The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1914-12-14
0. B. HOWlS JOKE
As FED MACNATES
STEAL REAL STARS
Leaders Fail to Recognize
Stability Of Outlaw Organ
ization Opening Second
Season.
az FRANK q. MENkE.

NEW YORK, Dec. 14.-1f you want
to have a good laugh don't pay two
bits to sit In at a musical comedy,
Just interview an organized baseball
magnate on the subject Of the Federal
league. You'll get more giggles in ten
minutes than you'll get over a three
hour stretch In theatre.
Just recently one OF these magnates
was interviewed. The gentleman ask
ed. "Please don't mention my name"
Probably he made such a request fear
Ing that some BOBBY hatch keeper
might read the article, discover his
identity, and at once make room for
\ new inmate.
What the Magrate Said.
This magnRte. who was ranked as a
rational citizen until the Feds began
hacklin the little baseball trust. had
this to say:
"The Feds are signing up our stars
In an attempt to bluff us into making
peace with them. They never Will
open the 1915 season"
In other words, according to this
party. the Federal league magnates
have bound themselves in an iron
clad way to pay out at least $25O00O
to about dozen ball players whom
they have signed during the last few
weeks, Just for the pleasure OF seeing
those ball players write their names
on a slip Of paper.
Most OF the magnates In organized
baseball can not get 1t into their heads
that the Federal league IL anything
but a rip roaring Joke. The longer
they persist in that attitude the more
costly It will be for them. If they don't
connect with the real situation very,
very shortly they will wake up In
April to find that the Federals have
Just about as many big league stars
in their ranks az has organized base
ball
While the organized moguls are
shouting coke" the Feds are going
along on their way signing up the
stars and building for 1915. they are
moving along without halt. without
missing an opportunity. Each day they
are making further inroads into the
old leagues.
Hold Game Views.
The attitude taken by the magnates
who insist that the Feds are still
blufY,ng is about rs foolish an attitude
as can be taken. But the strange fact
Is that this magnate Is not alone in
his opinion. Some of his fellow mag
seem blind to the true state or af1alrs ;
they seem to have lost almost entirely
their reasoning power. And they seem
unmindful Of the ever increasing men.
ace to their interests that the Federal
league means.
Those who think the Feds Will not
omen the 1915 season are wrong. Inc
Feds will open in 1915, just as they
opened In 1914, and the Feds. without
doubt, will draw far better In 1915 than
they did In 1914.
When they opened in 1914 they were
a novelty at first. They drew we'll al
their openings. Then the novelty wore
off and the patronage dropped OH
The war and general business depres
sion came along and made condltlohs
worse. The Feds during the latter
part of the season did not draw ever
half as we'll as they would have drawn
in normal business times. But ever
at that they didn't lose SUCH huee
lunches Of money as organized Dase
ball Is trying to bunk the puollc llt'
believing they lost.
In 1915 the Federal league opens al
an established organization. II VII
omen with business conditions far pet
ter than they were last year IL VII
open with some greater stars In III
ranks than ever before. 1t Will opel
with Benny Knauff and lot OF othe
Youngsters developed in the league las
year TO act as drawing CARDS.