, G: IT Jaffray, Denman
Johnson, Burt Fairchild, Bert Strong, c.
D. velie John w. See, John Atwater, DR..
Holmes and ALT Pillsbury. IA
It is noteworthy that ping pong has
been quite generally taken up by mem-
bers of the golhng fraternity.