The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1914-07-12
PLAYING BALL IN
ANCIENT AMERICA

Play Bawi" La not as new an ex-
preston of popular Impotence to
have some one start something as
some people may think. Neither is
playing ball for a living strictly
modern invention In fact, hundreds
of years ago. way down in Yucatan.
impatient crowds sat around IN ball
parks. yelled themselves hoarse, beat
Que another In the back. and threw
their feather headgear into the arena
in the enthusiasm Of the moment. just
a s we are doing today. Also there
doubtless were Ty Cobhs whose skill
In batting" and fielding was such
that they could afford 10 hold up the
managsment occasionally for few
more hundred Jaguar skins n year by
threats to quit professional ball and
go to farming.
OF course. the game was not exact
" baseball. But the point is that IL
was IA ball game, that there regular
ball parks-or courts--and that there
were professionals who played the
game for what there was 'in IT, to
them. Mayhap the medium OF ex-
change took the form of Jaguar skins,
pounds of cacao, fancy feathers. or
what not. but it was money all the
same, and they could buy with It at
the club. or In the market place, as
the case might he. They had their
peculiar systems OF slang. too, at least
in some parts OF the Americas. which.
translated into English means about
as much to US as ours would to them :;
all OF which Is brought out by Mr..
Franklin Adams in his story, I'm
digenous Games in Latin America" In
the July number of the Monthly Bull
letin of the Pan-American union.
Washington, y. c. That the ball game
ia an ancient institution In the Ameri-
cas- may be gathere from the follow
ing:
The ball game Ia indigenous to the
Americas. Perhaps the first siniian
inhabitants found true sport In catch
ing the cocoanuts tossed from the tall
palms--certain it Is that several thou =
sand years ago the bail game had
reached high state of development
in the seventy cities scattered through
out Yucatan On clearing away tho
matted forests enveloping these mar
velous ruins, ball courts were disclos-
ed near the most sacred temples. and.
from the elaborate hieroglyphics and
pictogra phs ornamenting the walls,
much was learned OF the complicated
character of the sport. Centuries af-
ter the passing OF these ancient Ma
vans, came the first Spanish explorers
who found that younger race in
contiguous territory. the Aztecs. had
revived the old pastime into ma
tional game" with a stone God OF
Sport" beaming on every court
THE popularity of these early
games was that the ball, when In
play. was not thrown with the hand.
but struck by the hip. around which
the player wore a protecting pad Of
leather. At each end of the court
was a great stone disk with a hole
in the center, and through this ORR
flee the ball was driven before point
was scored. Very naturally Give
"" ball was used. since rubber trees
dominated the forests.
"O1d chroniclers marvel at the skill
and endurance Of the players. for a
game was seldom won under four
hours of constant play. Such ex-
hausting contests, with dozen par
Elephants in almost constant action,
were not for amateurs. but for pro-
fessionals Thus. from the Aztec
word olli. signifying ball" came the
mollonqui. zone who plays ball for a
living"
Another form OF ball game ia play
ed by the Indian tribes Of the Gu
du.arv river region In the wilds Of
Brazil A carefully leveled field lies
in front of the malokas. or large COM
munal houses. and daily. at O'Clock
the men returning from the days fish,
ing or hunting. indulge In the sport
not a complicated game like that
Of the early Mexicans. but one calling
for high degree of skin. a. two balls
are used by the players. who drive
ponents. Yellow tail feathers OF the
nonents. Yellow tall feathers Of the
Yapoo bird are affixed to the rubber
balls for accuracy.
The Araucanian Indians OF south
ern Chile play an ancient game with
wooden balls driven by wooden clubs
In clearing. 500 by seventy-dve
yards. Enclosed by cut branches OF
trees. these Indians play chueca,
which greatly resembles Ia crosse or
field hockey. The game II played from
childhood and the players acquire
great skill, and the matches draw
large crowds. The game calls for
great endurance, and while generally
played in two or three hour periods
several days have been known to pass
49, .