Los Angeles herald., 1910-12-25

I knew Los Angeles twenty years ago
as only a schoolboy can know a town
that is growing into a city. Others
could no doubt write of the struggles
of that town to take on long pants and
mans estate in a business and com
mercial way: they knew little old Los
Angeles in that sphere. But l knew
which orange orchards were not
equipped with a bulldog annex and
where lakes formed after the rains.
Many young business men Of this
CITY who are now directors of big cor
porations and officials of clubs can
hold MP their heads elsewhere; but
dare not look me in the eye because l
remember how they muffed the fly
when there were three men on bases
and two outs when our nine was play
ing the next grammar school.
The spectacular success Of 4 certain
Young business man in this city has
been a matter os wonderment to those
who came afterward; but It was not a
surprise to me. From the way he could
Skin the cat on the amateur traDeze
in his back yard I knew that he was
destined to be something great, and
spectacular, too.
Those We're the days before they had
such citiiied improvements as official
public Fairgrounds; but we had our
unofficial Fairgrounds. The baseball
field was on the corner of Adams street
and Grand avenue. There was long
stretch of vacant land extending 300
or 400 yards in either direction. I shall
never forget our feeling of outraged
indignation when Kaspare Cohn buiIt
his splendid mansion on third base.
Being one of the kindliest men in the
world, he was very apoIogetic about
It: but ] don't believe we ever quite
forgave him.
When we chose up sides each side
captain had a greedy eye cast upon a
lean, Ianky red-headed boy named
Ernest Harvey, who atterward became
a star league" pitcher and who in
the very zenith of his power, abruptly
threw up his position as the star
"south paw of the C4evelands to study
butterflies.
I remember that John Glass, now
manager of the Pacific States Tele-
phone company in the city, was also
one Of our baseball stars. Buck Franks
and several others who have since be
come professions Of some distinction
were also in our schoolboy mines
We also used to play football; but
as | remember it our efforts We're
mainly confined to clecting an imposing
list Of team officers and to the compos-
ing of very long, elaborate and mys-
terious signals Afterward. Ill our
high school days, We had fierce and eN-
citing games.
One of our star players was Marshall
Stimson. the reform political boss.
I think he usually played fullback.
Phil Wilson, now president of the
Traders bank, was the greatest half
back we ever turned out. His other
half" behind the line was William
Arthur Edwards now a prominent den
tist of this city. We regarded the
trio with much awe and were very
proud of their friendship.
In those high school days We also had
track sports, although they We're crude
and immature affairs compared with
the high school track teams OF today.
The schoolboys of the present day are
so unearthlv clever that the high
schools are quite as dignified and i'm
pressive as colleges but then we dld
things in a little boy fashion.
/ recoUect that our star bicycle rider
was a little tow-headed boy named Ed
ward Kuster. who is now one of the
most honored attorneys a the bar OF
this county.
But these events were afterWard not
twenty years ago.
When we were little chaps much OF
our sport was along military lines. We
used to play games which, l am sorry
to say, arc rapidly being forgotten by