Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-06-26
CORNELL

cannot be stopped has been stated
openly by members of the very body
which formulated the regulation
against it. A practical admittance of
the inability OF the commission
through lack of power by members of
the commission to put an end to some
thing which it judges not right and
against which it made a regulation,
proves that IL IS useless to longer keep
the law in effect. That law has been
passed and is supposed to be in effect,
yet is not.
1t does not reflect very highly on the
commission itself when. through its
own members, the public statement is
made that its rules are being violated
and IL cannot help itself
There is not one particle of doubt
that such is the case. Men are being
pad to play ball in the amateur leagues
in this city and have been paid since
the founding of the governing body.
and they will be paid as long as base
ball is played in the District of Co
lumbia- This is no secret The anna
teur commission itself admits that 1t is
fact. And managers do not go to the
trouble of having somebody else other
thar themselves remunerate the men,
as has been suspected, but they them
selves hand out the cash The So
called evil has been carried on so open
ly at times that it is hard TO see why
the men who have been doing il should
not have been detected, unless it be
that II is their influence which has
dominated the amateur commiss on it
self. That this has been done at times
is known 10 he true by those who have
kept in touch with the actions of the
commission throughout the past two
years. and Instances of the fact could
be easily cited.
To show the true condition of affairs in
regard to the status of the amateur base
ball commission and just what power il
really does exercise in regard to the mat
n ftlla 10 CHI f,xr faa sl1nf
only last week a manager of one of the
teams In one of the leagues made openly
the statement that IL was an impossibility
for him 10 get together a team capable of
holding up its head i'll the league in which
his team is playing unless he paid the
men TO play for him. lie said that the
competition is so great that there is not a
good ball player in the city who cannot
command from 50 10 $40 per game for his
services.
To give an individual instance of how
the rule is violated. the case OF PLAYER
who has not long been in the city may
be mentioned. There are about five teams
after this man. and he himself made the
statement tnat he was going TO the one
which paid him the most money.
These are only small instances which
come up. are coming up and probably
have come up during every month of
every season since the amateur commits
sion has been part OF amateur base ball
Managers. league presidents and players
may all deny them, and yet IT is true in
spite of the denials
knowing that the above facts are true,
there Is beheld the spectacle OF body
which admits that IL IS helpless TO stop
a proceeding against which IL has legis
lated-inanagers who repeatedly deny do
ing something which il Is known that
they have done. and players who assert
that they have received nothing Tor their
services when they not only nave received
money but know that they are going to
receive il the next day and keep on re-
ceiving IL during the entire season.
Now a rule which cannot be enforced
and which at the same time causes men
10 make statements which do not adhere
very strictly 70 the truth IS nothing but
absolutely useless and at the same time
harmful
There is no doubt that the best thing
to do when such a condition OF affairs
presents itself is TO cut out the rule al
together and let those managers who
feel disposed 10 pay men 10 play Dali pay
them and do il openly ana above board
They do II anyway, according 10 an al
mittance OF the governing body itself,
Then why not abolish the ruling against
IL and let II be done with the knowledge
OF the commission. 1t would make no
difference as far as the welfare of the
amateur leagues Is concerned and. If any
thing. would not exert as harmful an in
fuence over them as II does under the
present system.
Nobody can blame a ball player for
taking money to play the game. 1t is
his stock in trade and as he Is not good
enough for the professional leagues he
must content himself with accepting the
smaller amount which he gets from play
ing with the so-called amateur teams
IL does not reflect a ball players
character for him TO be paid. because in
the majority of instances he really needs
the money and in accepting IL is vio-
lating no rule. Some of the men playing
I'm the amateur ranks i'm this city prob
ably pick up from 500 TO 500 every sum-
mer playing ball, and the money thus
made is seldom wasted. but goes for
laudable purposes
y tAs rule OF the commission is dis