Evening star., 1909-02-28
HOW HANS WAGNER
SIGNED CONTRACT
President PulIiam JoIlied Big
Fellow Into Placing
Name on Document.

How Hans Wagner. the mighty batter.
finally decided to sign and play with
| Pittsburg last season was told at the
Comiskey banquet by Harry Pulliam last
Wednesday night, says Harry Edwards
! in the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Pulliam
and Wagner have been great friends for
the last twelve years. and it is Pulliam s
proud boast that Wagner has never failed
to keep his promise to him.
A year ago Wagner announced that he
was through with the game forever. This
| declaration was laughed at at the start.
for no one would believe that Wagner
would turn down 5000 proposition for
the sake Of raising chickens. Still. when
the Pirates went to Hot Springs to train
and Wagner did not go along Dreyfuss
! became worried.
Accordingly. he made a trip to Car
negie to have q talk with his most famous
player. He offered him $500 to rejoin
! the club. Wagner refused. Dreyfuss,
| however. thought that Wagner would
| think better of the situation and returned
home Not hearing again from the Won
derful shortstop and slugger, he again
! made a trip to Carnegie and this time
| offered him 10000 to sign. Again Wag-
| ner refused and Dreyfuss was dunn
founded
Then he happened to remember that in
the preceding spring Manager Fred
Clarke had decided that in 1908 he would
at Winifred. Kan, and Wagner had
promised to be one OF the bunch. Ac-
cording1y Dreyfuss reminded Wagner OF
| his promise and the big Dutchman at
once said: Il will CO." Go he die, but
requests that he sign and returned to
Pittsburg.
Then Pulliam came to the rescue and
wrote to Wagner asking that he meet
him at the office of the Pittsburg club at
hour hour was close at hand, but Wagner Wagner
was not present. When 1t lacked five
minutes of noon Dreyfuss said: Il knew
it would do no good: He told me he
will not come
Puiliam replied: CLANS Wagner never
broke his promise. and he won't this
time
At noon sharp in walked Wagner.
mained obdurate for a long time.
mo. Harry he said. II will not sign
My legs are giving way and I want to
quit before 1 am hasbeen. / would
field and hear the fans yelling: Take
him out must quit before that time
comes. I must quit sooner or later. and
now is the time while my record is good
I1dus, Tep1eQ HuIilam. E1ttSburg
is city OF many millionatres. Some Of
them go to Europe for pleasure. Others
have big country estates in Canada or
the south. They travel for amusement
or spend the winters in New York at
grand hotels. But there are hundreds
OF thousands Of men in Pittsburg who
are not millionaires. These men work
six days In every week at 81 a day, or
possibly q little more or less They can
not go to New York or to Europe for
pleasure. They cannot afford automobiles
or steam yachts. But they can dig up
25 cents to go out to the base ball park
to see Hans Wagner play.
Hans, you are star ball player. In
thousands of homes in Pittsburg you are
a king, and the men who work In the
shops Of this section go crazy over the
great batting and fielding feats of Hans
Wagner. After they go to a game they
go home and say: That man Wagner
made a three-base hit with the bases filled
today or You ought to have seen Wag-
ner make a great one-hand pickup that
retired the side
Now, Hans are you going 10 throw
down these thousands of fans who are
poor men? Are you going to disappoint
them when really there is no good reason
for quitting? You say Your legs are bad
Now. for my sake do this. Try it for
month. II at the end Of that time you
find that your legs will not stand 1t, 7
will see that you are retired with all the
honors of war. Now will you sign?''
Give me contract and 1 will sign"
said Wagner. and that was the end Of it.