The French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1896-1912, 1909-09-09
Oh YOuCitizGn!

q
The story writer on the Ashe.
vile Citizen, who got off the
following slush, evidently has
cob-webs in his hair and wheels
in his head. Just listen, will
you:
The Western North Carolina
league of baseball teams is no
more. 1t passed in, during the
early hours of yesterday morning
when, after a session lasting un-
til about two o'clock, Waynes-
vile, Hendersonville and Canton
unanimously voted to withdraw
from the league, and Asheville
being outYoted let them with
draw.
1t looks very much like a case
OF cold feet with our sister
towns as long as WaynesviIle and
Hendersonville had a comfortable
lead in the pennant race, there
was MT a word said about break
ing up the league until the end
Of the season which was fixed for
September 13. But with the be-
ginning of this week .Asheville
got several new players and be-
gan putting up a class of ball
that was so far out the reach of
the other three towns that it was
a matter of a few days only
when the Red Birds would, have
had the pennant cinched and
then some. Wherefore the other
three thought it best to quit
while their record was good.
Unfortunately for baseball in
this section the league agreement
seems not to have been as strict
ly drawn as it should have been
and the teams got out without
the loss of a cent of their five
hundred guarantee which was
posted at the beginning of the
season to insure the solidity of
the league.
The three teams admit that
one of their reasons tor with
drawing was the fact that Ashe-
vile had too strong a team,
which, as they say, was in some
way against the agreement.
They maintain that the Asheville
management had no right to
take on new men in the last
stages of the season, and there
seems to bave been some sort of
II vague understanding to that
effect.
But the principal reason for
the withdrawal was the fact
that the other three teams have
been losing money. On their own
grounds they have been playing
to very small crowds, and their
receipts were not enough to carry
them to the end of the season.
This, after all, was the real
reason they quit, it is said. The
up of the league leaves
the local team in a somewhat en-
barrassed position. 1t too has
lost money, and has just taken
en- several new high priced
players for the rest of the season
who will have to be paid. In Or
der to help out, the team will
finish up this week with the =.
Hendersonville team, and is now
arranging for the six games to
be played next week. Either
Raleigh or Charlotte will play
mere the first half of the week
and Macon or Knoxville the last
half. These teams are more
N Asheville's class and should
put up some first class games ;
1ere." !
The very fact that every team /
the league, except Asheville, |
voted to disband shows plainly !
enough that the latter club was
n the wrong. According to the :
Citizens own story, Asheville .
7ielated a league agreement and I
ny sort of kick from that quar-
er comes with poor grace. The t
to pit Carolina Associa- |
ion men against the college boys, :
Who had been so faithful to their =
espective clubs, was neither f
air nor in any way defensible. t
sut, fortunately, the agreement b
ad been so we'll constructed that L
was unable to carry =
ITO effect the attempt to run Y
rough shod'' over the other a
cams. b
nN1 n,