Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-07-07
NOTABLE CONTEST
AMONG THE JUNIORS
Defeat of the Scholarly Young
Eagles by the Actives From
Capitol Hill.

Nothing is interesting me so much as
the stories you are publishing Of old base
ball days as they refresh ones memory
and recall events that were great in our
times the statement of Mr.. Louis
Denham, a lifelong resident Of Washington,
to Star reporter.
But In this rehashing of the olden days
of the game you should not overlook that
strong lot of young fellows who played
ball for the glory Of that part of the city
known as the old first ward, and who fol-
lowed banner bearing the legend Eagles.
They were as lively a set of young ball
tossers as you would meet in those days Of
swatting the ball for aces. Nearly all the
players were, or had been, pupils in the
grammar school of the first ward, the
teacher being the famous Strong John
Thompson, Washington celebrity Of that
period. Most of the players were those
who, in competition with the rest Of the
District, had won Columbian College
scholarships, and this achievement made
the other junior teams extremely jealous.
Their playing grounds were In the north
western part of the White Lot, right up
against the high wall that used to sepa-
rate the Executive Mansion grounds from
the White Lot, this wall being used as a
point of observation by the many woman
friends of the team. who generally fiocked
down from the first ward when their
champions played, the Waterman of the
White House grounds refusing absolutely
to allow any of the male sex Inappropriate
a seat on such occasions.
1T is a fact that among the members
of this Junior organization there never was
any rough or ungentlemanly work on the
field and that after they laid aside the
bats and balls all Of them entered upon
lives of usefulness in high callings, diplo-
matte, ministry and the law.
THE two great rivals Of the Eagles In
thise days were the Actives Of Capitol Hill
and the Creightons of the second ward
After a series of contests the championship
narrowed down to a fierce. but friendly
encounter between the Actives and the
Eagles. 1t was a series of five games, and
my recollection, as scorer of the Eagles,
is that in the end it necessitated the play
ing of the fifth game, as each had won two
games. The playing off of this champion
ship game drew together one of the larg-
est crowds ever assembled at junior con-
test the White Lot. l recall the fact
that all of the followers of the Eagles
came down to TIE contest wearing huge
white ribbon sl-eamers with the word
Eagle In letters of red printed thereon,
something quite new in those days.
unfortunately the stout boys OF Capitol
Hill gave a beating and we lost the
championsh hip, not so much because of their
better playing, but more because a thunder
storm came up in the sixth inning, allow
ing our opponents to make ten aces and
sending them ahead Of US on even innings,
for in those days an inning once begun was
always finished, no. matter what happened.
But, as l said before, in the recording
of old time base ball. the old Eagles should
not be overlooked, for they were great in
their day, and even to this period take a
lively interest in the sport, though it is
forty years since they were the gladiators
before the admiring public
A glance at the score Of that deciding