The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1905-04-03
English Claim il is Derived IRON
the Game "ROunderS"
WHAT CHADWICK SAYS
FATHER OF THE GAME" EN-.
DoRSEs ENGLISH coNTEN-
TON, BUT AMERicANS
DISPUTE 1T.

\ city, September, % 1875, al which
time the first playing rules of the
4 game were formatel and published
4 by that club.
There seems to be conflict of opin-
! ion as to the origin of baseball. II is
! thought the game has arrived at an
| age and at point in its development
when this mooted question should be
/ settled in some comprehensive and
authoritative way and for all time.
/ Some authorities. notably Mr.
Henry Chadwick. claim that baseball
Ii of English origin and was a direct
descendant of ten old English juvenile
pastime called "Rounders," while 9th
ers claim that il was entirely of
American origin ana had nothing
whatever to do with FOUNDERS or any
other foreign game.
While It is conceded that Mr. Chad.
wick's Rounder theory Is entitled to
much weight because of his long con.
neetion with baseball and the magni!i-
cent work he has done in the upbuild
\ ing Of the game for upward of fifty
! years, yet others unwilling longer 10
accept his Rounder theory without
something more convincing than his
oftrepeated assertion that baseball
did originate from Founders"
For the purpose of settling this
question a challenge has been issued
the Grand Old Man of baseball to
produce his proofs and demonstrate in
some tangible way, II he can. that our
national game derived its origin from
Founders.
Mr.. Chadwick. who, by tAe way. is
of English birth, and was probably
rocked in a Founders" cradle, says,
in support of his theory. that there
is but one field game now in vogue on
this continent which Is strictly Ameri-
can In its origin, and that one is the
old Indian game of Lacrosse. now
known as the Canadian national game.
Baseball originated from the old Eng
fish schoolboy game of Founders, as
plainly shown by the fact that the
basic principle of both games is the
field use of bat, ball and bases"
As a matter of fact investigation
and research - far inelines to the
opinion chat baseball did have its
origin in the old colonial game of
One Old Cat" Zone Old Cat was
played by three hoys--a throwep,
catcher and batsman. The latter af-
ter striking the ball, ran to goal
about thirty feet distant, and by re-
turning to the batsman's position
without being put out. counted one
run or tally" -Four Old Cat" re-
quired four throwers, alternating as
catchers, and four batsmen, the ball
being passed from one corner to the
next around the square field. Indi-
yidual scores or tallies we're credited
to the batsman making the hit and
running from one corner to the next.
Some ingenious American lad ma.
turally suggested that one thrower be
placed in the center of the square
which brought nine players into the
game, and which also made it possible
to change the game into teams or
sides, one side fielding and the other
side battling This was for many years
known as the old game of Town ball"
from which the present game of base.
ball may have had its origin.
One prominent baseball writer
claims that he can prove that one of
the founders Of the old Knickebocker
club came onto the field one day in
the early forties with the original
game of baseball worked out and de-
scribed on sheet Of paper, and that
this game was tried and liked so well
that the game was adopted then and
there, and the Knickebocker club was
organized TO put IL into effect.
If such an ancestry can be estab-
lished for baseball every American
friend of the game will be delighted.
While "One Old Cat" or Town
BALI may not rank much higher in
the ancestral scale than Founders"
yet they strongly appeal to the lover
'of our national sport as distictively
American games,
In looking over the early history
of baseball the names of eleven New
York gentlemen who were the found.
ers of the original knickerbocker club
have been found, names that should
be honored and remembered as the
founders OF our national game by the
million baseball players Of the pres
ent day. They are as follows: Col.
James Lee. DR.. Ransom. Abraham
Tucker, James Fisher, W. Vail, Alex.
ander j. Cartrlght. VIM. II. Wheaton,
Duncan F. Curry, e. r. Dupignac Jr..
VIM. H. Tucker and Daniel L. Adams.
Are not some of these gentlemen
still living? Or possibly some OF their
heirs might throw some hight on the
early history and especially the origin
of baseball.
In order to gather this information
1t has been suggested that Mr.. James
f. Sullivan. president Of the American
Sports Publishing company, Is War
rem street. New York City, take the
initiative in the work Of collecting all
possible facts. proofs. interviews, etc,