The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-09-14
Fans in This City Are Feverish over
Baseball Best Shown by
Splendid Attendance
Of Year.
FEW CONTRASTS
Des Moines, Dubuque and Cedar Rap
ids All Suffer as Result Of Lax
ity Of Fans In Support
ing Game.

Fans In the city scarcely reallze tne
high rank which Keokuk takes when
classified among the baseball cities OF
the country unless attention is drawn
to some other cities where struggle
is being made by owners and manas-
ers to maintain team on paying
basis. It is fact that in Keokuk fans
turn out to see the game whether the
club is winning or losing, but natural
ly the attendance is larger somewhat
when the club Is winning, or a crulc-
al series is at hand. or some other un-
usual occurance serves to attract
them. The attendance this season IN
Keokuk will be near the mark OF 45,-
600. or an equivalent of three times
the population of the city. What other
team in the country can boast OF three
times its population. Very few, II any
Attention has been drawn by this
paper to the situation in Des Moines
and that city is in danger OF losing a
franchise in the Western league. This
is all an account OF the fact that the
people do not attend games, and even
! when the team is struggling with
good chance for the pennant.
A situation threatens several clubs
in the Three-Eye league, which may
drive them from the circuit. Cedar
Rapids and Dubuque, both cities much
larger than Keokuk may lose their
positions because the guarantee OF
! 10000 during the season has not been
reached and may not before the sea
I son is over. The situation is extreme
/ Nv interesting and Is a contrast to the
| baseball fever in Keokuk. An inter
view with President NJ. Fl Sexton dls
2 closes the following facts:
! Unless Cedar Rapids comes within
the 10000 attendance limit its iran
/ chise is sure to be forfeited.
i IT would dislike greatly to see this
happen. The league realizes that Ce
dar Rapids is q good baseball town
and that conditions here this veal
have been very unusual. But Cedar
/ Rapids can offer no excuse when the
league directors meet again II the rec
ord Of attendance for the seas
shows that this city has not come
within the limit.
About 1000 more paid admission
4 are needed to turn the trick, and yo'
have two more Sunday games durin'
4 the remaining series here, whicl
ought to make 1t easy to reach. tn
10000 mark. Up at Dubuque they ar
just about 1000 shy as yet, but the
have already sold 1900 tickets 70
next Sundays games, and they asser
that they will have paid attendant
on that day Of 1000. Dubuque is sur
to come within the limit, and / will b
painfully surprised II Cedar Rapid
doesn't do as well
1T is hardly my province to SUI
gest what Cedar Rapids ought to d
about baseball another year; but
seems to me that the people of Ceda
! Rapids who comprise the fans ought
: put up some proposition to Belden HI
, that will again enlist his enthusiasm
, in the game Baseball In these minc
, leagues is a peculiar proposition.
takes a baseball man one who know
every hook and crook Of the game an
, who has acquaintance enough to e,
; able him to have a line on promisin
young players all over the countr>
!, to make the finances of a club com