Los Angeles herald., 1906-07-08
DAD CLARKE IS
WESTERN UMPIRE
MOST ECCENTRIC HUM0RIST
OF BASEBALL
Chased Heavy Hitting Dan Brouthers
Around Bases After Great Stick
man Had Torn Cover OF
the Ball

"If II is really a fact that Dad
Clarke, the one-time eccentric pitcher
Of the New York Giants, has been ap-
pointed a Western league umpire, as
the press reports declare, then look out
for some sensational things" said the
old time eastern fan" yesterday.
dad can always he depended upon
to perform. He was the most eCCen-
trio, though unconscious, humorist that
the major league ever produced.
With a Chuck Connors vocabulary,
a peppery temper and the obstinacy of
an army mule he was the bane of the
managers life. but source of JOY to
his fellow players. He had a drop ball,
though, that was sure a 'beaut, and a
rafting good baseball head. But his
contrariness and eccentric conduct
often marred his work
II remember an occasion once at
New Orleans when Clarke was south
was Anson on the spring training trip.
Clarke was then a young pitcher, and
Anson was coaching him by advising
just what kind of balls to throw to
the batsmen.
THE New Orleans team that year
was a corker, and 1t was winning from
Anson's men. Still, there was plenty of
chance for the major leaguers to over
come the Crescent City clubs lead If
only Clarke would obey Ansons in
structions.
"But this happened to be one of his
cranky days. and whenever Cap An
son suggested what to pitch Dad
would deliberately throw a different
kind of a ball.
consequently Anson and Dad We're
raging one another all through the
or inning
with two men out, two on bases and
with New Orleans at the bat and two
runs ahead, Anson signaled to Clarke
to throw a drop ball to the batsman,
who had two strikes already on him
and no balls.
What did Clarke do but send up a
straight ball of such a moderate speed
that a child could have banged it out;
and bang it the batsman did, too. AS
he did so AnSon, who was catching,
started with a wild war-whoop for
Clarke. and Dad made for the center
field fence and just had barely enough
leisure to scramble up the ladder and
drop on the other side of the structure
in time to save his head from the
shower of rocks that Cap hurled at
him.
Makes Runs of Clarke
Another time In a game at New
York when Clarke was pitching, big
Dan Brouthers, three times champion
batter of the league. and the heaviest
sticker that ever played in the Ma
tional league, made two home runs.
triple and two two-baggers off Clarke.
The last hit was triple, and as Dan
started around the bases. Clarke-hs
eyes filled with tears his features con-
vulsed with anger and his fists cinched
started around the bases after
Brouthers, yelling all the time like a
crazy man. Hi, dere you big blankety,
blankety, blank lobster!' screamed
Dad What tell you mean, you
blankety, blank dog robber, by trying
to put young pitchers out of the busi-
ness?'
pete Browning, without doubt the
longest distance batter who ever
handled a bat, was another eccentric
player on the Clarke order. He played
the outfield for the Louisville and
Cleveland teams and was a heavy
hitter of the AL class.
HE always spoke of himself as if he
were talking to someone else. He was
the originator of the slang term
'bingie' for hit; and if you should
happen to meet him after the game he
would get off something like this:
Say, old Pete got three bingles to-
field fence, too. l tell you old Pete
can bang EN- out, can't he, boy? Old
Pete's keeping carpenter busy
patching up the holes in the fence
where his bingles go through
This was his usual style of conVersa-
ton, and the chances are that he
couldn't tell you which side won the
game, for his whole mind was centered
on the batting achievements of old
Pete
But he was, in fact, a mighty swat
ter. Give him low ball, just about
his shoe tops, and if it was on the old
Louisville ball grounds-which were a
little short of being an Indian rubber
surfaCe-that ball would come pretty
near tearing off a plank after Pete
landed on it.
Crane Tells Story
ED Crane the crack Boston twirler,
used to tell funny instance of an
experience he had when his team was
playing in Cincinnati
"In that city a famous section,
wherein are located the Germans and a
countless number of beer saloons, is
called over the Rhine Every one who
goes to Cincinnati generally takes a
chance at over the Rhine So did Ed
Crane and his companions on their first
t,.ir tn thn EO,aau C'it1y Of ha