Omaha daily bee., 1914-11-01
Judgments

Of the Cubs TO have as good a
~ team as Frank Chance once had
at tho West Side park when the
gong rings for 1915. That Is some Job to
set q man, to say the least. Mr.. Taft
has the money to buy such club but
the trouble Is that so have several other
gentlemen, so that the thing is not as
easily done as said. The fact OF the
matter is, as experience shows, great
base ball machines. such as the Chance
Cubs, are not built up over night, not
even In one short midwinter season. It
is generally the work OF years OF patient
effort Such a machine may be dis
mantled and destroyed in a twinltling, to
be sure, as Charley Webb Murphy DEM
onstrated. but not built up. Misther
Murphy. after swelling his shoestring
into a million. and his head along with
It, set out to destroy the old Chance ma
chine and succeeded completely. But be-
fore he had time to show whether he
was equal to the task of reconstruction,
he himself. was deservedly destroyed.
Now, not only has it been impossible for
Murphy's successors thus far to build
another pennant winning team on the
ruins he left, but II has likewise failed
fidence in the management OF the Cubs
The wanton and indefensible treatment
which Chance and Evers-to say nothing
of Brown, Ffeister, Holman, Del Howard
and others-received from Murphy, still
stands against the club ownership. What
was Roger Bresnahans word when ap-
preached on the management? An iron
clad contract, guaranteeing him against
hn t,ar NI,,4 a.
Evers. So that building up a club for
the Cubs is a bigger job than merely
spending money. 1t is not surprising
that Mr.. Tafe has grown sick of condi-
tions, but with every other team in the
league striving for supremacy, supremacy
does not come to any in a day.
Omaha ended tho season with one
pitcher. Dan Tipple, and the draft took
him. 1t was ever thus. In the mean
time. should Daniel fail TO stick with the
team that SHARED him. would Omaha be
sure to get him back7 No. Gertrude,
there is where one the Grossest injustices
and inequities OF the laws of base ball
comes in. Omaha would have no more
chance to recover the tall blonde than
any other team that wanted him and
Omaha's experience has been, in similar
cases, that the other team usually got
the goods. Yet the majors wonder why
we have such things as Federal leagues
and rantankerous minors.
David Fultz, head of the Players
Fraternity, together with the heads and
leading magnates, as we'll as others of all
the big leagues and little ones, is to at
hA h. /,
association. Indications are that this
will be the most historic assembly the
Eolons Of base ball have held for many
long year, If not in the history Of the
game 1t is. therefore, well that the
meeting is to be held in Omaha, the hub
Of the nation. It's too bad our new
Fontenelie hotel will not be ready for
occupancy by tho time OF this conven-
tion, but the visitors will be cared for in
true Omaha style, that's sure.
President O'Neill and other minor
moguls are strong for the reduced pay
In the minors. We rather fancy that a
few healthy cuts in salaries will have tc
be made in the majors. as well. II the
game is 70 get back on its feet as firmly
as 1t must to succeed. 1t may be al
right to kick on paying a fast minor $S5t
TO $500 a month but it is our guess that
is no more out of proportion with box
receipts than some OF those ten, fifteen
and twenty thousand salaries in the ma,
jors. The fact is, OF course, the money
emphasis on base ball must be lightened
or the thing is gone.
Philadelphia may be the City Of Broth,
I hrtf a.,
goat on that. too. II was the Bostor
Reds that whipped the ginger out Of tn,
Athletics in the closing games Of IN,
American league season. weakening theil
nerve undoubtedly for the worlds battle
with the Boston Braves.
This heah mild sortah weathah must
Ehowly be due to the fact that Mistah
Chick Autrey is spending the winter in
our mldst-or said he was going-ta- BY
the way have any OF you all seen the
Chicken?
Well, there Is this about that talk OF
Johnny Gonding as an umpire-now fully
three years old-if he was put on the Jot
the Western league would have one UNI
pire, at least,
Fielder Jones was quoted as saying tha'
he wouldn't go over $4,000 year on {
salary offer to Walter Johnson. What
no more than twenty?
All in favor OF a pennant-winner fol
Omaha next season kindly Taise you
hands. That will do, hands down. Unani
nous Pa
Dick Cooley is gone again from tn
Western league and We don't care II h
never comes back.
How's the Stove league? We nominat
Carney OF the Merchants hotel for presi
dent.
Has anybody here seen Hickory John
son?