Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1911-07-09
The Making of a Base Ball

Here Is the story OF the white. hose-hids
covered base ball Scarcely a month passes
that some magasine does not tell OF the
national game from the point Of view OF
some great player or expert. but decidedly
little IL known Of the history Of the spheres
that form the ball players chief implements
OF warfare or the way they are manufac-
tured
Philadelphia may be rightly said 10 b
the home OF this industry not because base
balls were first made here. but because
more OF them have been made here for 9
longer time than in any other American
city. The largest base ball manufacturing
firm In the world Il at Tulip and Palmer
streets, In Kensngton. That firm makes
both the spaiding and the Reach official
balls for the National and American
leagues. and In addition furnishes balls tc
dozens Of minor leagues and manufactures
thousands OF cheaper balls
Now for some figures. The base bail fac.
tory turns out about 24ooo clean. white, un-
hlemlshed balls every day. In a week l44OO
are turned out and In a year about 5000. OK
are manufactured and shipped away. Even
more would be turned out II the base ball
machines worked at top speed every day.
But this time Of year, although II is base
ball season. II not the busiest time at the
factory. The balls now being used In the
big league parks and on the open lots
were made early last winter. when the
fans we're buying Christmas presents.
what ~ Means in Money.
Enough money is spent on base balls each
year to build a battleship or a good sized
city. A conservative estimate makes the
base balls manufactured In Philadelphia 4
factory alone retail at close to s25O0,OO0
And when one considers the sums paid for
gloves. uniforms masks and bats an idea
may he cleaned of the American public's
expenditures In playing the national game
or course. that doesn't take in the millions
of dollars We spend TO watch eighteen men
battle with a small whits ball for nine
innings
Just the other day Tom" shibe. a mem
Der OF Philadelphia's big base ball manu-
featuring firm and a man we'll versed in
the national game, sat back In a swivel
chair In his office and smiled genIaIly as
he told Of the evolution of the ball. These
days the manufacturers are feeling well
satisfied with themselves because they be
lieve they have at last produced a perfect
base ball
After years Of experiments" said Mr.
shibe. I'VE at last have a baii--the one with
the cork eenter--that win please both fans
and players and will certainly last Longer
and hold it's shape better than any Other
ball we have made There may be minor
changes made in II yet, but I doubt that
The new cork center, I think, is here &c
stay"
Process of Evolutien.
The perfect base balli Long years Of
patient striving have been spent IN evolvine
that. The first bsSe balls made were it'll.
different from cricket balls, They wer,
wound by hand and had rubber oenters Il
make them bound All the geniuses of tbs
national game-spaIding. Reach, the shibes
Connie Mack. McGraw. Fred Clarke anc
Lajoie have helped in different ways Il
make IT what II Is. But the manufacturer
themselves. spaidIng. Reach and IN,
shibes. are responsible for most of the i'm
provements
The office where Mr.. shibe sat wal
silent except for the smooth whirr of cleo
trio fans and the tick Of typewriter in
room near by. But when he opened a doc
that led to the factory the confused muir
muir OF hundreds Of base baII-winding
packing and stamping machines could b,
heard. Five hundred men and women
and boys and girls. were busily working
in different parts Of the building Som,
were running the winding machines. SOM
were labelling others were stitching tn
balls with practiced fingers.
OR re ground floor OF the factory. wher,
tn are brought to be labeled. thou
ser hem lay on racks. What a sigh
for Of base baiil They say the bal
pla IS his glove. He nurses Il, oil
n it into shape so that II answer
his move. On another players han,
II re- to work, but on the hand Of III
owner It performs wonders and helps hin
to make seemingly impossible catches. Blu
who loves the base baIl7 Not the bal
player No. II Is the fan. When he sees
shoot gracefully across the diamond or ris
high In the air at the crack OF the bat r.
rises and lets out prolonged ''o-ohr
And TO a fan the sight OF thousands o
white unused base balls is decidedly fas
elnating.
A story of Development.
Mr. shibe lighted cigar and puffe
softly for a moment ITO begin at tn
beginning. as I know IT," he said. finally
Il have an uncle. Daniel Shibe, who playe
on cricket team here in Philadelphia bac
in the sixties. when town ball. old cal
pussy In the corner and drop the handker
chief were the national diversions Gradu
ally the Americans evolved base ball. IN
balls they used at first were all home
made. believe the first base bah factor
was up around Hartford, Conn. but I'm no
sure.
AT any rate. my Uncle Dan, who live
not far from here. and who now keeps
cigar store down the street. started to i'm
prove on cricket balls and make base ball
Of them. He used to buy up old rubbe
lovershoes to use for centers. and woun
the string around them by hand. Late
father (Benjamin f. shibe) got into IN
business. and the J. d. shibe company wa
organized about 1883 IN Eyre street not "a
from here. They called 1t base bah allie,
then
"As the game grew in popularity we en-