The star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1908-1909, 1908-08-25

ball banging. Honus Wagner came
from the back doors of the Carnegie
mines. He roamed around Homestead
playing with the juniors. At that time
Ned Barrows, Of happy Eastern League
memory, and who was the first man to
manage a league team in the city Of
Paterson IN the days of the first At
lantic League, was employed in a Pitts
burg hotel as a bouncer. Ned's love for
scrapping and his ability to put any
OF the miners away when they tried to
own this particular hotel in the Smoky
City secured for him a good job. You
would not take him for a hotel sleuth
in those days. But on Saturday nights
when the miners got their pay and got
to the nearest booze joint and filed up,
Barrows was supposed to clean them up
if they annoyed the quietness of his
employer.
Discovered by Accident.
One night when Ned was busy trim
ming a handful of coal-diggers Wag-
ner was in the Smoky City on an ex-
cursion with a few lads who wanted
to see the great and only John l.. who
was touring that way in those days.
Ned got into a battle, and won, and
Wagner, who loves to scrap when he
has to, but who is otherwise as docile
as a lamb, into conversation with
Barrows. The latter was then con-
sidering taking the Atlantic League
franchise, with his friend, Bill Mckee.
who ran another hotel in the smoke
burgh. Barrows got talking with
Wagner, and when the franchise was
secured Barrows sent Mckee ND to
Homestead, and Bill found Wagner
playing back of his house with the
gang OF kids. He was offered 800 a
month. and Wagner thought Mckee
was crazy. He had never seen that
much money at n time. but Wagner
had the nerve. and he came to Pater-
son. That was the college this great
Honus graduated from, and q you
beat him?
Other Lot stars.
You must have heard Of Jamsey Nc
Cormick, of the great Mike Kelly, and
Of the "Only Nolan" all Jerseymen,
and the greatest trio of baseball artists
of their day. Whenever Nolan was
going to play in any city the bill post
ers carried a three-sheet of him, and
he was the whole show. Nolan learned
to twirl on the sand lots in Paterson
where Barbour's big mill stands today.
Mccormick learned the inside of his
worth over In the Dublin district In
the same town, where a large silk mill
on Morris street covers the former
practise ground. Mike Kelly BACKED
boots at the Erie depot, same town,
and at the same time, and between
shines he would take up the whole
street batting out his fungo ball. That
was the kind of colleges that these
men came from and they were for
years the stellar lights in the entire
baseball world.
Parents should got object.
Some parents object to their boys
learning the game. To these parents
l would say there is moro sobriety and
more healthy morality in the ranks OF
ball players than in many of socalled
higher professions. A drunken bal
player is a rarity nowadays. He stands
no chance of holding his job. Every
day new stars are being discovered and
the men who love their drink are
showed back into the minor n and
finally are showed out of the game al
together. The young man who wants
to become a league player and is givel
a chance should not be hampered bS
his family. There is good money tt
be earned and while he Is young ht
will put away enough Of the %financia
stuff to see himself and his kin pre-
pared for a rainy day. But don't lose
sight of this fact: You don't have t
be a college grad. neither do o have
to be the son of n rich parent to be
come good ball players. 1t Is a gam
open for the young man who want
to shine in his profession.