The Elbert County tribune., 1911-08-18

49, totally blind?"
You certainly must have
something on your boss to hold your job"
THE only thing about you that looks like
umpire is your mask and protector"
You better start to run for the back fence :
as the game is over. for we going
to get you" 4
These, and a few million more compliment !
ary" expressions of like nature Surled
at the umpire during the course of a closely
contested game. I
It is really strange and wonderful into what
a frenzy the average baseball fan work him
self during the progress of an exciting game.
1t is almost incredible to think what he will do I
say when he imagines the umpire has made
a wrong decision that has apparently put hisi
club out of the running.
Prominent attorneys distinguished doctors
well-known actors staid business men. in fact
men Of all classes. will invariably jump to their
feet at what they consider punk decision"
and shake their fists violently. utter all kinds
of incoherent remarks, and insist that nothing
will satisfy their thirst for revenge but the
life blood of the poor, defenseless umpire
The next day. when some one meets one OF
the frenzied rooters, and in Joking way ex
plains to him how he acted and tells him some
of the things he said about the umpire, Mr..
Loyal Rooter takes then and there that
he will never again open his mouth at ball
game, no matter how thrilling the situation.
Perhaps the very next afternoon, If the prop
er occasion arises he will unknowingly COM
NIT the very act of the previous day.
Civic pride is to be admired in all things.
baseball fan who doesn't want to the home
team triumph is surely peculiar sort Of man.
Perhaps 1t might be well for him to have his
sanity investigated. Desire to win at any cost
however often makes intelligent persons abso-
lutely unfair In their views and opinions
The extent to which the fan will allow his
civic pride to dominate his opinion was well
lIuc tad to last
on my way to the hotel after particularly
brilliant game, which the home team had
lost by score Of 1 to 0, after desperate strug-
gle, 1 was much amused at the conversation of
a number of dyed-in-the-wool fans who happen
ed to be In the same car.
1t was the unanimous opinion Of every
that the homo team needed good-sized
boards instead of regulation bats. II they
were ever to win game. They cited
half dozen instances where hit, or even
fly to the outfed would have won the con-
test All of them were sore over the loss OF
the game, principally because OF the weak
hitting of their favorites. They proclaimed
the visitors stronger in every respect. That
ono run the big event of the day. The
fans seemed to forget that for II innings
the hitting OF the visitors was just as feeble
as that of the home team. That the hit
that sent the only run of the game across the
plate was due to lucky bound which sent 1t
over the second baseman's head To me It was
of the best games of the year.
The following day the home team won by
a very one-sided score of IL to 1. AS fate
would have 1t, / bumped into several fans
of the previous day on the car down town.
The contest a decidedly poor one.
thought, the and only redeeming feature
being the hard hitting of the home club
The fans were satisfied, however for 1t
unanimously agreed that the home boys had
recovered their batting eyes, and that from
now on they would make the best Of them
step the limit to win
l shall never forget little incident that hap
pened to silk" OLaughlin during a game at
Washington, one day. which illustrates what
some fans will do when the home team is get
ting trimmed.
1 happened to be working back of the plate
that afternoon while silk" was performing on
the bases. All the close plays seemed tc come
up on the bases. silk" had at least dozen
plays that could have been given one way or
the other, because of the extreme coseness.
Practically all of the plays went against the
home team and while silk" had little or no
trouble from the players. fan, who sit
ting In the third base section Of the grandstand
chose to disagree with the arbitrator on prac
tically all of his rulings. He kept up
volley of remarks throughout the game, and
before its close had enlisted quite few vol
unteers
Because of the actions of this one lone
fan, silk" was subjected to rather siren
uous afternoon, although his work was well
nigh perfect Silk discovered that his en-
emy sitting in the front row OF the
grandstand, also that he wore glasses He
made up his mind long before the close OF
the game that he would express himself tc
the gentleman in question.
The home team managed to win out by
brilliant ninth inning rally. In his 1ublia-
ton over the winning II the game. the fan
had forgotten entirely that a person bearing