The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1907-02-01
.SPUDS MAY
HAVE To MOVE
Bills Up Regulating Prox-
unity Of Ball Parks, etc.
To Hospitals.
CLAIM MALICE IN IT
Rumors That Measure Is Result of
Scarcity of Passes to Poll
tioians.

Chicago ball fans, particularly those
Of the spud persuasion, received a
shock yesterday afternoon when the
news came from Springfield that State
Representative Mclaughlin had intro
duced bill into the legislature. which.
II passed, viii put the west side ball
park out Of business after July /.
Specifically the bill provides that there
shall be no bah park. beer garden or
amusement park within 500 feet Of
any public hospital in the state Of
Illinois.
The patrons q the west side park
became alarmed and wondered what
would become Of Frank Chances
spuds. President Murphy Of the local
National league club Immediately went
over to see President Brundage of the
Cook county board, and felt relieved
when that official told him the board
was not interested in the passage Of
the BILL albeit the Cook county hos
pital is just across the street from the
main bleachers in the west side park.
Politics Creeps In.
There were all kinds Of rumors
ahoat late in the afternoon that the
introduction Of the bill had been in
stigated by some politicians who claim
ed they didn't get a square deal from
President Murphy last season in the
matter Of passes to the games. Others
said it arose from some trouble the
president OF the club was supposed to
! have had with the building depart
ment and assessors, for what they are
alleged to have called shabby treat
ment at the hands of the baseball mag
nate.
But Representative Mclaughlin ar
rived in the city from Springfield
early in the evening and set at rest all
rumors Of troubles Murphy might have
i had by declaring most emphatically
/ that the bill was not introduced to
hurt tho west side ball park, but to
protect patients in the various public
hospitals throughout the state from
/ disturbances Of every nature occasion
4 ed by the assembling of large crowds
in close proximity to the hospitals.
Ball Park Not Thought OF.
/ Dali
park in mind" said Mr. Mclaughlin.
when / framed the bin 1t merely
happens that those grounds are hit by
the measure. Ny hopes are to get the
4 public hospitals protected from amuse-
ment park crowds Of every descrip-
ton. / had more specifically in mind
that row of beer gardens at Dunning.
which are. or We're. not more than 900
Inmates of that institution were
tortured by unearthly noises at all
times of the night from those beer
gardens. II the ball park on the west
side IS not more than 500 feet from
the Cook county hospital the inmates
Of that institution must suffer keenIy
from the din arising from the yelling
spectators
Il thought of the bin many wears
ago when I was confined to my home
at Monroe street and Homan avenue
for six months and had to listen TO
the racket at Chutes park There Is
no political angle to my bill. and I
want TO state as emphaticaIly as I
can that the bill would have been in
troduced just the same If the west side
ball park had not been within a hund-
red miles of the county hospital or any
other hospital"
President Murphy Of the Spuds re-
fused to discuss the bill at all He
said he knew nothing about the thing
and didn't want TO be quoted on the
subject. Mr.. McLaughlin's bill was re
i ferred to the committee on municipal
corporations and the author expects
1t viii be reported out in about one
4 week