Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1912-12-09
Bv Percy H. Whiting.

rF Charley Franks justly exc
Grated sliding scale" salary
limit is put in force It will cost
the Crackers from four to six OF
their best players. Either II would
bar off such men as Alpernan and
Bailey. and making the signing Of
McAlligter. smith. Kirke. Weaver
and Donnelly an impossibility, or
else ii would make necessary the
most barefaced salary limit dodg-
ing that the Southern league has
ever seen.
Do YOU wonder Bill Smith has
passed up the American and Ma
tional league meeting and that he
will beat it to Birmingham early
TO attend the Southern league SEES
sion and to fight against CaafleN
Franks pet scheme?
FRANKS sliding scale system looks
as harmless as a jellyfish. 1t pro-
vides that you are entitled to pay ii -
salary corresponding to the num-
Der OF players you have-SS,6Oo for
eighteen players, $1,000 for seven
teen. and so on down to $4,000 for
twelve. The joker, concealed up
the sleeve of this harmless little
salerv limit is a provision that no
team may pay over $3.50 a month
for any player
Imagine some OF the topliners in
the Southern league playing for
$3.50 avnonth-that is, imagine II lF
rot CAN. We can't Imagine,
please, the yell that Otto Jor-
dan or virtually any of the ex-eis
leasuers who are i'll good trim
would let out if their salaries were
cut to $3.50 a month. A rush day
In a boiler factory would be placid
compared with It,
rYOT being familiar with the pay
IN roll of the Cracker team, we
aren't prepared to say which mem
bers of the club received over $500
a month last season, but it's NOR
ally certain that good many OF
them did. Alperman and Bailey
we're both men entitled to more
than $3.50 and both undoubtedly got
n. II is a. cinch that Alperman is
a high priced man. In fact, Char
ley Hemphill virtually admitted 1t
and was so worried over the mat
ter Of getting Whitley signed that
he went to see him at his home in
Ftna, Pa, and closed the deal with
him there Bailey. considering
where he came from, must have
been high priced man, and the
same is true Of Agier.
And look at the men Smith is
rounding up for next year. Fat
chance of getting Wallace Smith,
jay Kirke, Arlie Weaver, or Don
nelly to sign for $3.50.
Either the Frank scheme must
be beaten or else two alternatives
are presented-to get rid of these
star men and TO replace them with
better ones, or to evade the salary
limit. And TO evade the limit in
SuCl 1aSDlOn Alldl II Npulu appeal
that these men were being secured
at $3.50 a month would be so raw
as TO offend even the often tested
gullibility of President Kavanaugh.
7 i it were at all possible 10 enforce
this $3.50 to "a player limit, whic
of course it isn't, it might be good
thing to put 1t in force GRAD
TALLY 1t could be provided that
there would be no limit for next
season on the salary paid any play
er. For 1914 the limit could be $500,
for 1915 il might be 1915 and by
1915 the $3.50 limit could be eased
over N this way managers could
prcpa v themselves for the shock
and could BE- gradually getting rid
of their high priced players.
It's childish, however. To take any
ordinary salary limit too seriously
of course IL limit OF $3.50 on each
!. player were put in effect this year
!. "A. would 0or, q hardship But IN