The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-10-11

connection with athletic games, or In any athletic club, will be ineligible to repre- sent such clubs in games under the rules of the American Athletic union until he shall have permanently abandoned such employment
 For the purposes of this occasion the above will suffice, but there are many other rules of the Amateur Athletic union bearing upon this matter.
 Act of Disqualification.
 The interpretation of the rule to which I have called your attention disqualified every team in the City League, not that every team in the league had professional players, but having competed in games with professionals they are disqualified. The law is specific and definite and there is no getting away from 1t. There Is not a team in the Greater Birmingham League of Amateur Baseball Players that can absolve itself of this fact Since talk ing this matter for final settlement and decision, the president has been deluged with an overwhelming amount or hearsay evidence discriminating every team In the league of professionalism. There have been charges preferred against but two men, whereas, there are no less than IA or 15 equally as guilty as they, ana some of them more so. The question that presented itself to me was. would II pc right to disqualify two men when, as
  were alike as directly guilty and as a result nearly every man who played oan in the City League indirectly guiltyE me condition is not a similar one 10 one inaik perhaps, who, on account or preVious professionalism disqualifes maybe Rh men in some track or held event un- der the auspices of the Amateur Attn letic union.
 Solemn Agreement.
 Now the A. A. U., exercising no )urisolc- ton over baseball on account or the hui- titudinous channels open to vioiaton' .ne minutes of the meetings of your honorapie body will show that every team or the City league entered into a solemn agree ment restricting the exercise Of the au- thorty of the A. A. U. over the players of the City league to those who hao not been guilty of any of the onenses herein enume rated for two years, the evident m tent3on being to invoke the rules or tne A. A. U., within that allotted time witn respect to the distinction between an am ateur and professional.
 cannot better state the position of the A. A. U. toward professionalism than by quoting its own declaration on this point. On page s9 of the Official Athletic Rules We nno this passage: "The A A U. has no quarrel with the honest professional It believes there must be professional ism in sport. The A. A. U., through us officials is only antagonistic to the al legged amateur, who masquerades as an amateur but is in reality a professional
 Successful Season.
 Now, the season just closed has been a succe ssful one. I am aware or the fact that it is a hard matter for very good bal, player to withstand the requests or his friend to help him out in an emer-
 I,xx Ia Ch or altered, the law was violated when a man accepted even the amount of his sal ary by being off duty in addition to hotel and railroad fare.
 If we are to preserve amateur baseball and insure the success of the City league the further away we keep from anything akin to professionalism the better off 1t will be. We must preserve the mtes- rity of the City league. and it's corner stone is it's steadfast adherence to It's ln- tertion to eliminate professionalism in solar as it is possible to accomplish that result.
 I therefore prefer to withhold a decision on this point.
 I shall recommend certain principles or policies to your honorable body for con- | sderation which, in my opinion, will rem l edy the evil.
 Another Point This brings us to another point involved | in this controversy. I speak of game ] played at Bessemer on September IS be- :, tween Bessemer and the Young Mems 1 Christian association. On the previous i Saturday, September Il, which was the l closing date of the promulgated schedule ] sea son, these two teams played regu- 1 larly scheduled game which resulted in a ] tie It was this game which was played l off on the 18th.
 l I quote here tho third amendment to the | constitution and bylaws. Any tie or post | poned games may be played at the next /! meeting of the two teams, when double- header may be played or may be played 1 on any other day, as may be mutually l convenient to the two teams. If weather or any other reasonable cause shall exist | why postponed games cannot be played | as above, then they shall be played on the first Saturday following the end of the season. in which case they shall be played on the same grounds originally sched- l uled."
 confess that at one time I thought that the law above quoted gave one week [ extension to the regular season. This idea was expressed in the light of only a desuitory consideration of the law. In the midst of business hours 1t Is fmpos- sib,e to give such matters profound con sideration because interruptions will moi allow 1t.
 Some question has arisen to whether ol