The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-02-03

teacher. q Miss Emma Keller. for many
years teacher i'm public school No. 20,
on Gates aveue Brooklyn. She declared
thst he would never amount to much:
and would. beyond a doubt become a
worthless vaSa bond. As a prophet she
as later events have proved SAYS the
Sporting Life. was rank bush Lacquer
for the same little chap turned out TO
bo one OF the most scientific batsmen
baseball has ever produced, and today
he is not only a wealthy man, but a
respected citizen.
Teacher and Pupil.
II am very sorry to acknowledge"
declared Miss Keller to the youngstcr
on this particular occasion. that you
arc a namesake OF mine but I am.
however thankful To know that you are
rot OF my kin. You ought to be
ashamed Of yourself to say that the
rhinoceros. an animal. the hide of
which cannot be pierced by a bullet. is
noted for its fine feathers. a boy who
pays no moro attention to mis- studies
than you will never amount to much
when he gets 10 he man. l also wish
to add" concluded Miss Keller who
was a strict disciplinarin that / shall
no longer tolerate the bringing of base
ball bats into this school room. If you
do not stop the practice l shall send
YOU TO the principal"
The lad who was being dressed down
I'm such scathing manner before
roomful of giggling scholars sat serene
~ i'm his seat. His coat pockets we're
bullying out baseball i'm each of them.
lie only grinned.
WiIIe's Start in Life.
After the teacher had declared herself
her namesake lost no time i'm securing
his release from the school league and,
in the summer of 1890. or thereabouts.
he was holding down third base for the
Crescents at Plainfeld. \. J. II was
the first time Keller had ever per
formed i'm inclosed grounds. He played
in Jersey for a season and then came
nearer home. accepting a job at Flush
ing. a Brooklyn suburb where he as
tonished the natives by the manner I'm
which he stopped hot drives and shot
them over to first with his strong south
wing A minor league in New York
state soon grabbed Keller. He rapidly
developed into a crack outfielder and by
The time he broke into the big circuit at
Baltimore he was a marvel at the bat.
The youngster right at the start out
shone the leagues star Stickers, leading
them all for four consecutive seasons
his record for one year being .416. Many
baseball students declare that Keller
To the contrary notwithstanding. The
great sacrificing he does for the yam
KEGS, IL is claimed, tears his average
all TO pieces.
There were few boys i'm Brooklyn
who had anything on Willie in boxing
He was a clever lad with his dukes. AS
strong as an OK. he could. at wrestling
throw a man twice his weight lie can
still 20 some. too. AT either of these
pastime Had the Brooklyn boy de-
cided to earn his living with his
clenched fists there is no question that
ke could have done so easily. But
Keeler's baseball tendency was born
I'm him and he comes by his wonderful
ability in this line honestly enough
His father chased flies for many years
Not on the ball field, tits true, but
flies. nevertheless, even If they were
chased from the backs of horses that
pulled n street car over the old De
Kaib avenue line. Keller. sr.. was the
Oldest driver. i'm point of service, in the
cOmpany's employ.
An incident.
During his SEMI professional days
Willie played every position on the dia-
r1ond He was a pitcher of rare skill.
4 feat he performed in the box during
those days Is still fresh In the minds of
Long Island Old-time enthusiasts. The
Star-Athletics Of Eagles Nest were
meeting all corners and wiping up the
earth with every team that came their
way. For a whole season these fe'-
lows had never been beaten. Their
pitcher. a. big fellow named Swift. was
unhittable e The Rivals. from the
neighborhOod of Green avenueN and
Broadway. Brooklyn, sent swiftly, as
the pitcher was nicknamed. and his
wonders a challenge. All of Long
Island and half OF Brooklyn turned out
10 see the two teams come together.
The game aroused as much interest in
that section of the state as did the re-
cent worlds series in other parth of
the country. Keller pitched for the
Rivals and won by the score of y 20 0
To this day Willie considers IL the
most gratifying thing he has ever done
in his eventful baseball career.
Times Revenges.
One OF Keelers. classmates witnessed
a game on Washington Heights last
summer and during the contest the lit
tie fellow struck out-the first time in
over n hundred games. The trick was
turned by big Ed Walsh. the conquer
or of the Cubs. AS Keller walked back
10 the bench his face wore that same
grin Of twenty years ago and il re-
minded the spectators of Miss Keel
er's best bet that went wrong
OF the Wee ones schooimates now
traceable, those who laughed at the
teachers cali so many years ago.
not one of them, according to the man
who knew Keller in mis- school days is
earning In a week, what the crack right
fielder Of the New York Americans is
earning IN a single day On Pulaski
street. I'm Brooklyn. between StuyYe-
SAINT and Lewis. where Keller has al
ways lived. most OF the houses in the
block now belong To MIN. The interest
alone on rents from these dwellings
and other Brooklyn property i'm his
name will keep him comfortable for the
rest Of his days.
Keller is unmarried. He lives with
his father in the house where he was
bern thirty-four years ago. and there
is hardly a person in that section Of
the city Of trolleys who does not per-
sonally know the modest little fellow
lTTEL LOOKS LIKE WINNER.
noohozfcr E'oh rrbo~o l. ,,.o,.,.