The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-03-24
CACTUS CRAvATH, 33 T0BAE, HAD HARD
 CLIMB TO THE TOP

Of all the toiling patient pIodders who ever attained fame on the dia- mond Cactus Cravath, the swattIng terror of the PhilIies for a couple of annuns, is entitled to the belt The career of the hard hitting Cactus, z where he was born just t11irty-three years ago today proves all the old copy book proverbs about persever- ance meeting its just reward If the Californian had permitted rebuffs and discouragements to get his goat, he fore he arrived anywhere near the top of the ladder.
 CIifford c. Cravath is the name tagged to Cactus by his parents but Tn the course Of time the Clinord prefix was forgotten and he became ..Gavys' and at subsequent period Cactus . At the age of sixteen he started life as a. telegraph operator just like Thomas A. Edison, Andrew Carnegie and other celebrated men. He variegated his occupation of brass pounder by playing ball in San Diego uniform on Sundays and holi- days. A t that period his ambition was to become d mere railroad presa- dent, and he had no thought of reaching the heights of baseball fame One day Cravath was reading about the tremendous salary paid to a. cer- tain baseball star that was the era before the income tax, when press agents could go as far as they liked
 and it set the youngster to think ing. Suddenly he broke out into song.
 1T wanta be an angel ' he caroled.
 Cravath wasn't hankering for pair of wings and d golden harp, you understand. He had just decided to become a professional ball player. and, as Los Angeles was the nearest  his new ear3e With the Afgsls.
 So it came to pass that in the year A. D. 1908 Cravath was enrolled as an Angel in good and regular stand ing, playing the outer garden for the Los Angeles club He vasn't very sso-so. He waa slow on his tootsies, and his fielding was far from speetac- l1lar, and for four years he batted well under the 300 mark In his fifth session he suatted the pill for sS0S, and this made him look good enough for a. try-out in the majors.
 The Boston Red Sox gave Cactus his first chance in the main show. H 6 was used as a. substitute ouffie1d- or during the early part of the 1908 season, but long before the year closed Boston tied a. can to him White Sox but he wasn't good enough to last, an d was turned over to Washington He wasn't even fast enough for the Senators Of that pe- riod, and when the 190s season open ed Cravath was back in the minors.
 During the next three years Min neapolIs claimed Crayathss services. He bafted s26 in 1s1 and .S6s in 19 H. and at the close Of the season the Adi1Iefs sold him to the Phillies for s4 s00e.
 Cravath was used as g pinch hit ter by the Phil1les, and on an occasion now historic was sent up to bat when there were two men on bases and two out. Incid dentaIly. MT. Christopher M athews son was the opposing pitcher. Cactus landed on the pellet for through trip around the bases.
 That feat won a regular job for Cactus with the PhiInes He batted 284 in 1912. and in 1918 he batted .S4I standing next to Daubert among the National League regu- lars. Last year Cactus didn't do as well with the swat stick, but he was right up among lem. Cravath still lives in California and has a home at La guna where he spends the winter. months