Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-12-15
Syndicate, Headed by Robert
BaIfour, Said to Be Me-
gotiating for PhiIIies.
TAFT WANTS $486,OOO FOR
GROUNDS AND FRANCHISE
Efforts to Secure Local Capi-
tai to Back Club Meets
With Failure.
PHILADELPHIA. Pa

PHILADELPHIA. Pa. De.
cember I4.-Horace Fogel stepped
out of organized base ball at I,
o'clock this afternoon. although
no official announcement has been
made that the option which he
held on the stock of the Phillies
has expired.
Robert a. Balfour of this CITY
seems to be in the lead for the
purchase OF the club, but he and
Charles p Taft, who controls the
grounds of the club. which are
held in the name of Mrs. Taft.
and the club through the fact that
he loaned large amount of money
to Fogel, taking the stock as col
lateral for the loan, are $4,000
apart on the purchase price.
Balfour has offered $4,000
for the club grounds and $4,000
for the club franchise. Taft's fig
ures are said to be $500, 900 for the
grounds and $4,000 for the club
franchise.
Now that the Fogel option has
expired. and that he cannot hawk
around the stock, representatives
of Balfour and Taft will get to-
gether, and tonight it looks as if
there would be compromise and
the grounds and franchise would
become the property of Balfour.
The local traction man has no desire to
purchase the franchise Of the club. but
in order to get the grounds he must pur-
chase the franchise as We'll. The Pha-
delp! la club has a lease on the grounds
which has 100 years to run, five years at
an annual rental of S15,0oO five years at
an annual rental of SlSoOO and ninety
nine years at rental OF $1,000
Grounds an Investment.
Balfour wants the grounds as an In
vestment, figuring that within a short
time he will resell them to either a local
traction company or the Philadelphia and
Reading or Pennsylvania railroad COM
pany. While ii is understood that Bal
four does not care especially for the club
franchise. in case the deal goes through
he may place capable business manager
in charge of the.club affairs and run the
club a business investment.
Associated with Balfour in the deal are
two local manufacturers. but their names
are being closely guarded. Fred ID.
Chandler, the banker. who was attempting
the financial scalp of Horace Fogel, drop
ped out of the consideration TWO days ago
when he saw tDat there was no chance
of getting solid Philadelphia business men
to invest in SPORTING proposition to the
extent of S1,2OuOJO. which was the figure
at which the club under the proposed re-
organization plan was to have been cap
italized.
Numerous business men were sounded
on the proposition. and were asked to
subscribe for blocks of $4,000 worth OF
the stock. In nearly every case they
replied that they could not see it as a
business proposition when the club and
grounds three years ago were valued
at less than 100000. and in that time
the Philadelphia National League club
simply has stood still. Horace Fogel
today spent the day in the local office
of the Phillies but he failed to issue
any statements.
II do not expect anything to happen
today regarding the sale or reorganiZa-
ton Of the Phiilies," was all he would
say.
When asked if he proposed to syndi-
cate a series of articles giving inside
base ball history pertaining to the
workings OF the National League, he
simply snorted. 1t is understood that
Fogel has been in communication with
Murphy OF the Chicago team. and that
Fogel has received assurances from Chi
cagO that he would be Wen taken care
of in case he was forced out of base
ball.