The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1911-10-10
The Big League
BY CHARLES e. VAN LOAN.
Copyright 1811 by Small Maynard Company Incorporated

ut Is such a relief" said Miss
Montclair. ito meet a man who
really knows how to order a little
supper. / had no idea baseball
players were such nice men!"
you hadn't gathered that i'm
preston from your friend, Mr..
Bohannon," said Cutter wickedly.
mister Bohannon!" said the
young lady in amaZement. "Why
l hardly knew the man. A friend
in the company asked me out to
supper one night, and Mister b.
harmon was there. I'm sure
never regarded him rs anything
but an acquaintance! He's such
a-a-crude sort of g person,
don't you Think"
"Crude?" said Cutter. Crude?
He's all of that. Why, he saw my
frat pin one day-I'm an Ann
Arbor man, you know = and he
says to me: Gee! l zee a lot of
them pins around the country!
I'll bet that lodge is stronger'n the
Elks. I'll have to Join that, l
guess' That's how crude he is! l
don't suppose he ever mentioned
that he had a wife and four chill
dren, did her"
"a wife!" said Miss Montclair.
For mercy's sakes! Would any,
body marry THAT? Now, isn't
it funny, l always Thought you
were college man. You looked
500 different, somehow! It's
Istrange how you get impressions
about people from seeing them!
When are you going to pitch
again?"
Then they fell to discussing
baseball, the stage, art, clothes,
and other kindred subjects, and
Cutter was amazed TO learn that
Miss Montclair was a cultured
young person who used the right
forks, had an opinion about Kip
ling, and came from very old
Ohio family.
At three in the morning, he left
her at the apartment house in
which she lived, and where she
said her mother was sitting up
for her, and Cutter walked slowly
down the street, shuffling and re-
arranging his ideas about the bot
tie blonde.
IAN awfully nice little kid" he
said to himself. I'll bet that big
slob has been annoying her almost
to death! Fancy brute like that
and a pretty girl, too! Lemme
see-flowers, cab, supper, cab
again-about thirty bucks gone.
Pretty soft for mel 1 can make it
last a week."
There was a matinee the next
afternoon, and Miss Montclair was
not at the Polo Grounds. Biff aid
not expect her. He played very
bad ball, and the infield was on
the verge of revolt. Merry favor
ed him with some essence of Wit
riol, but Biff needed none of the
remarks hurled at his aching
head.
Before his eyes was the picture
of a tall young man in a silk hail
handing a young woman into al
taxicab, and Biff knew that if he
lived to be a million years OLD,
that young man would alwaysI
have him beaten for the graceful
elegance with which he perform
ed that simple feat.
Biff made three errore that day,
and let in the run which lost thel
game. There was a painful scene
in the clubhouse after II was over
and Biff took most of his clothesl
out into the yard, whore he finish
ed dressing in surly silence.
"Ill give him a day or sol
more" said Merry, "and then hel
goes to the bench. and Mike goes
in to catch. I'd have Iut Mike in
before, but his hand is awfully
bad. Amt It tough9 Why, I'd
rather deal with three booze
hounds than one fellow full of
that love dopei"
That night, the faithful long
Biff was back in the
stage box again, perspiring free