The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1910-08-25
HERE'S THE REAL ONE.
II Was the Greatest Baseball Game
That Was Ever Played.
buffalo Exnress.l

was "hSu yOu were o-yeaF-O10
kid and played pitcher, right, left and
center base, and shortstop all by your
self against full team of grown
men, | know" interrupted the man
who was riding on the street car be-
cause he had to and did not care to
make the journey any more Disagree
able than necessary.
well, 1 did that once, but that
was not the game was going to tell
you about. The greatest game Of all
was the time the Blood-boiled Reds
played the Graveyard Greens out in
old O'Rourke's pasture. There had
been feud on between the Reds and
the Greens for two seasons, and they
never met without having a shindig.
That was why they had given them
selves such fierce names. The names
were intended to express the bitter
hatred of the two clubs for one an
other, and their determination to do
murder If the question of supremacy
could be settled in no other way"
81 thought it was a game of base
| ball you were going to tell about.
This sounds more like gang war"
I'm coming to the story of the
game in minute You know baseball,
to be real baseball, must be played
between mines that hate one another
in earnest. Then they put some spirit
into it. There was hatred enough be-
tween these two mines, but the UNI
pire had his gang along too, and
they were bigger boys and there were
more of them than the players. He
laid down the rule that there should
be no side scrapping till nine full in
nings had been played out. Then
they might take the bats and go at
one another for all he cared, but he
was there to see that they played ball.
SO they played ball with all the nerve
and vim that they could put into it.
Every throw ana every swing of the
| bat meant that was the way the other
fellows were going to be done up at
the end Of the game. Things went
along pretty well for seven innings,
and then the Reds began 90 gain a
little. When the ninth began they
were two scores ahead with the
Greens at bat. The first lad that went
to the plate for the Greens was struck
out and the second battcr was thrown
out at first. We who were roofing for
the Greens knew that the day was lost
unless we could break up the game,
and the big umpire and his gang
wouldn't permit any interference.
Then Mickey ORourke had the
idea of his life. AS | was telling you,
the game was played in his fathers
pasture lot. Mickey had driven the
cattle into the barnyard and put up
the bars while the game was on And
he'd shut the bull up in the stable be-
cause the Blood-boiled Reds wore red
shirts which would surely irritate
him. But Mickey was a Green all
right, at heart, as you might know by
his name, and when he saw how
things were going what does he dc
but run for the barnyard and let the
bull out. Pat Danahy for the Greens
had made good hit and won second
on it. He stole third-he was a
mighty good player, Pat was-but
following him at bat was Denny Flynn,
who wasn't good for any ling except
as catcher Denny managed to find
the ball. however, and rolled it along
the field toward the Rad sh0rtstop.
who picked it up easy enough and
"as just tossing it slow ald safe tow
ard the first baseman wheu with
snort and a below out comes that
old bull, rushing right for him.
Everybody yelled Look ont; and
the Red shortstop with the instinct of
self-preservation, slung the ball into
fence. But there were enough more
red shirts on the field to keep the bull
occupied, and in about half minute
he had every one of 'em skeedaddling
for life. He didn't pay any attention
to the Greens, however, and Pat Dam
ahy and Denny Flynn both trotted
around to the home plate and tied the
score
did the umpire allow ito" asked
the busy man, who had finally become
interested in the story.
"You bet he did. That is. ne called
the game, and said we'd have to set
tie it again, since the Reds didn't
dare come back in the pasture to play
while the bull was there and the
Greens were not fools enough TO
drive the bull away"
81 should have thought they'd have
taken their red shirts off and come
back into the field and licked ire life
out of you
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