The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-03-23
From the New York World.

EZN INGLED with the stories from E\ph Memphis of Mike Donlln breaking of training rules, sus- pension by Manager McGraw Of the Champion Giants, apology to the man ager and his reinstatement come reports that the Giants sensational batsman, the man who scored more runs last sea- son than any player in the big leagues was second to Cy Seymour in base hits with 216 to 219 for the Red Log and who made the two longest hits ever seen on the Polo Grounds is cloutlng the ball around the Memphis lot with midsummer vigor
 No ball player in the country, with the possible exception of John McGraw, has been more in the limelight since the close of last season than Mike Donlin, the idol of the New York fans. His out breaks are to be regretted for more req sons than one Several times this win ter the statement has been made that Donlin should be barred from the pro- fessionaI ranks because of his habits. This severe comment however, always emanates from other cities where the critics would be happy if the Giants for any reason whatever were deprived of the services of the greatest slugger of the team.
 Whether it is right or wrong, fully 80 per cent of the good ball players now before the public are drinking men, and this applies to those who have seen more than ten years service as well as to the younger players.
 There are statesmen, financiers and merchants, past the seventy mark, in never tasted liquor. and there are men just as well preserved past three score and ten who have never neglected the evening booze and the morning nip. Just as we'll are there active ball play CTS, past forty, who have been total ab- stainers all their lives and others who have consumed their fun share of beer, wine. liquors and cigars"
 One of the leading managers now be fore the public recently remarked to one of his players 'I would rather have on my team rummy who can bat .350 than a Father Matthew who hits around the 100 mark" The same manager made reference to Abraham Lincolns famous remark when told that General Grant was a whisky thinker, "I wish he would tell me where he gets his whisky. l would generals
 A western manager, wise in his gen eration, recently framed a rule for his players to the effect that any man caught drinking before d game would be fined s5 for each drink. The astute manager said nothing about after a game.
 On this point John Montgomery Ward, who was for seventeen years a profess sional baseball player of the first rank. one of the most intelligent men that ever played the game as professional or ama- teur, and now successful lawyer with d large practice, once said: Baseball makes such demands on the nervous en- ergies that most men really need some thing quieting after hard-fought strug- gle. There is always more or less said and written about what is called dissipa- ton among players, but it is principally commented upon in connection with los- ing teams. As matter of fact there IS very little real dissipation among pro fessionals, and what there is IS oy no means confined to the tailenders.
 
 What was so in Wards day IS douoiy so today And. further. experienced man agers will tell you that as many young