The Washington times., 1913-10-09
Mack Has to Uncover One of
His Youngsters-McGraw's
Team Crippled.
By GRANTLAND RICE.

NEW YORK. Oct. 9.-The first scene
of this stirring drama Is established at
Gettysburg. Pa, a matter OF fourteen
years ago. Bucknell comes down to
meet Gettysburg College, Mathewson
faces Plank and Mathewson wins. The
score is 8 20 O.
In the second scene six years have
passed and the outlying or surrounding
draperies have been changed. Mathew
son is now pitching 4 world series game
with the New York Giants and Plank is
with the Philadelphia Athletics.
Mathewson faces Plank for the second
time and for the second time Mathew
son wins. Again the score Is to O.
Eight years pass as the third and final
scene is staged. The Giants Of 1906 are
scattered. The Mackian machine of
that year his vanished. too. over q for
gotten trail. But still answering at
roll call. Mathewson faces Plank again
and as the battle ends those same fig
ures tell the story without a change
through the mazes Of fourteen seasons.
The score is , to U.
1t could be nothing else when the
stars of Bucknell and Gettysburg meet.
for Fate hand long ago foreordained
that those figures should be as imml-
table as the code of the Medes and the
scroll of the Persians.
Some Pitching? Quite So.
We have no intention here. beloved
reader. of turning OH the sob stuff Tor
Mathewson. the veteran. For six or
eight or ten years from now We expect
to be writing again about what we are
writing today. viz: That Mathewson
looked better than ever before. For he
is six years younger than Plank. and
if Plank has gone back then J. d.
Rockefeller hasn't enough kale left TO
purchase a short beer. Plank was far
better yesterday than he was in 1905.
and of all the games we have ever
seen MathewsOn pit h this. undoubtedlS y.
was the greatest. Tine d:.y before he
had seen this cIUuting Athletic clan
tear the CORY hide OFF MaIquara aiiu "a
Crandall. And as he went to battle in
a game that he had to win to hold his
people in the fight, his main back
stop was on the bench with split paw
"a pitcher Was playing first base, ANA
an iHfielder was camped In center fleld.
Granted these men all did their part.
Yet the effect of working such game
with so many rents in the original line
up would have cracked the confidence .
OF almost any other man. But not
Nathewson. For him it merely meant
a little harder work-a trifle more to
do-a tougher fight TO face.
That Ninth Round.
And no one who saw that ninth round
will ever forget 1t. After eight innings
In which both pitchers had DESTROYED all
semblance OF an attack. 1t looked as II
the Mackian artillery had cracked the
Giant rampant at last. Strunk had
singled, Barry had hunted. and when
DOYLE pegged high and wide there we'e
runners on second and third with none
out and but one run needed to close the
gray days work.
II was here that Mathewson rose
above the occasion and 1t was here that
prof. Mack, in our humble opinion, blum
dered. Through fine work by Wiltse at
first. Strunk and Barry were nailed at
the plate. as Lapp and Plank pumped
short drives toward first. And then
Murphy closed the rally with an easy
poke TO the box.
Second Sight.
Second sight In any affair is of con-
sIderably more use than the first guess.
II Plank had pumped a fly to the out
field, nothing would have been said.
But after Lapp had failed with a runner
on third. and but one out, the logic OF
ne situation WAS that Mack, In such a