The Washington times., 1906-08-19
Champion Pool Player in
Every Way Credit to
the Game.
WHY HE FORFEITED TITLE
Was Under Contract in St. Louis and
Knew it Wouldn't Be Square.
Romantic Career.

world pool champion, Is losing MS
sight recalls perhaps the most famous
character of the cue world
A well-known cue expert OF Baltimore
gives a few "reminiscences of the man
who for over fourteen years held the
pool championship, and who was praCu-
cally robbed OF it while bound hand
and foot" by a contract which gave him
no opportunity to play the match on a
championship basis
1T was De Oros intention TO chal-
lange HoTgau, the present holder OF the
title. for a match this winter, but the
astigmatism which has Inflicted his
eyes makes II improbable that he viii
ever be able To play the game again. "
said the local man.
Wonderful Vitality.
DE ORC. who is forty-two ycars Old
is perhaps one OF the most wonderful o
men i'm Other ways. He has Deen under
the surgeons knife probably more times
than any other person living. and has
had organ after organ removed. until
na is ROW really but half a man. In one
of the operations lung was removed
while iu another a kidney was taken
out The other operations are 200
varied 10 mention.
'It was several years ago, during his
illness consequent upon the removal of
his kidney, that he lost the pool title
t1r two months 20 Clearwater. Clear
wafer challenged De ORC while he was
recovering from the operation, The rules
force % championship match 10 be play
cd Within forty days after the chal-
leuga. and Dc ORC was hardly out Of
bed at th, time named so he was com
PEELED 20 forfeit He played Clearwater
just twenty days after the challenge
had czWred. and won the title back.
Forfeited Title.
The last time he lost the champion
snip was i'm November last when he
was challenged by Hueston. AT that
time DE orc was under contract in a
81 Louis pool room 10 give exhibitions
lie was getting large salary. and
could not afford 10 take up Hueston $
challenge, as the game would have had
To- Doe played in another city. for De
Dv0 knew he would not gea square
Deal i'm ST. Louis.
Rather than play under such cir
ogustauees,' he wrote 10 HuesJon, L will
forfeit.
Ills contract was not up until last
March. when be became a free lance.
Meanwhile IIorgan challenged and de-
I.IJtd Huest0u, and DE orc had planned
go play HoFrau and win back the ttle
This ralL This he probably will never
do
Was Born Rich.
''pe Dro was born in Cuba His
father was "a wealthy sugar planter,
who had never been known to handle q
cue in his life. Alfred began playing the
game later In life than any other great
pool player. Generally the start is
made between ten and fourteen years of
age; but De Oro was a boy of seventeen
before he ever thought OF the game. He
played for TWO years in Havana, and at
The age OF nineteen went 10 New York
10 develop his evident skill in the game.
He chad hardly been there three months be
fore prophecies were made that he would
capture the championship. He showed
wonderful form Ia his play in the early
days with Reogh, Eby, Sherman, Pow
srs. Frye (from whom he won the cham
plonship I'm lSD and Manning.
During the Spanish oppression both
the elder De ORC and Alfred lost large
sums of money, which they had given 70
aid Cuba in her efforts for freedom, and
in the end the entire De ORC fortune was
swept away. De orc was then com
PEELED to play for gate stakes to make
a living; but in all his games he has
been known as clean, fair player.
Probably no player ever lived who
played such a perfectly scientific game.
He was at all times cool and nervy and
knew more about combination. or in
side, shots than any other man who
ever played the game.
UndisPuted Champion.
Another wonderful feature of his
playing is that he has had deformed
hand from birth. The left hand is
much smaller than the right, and it ap-
pears Impossible to rest a cue upon IL
with amy accuracy, yet this is what De
ORC learned TO accomplish. 1t was in
1891. at Syracuse. \ Y that De Oro
defeated Frye Overwhelmingly. Frye
then held a clean bin TO the worlds title.
and De Oro's position was never ques-
toned.
"pe Oro has during the past few
years saved a snug sum, for he was the
best money-Winner in the business,
drawing larger receipts than any other
PLAYER known. As an illustration of his
Cooluess and nerve, the following story
of his match with keOgh in St Louis
10 go while De ORC had 50. He made a
safety combination and won out, after
making KeOEh scratch ana go into the
pocket Keogh later challenged De Orc
for "a $500 side bet the championship and
The gate money For the nrSt 900 balls
in was nip and tuck, but in the second
De Oro won out, go 20 800,
Sincere Regrets.
DE GRO was known throughout the
entire country, as he had played In near
lv every city He played in Baltimore
during December OF 1895. when Johnnie
Klein defeated him 20 20 So In handicap
match DE orc. however. was play
ing Klein 100 TO i0
The anuounceme IT OF the CUBAN s
blindness is received with regret by the
entire pool world, for, as well-known
Io0Iist remarked several years ago Of
DE ORC. He is a gentleman as We'll as a
professional pool player. II We nae
several mole of his caEber in the sport
ing world 10 would not be regarded
slightlncly as IL Is today.
WEDDERBURN RYE
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