The daily sentinel., 1914-05-06
BASEBALL EHTHUSES
VOLUbLE FREHCHMEH
Visit to World Touring Teams
HeightenS Interest in Our
National Sport.
Associated Press.


Paris. France May 6.-There are
many indications that baseball Will
gain real foothold in France this
year. The visit of the New York
and Chicago teams will be followed
by organized effort on the part of
many OF the French admirers of the
American game to popularize Ii here
one CT the handicaps to the growth
OF bast Ill in France oddly has been
the conservation of national re-
sources. Open grounds favorabIy
located are at a premium and land
owners have been loath to cut down
their trees to make room for
diamonds. This prejudice is being
overcome to some extent, however.
The Racing club of France. which
already has a ball ground on its ex-
tensiye property outside of Paris. Is
planning to lay out three more
diamonds this spring. Arrangements
nave not yet developed to the league
or association stage, but games will
be played between teams of the rae
ing club and school boys. especially
the American boys of the Latin
quarter, and number of games will
be played at Etretat, Havre. and
other French cities. The concident
development of the game in Spain
is noted in a challenge from a nine
in Barcelona. which the racing club
has accepted.
Those in Paris who hope to see
baseball interest increase here ex-
pect considerable assistance from the
French army training school. Four
members of the school have already
undertaken to introduce and teach
the game the coming summer. These
instructors have thoroughly studied
all the rules of play and all the Eng
lish terms which are used.
The pronunciation by the French
youths is amusing to Americans
especially as to foul" which is
termed fool and fly" which they
call flea"
W. H. Burgess one of the Ameri-
cans here who is particularly inter-
ested in baseball and who acts as UNI
pire at some of the games, declares
that sports generally have not made
the same progress in France as in
some other countries, and he ex-
plains numerous causes.
Besides the difficulty of getting
playing fields" he says. the hours
of the French school boy are extra
ordinarily long. The average pupil
is at his desk at s o'clock in the
morning and is not released until G,
whereas in the United States gener-
ally in the public schools, the boys
leave their desks OF from to 3.
This gives them several hours for re-
taxation, which is devoted to ball
playing or other forms Of sport. The
school boys holiday here is Thurs
day instead of Saturday Also
when French children want to par
ticipate in a baseball game they are
generally. required to tell their pa
rents the names of the children with
whom they intend to play. If certain
boys are not of equal station the pa
rents refuse to allow them to play
and this feeling of class tends to him
der the development OF baseball
among the youth. Nevertheless the
progress the past season was ex-
ceedingly rapid and | look for
greater advancement in popularity
the coming season"
The election of Count Ellie de Bes-
iade d d'Avaray as president of the
Jockey club Is a triumph for the
Younger element in that stronghold
of aristocracy.. The older members
had fixed their choice successfully
on the Due de Luynes; Prince Murat,
the Duke de la Rochefaucauld and
others. but without effect. The
Count d'Avaray was the candidate of
third section, an outsider, but
the younger element failing to elect
their man on the first ballot, rallied
around d 'Avaray and elected him.
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