Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-11-05
PERSONAL TOUCHES
IN SPORT
A REAL BASEBALL POEM
I'm thinking of the old days.

I'm thinking OF tho old days.
AhG But q OF pSRRoin whom We We hear hear no St more ~
And thinking also Of expressions which
We're families in that age .,,.,
Which would head the sporting page.
Or, Tho Birds put up scrappy game,
Because of Big Del's clout.
And. The Big Four had on their batting
Though ,'ola Hoss was a Bear,
And how Buck Ewing wound up the game
When he 'hew to McAleer."
Then on the field new stars appeared.
Likswise expressions dear,
As, ''Matty to the rescue went
Or, Hans sees his last year"
From Tinker to Evers to Chance
Or Larry put the game on ice"
or, JACK sheridan stood in a trance.
Cobb steals foh1i"n home With III. winning rum
while Milan stole, three bags today.
But the Nationals lose again"
But the phrase that seems destined to llnssr
Is "coiiins 18th then n" whipped frTTn Sut a sinr,s
And Baker tripled him hOms,'
Western exchange throws some interesting
light on the baseball situation in this wise:
players in receipt OF big salaries today, that
's the cRnny ones, sailing a nice little
hoard away in the pork barrel pending the
time when $4,000 will again be a mans size
payment for six months cavOrtlng on the dia-
mond for two hours easy day, some days.
The preposterous sums now being received
by players cannot continue. Probably some
OF the contracts now held will never be paid
of in full on their present annual basis. For
it's a certainty that all the clubs in the three
big leagues will not be in existence after
another year. Players with contracts signed
by defunct corporation have very large and
juicy chances to be left out IN the snow side
Of the front dooE about that period
speakeT $iSoo0; Walter Johnson. any
Cobb. slb, ,OO0-and other such Arabian Nights
,W%ealth,hsrders, VIII BE- cut down 70 somsthlng
such men money-they're nearly worth a bank
er's saiary-6ut for the rank and ile, the $1,000
men now drawing $4,000 to $4,000, they're the
ones whom the maEnate's little coupon cutters
are going to snip heavily
And It's the saving boy who will remember
the war kindly as he hies Ger the pages OF
his bank book. thankful that he baled his hay
while the timothy was hourishing.
Contrary. to the general belief. there are
more athletes handicapped BY overwhelming
the ability Of an athlete 70 perform in a giyen
event is not propOrtlonate to the amount OF
STsd By his Natural nervous snersy' ot oourss
athletes have to train, but in many cases
fairly good heights 10 the sporting world they
often overestimats their nervous energy and
thus impair their efficiency, Some athletes,
but very few, have been able 20 surpaEs their
ssliog9s by paying little sat attention 70 training
ball playeTs-SteyansOn, the University OF
PennsyvaniA's greatest quarterback, and VIII
lie Heston, the great Michigan halfback
Often they disoheyed the fundamental prln-
their big games they played remarkable foot
ball. They were endowed with 50 much nsr-
Yous energy that neither too much nor too
little training was able to sap their vitality
The average athlete, however, can often use
himself completely Up In an EFFORT 70 become
efficient BY oyerzealous work In practice OF
course Il IL essential that clean living 20
hand In hand with athletic success, but a too
large amount OF hard setimmage work Tor a
baseball game or In any other sport Is apt
10 take the edge on training
How different the recent election was from
some others, All Ban" johnson has to do
Is 10 call himself to order. nominate hIms9if
second the motion and then declare himself
unanimously chosen.
Ban Johnson declares that he Is going
to discipline "Hughey'' Jennings because the
Detroit manager let slip the information that
Connie" Mack had asked waivers on Bender
Plank and coqmh9 Just what Ban r going
e 90 s are messs s ekasees kaSssss'Ps aFs
i'TfuEhsy' will not be amer; he won't lose
his JOB, because Navin would raise too great
4 howl for even tha dauntless Ban" There
ars two shinga lSft Tor Ban" 70 DO, either
gaEsments ana stay home nights or promise
that he Will be good In the future, The last
e tha most probable form that the diseiplin-
ing vii take.