The Alaska citizen., 1915-10-25
BASEBALL IS SKILLED LABOR
tHans Wi@n,r n Phils lelphia LedEer)

patton. and there are some bdrberS who don't talk your head off. l might have been either had not base ball become the national pastinae and afforded me an opportunity to makeg my living playing short stop.
 And let me say right here that I consider baseball skilled labor, just the same as watchmaking pat tern making or any other line of work. have heard it said that star ball players were born, but you show m" the man who can hit 300 or make wonderful stops baci, of second base and I'll show you a man who has spent years learning to do those things properly. Any man might get away with a thing on the diamond once or twice through pure luck, but to do it day after day he has to practice and become skilled at his job in the old school of experience.
 My brother Al was my mentor in a baseball way. and, in nly younger days. my boss as well, and it took some coaXing and lots of bluffing on his part to make me take base ball seriously I liked to play the game-loved it. guess you could say But did not see why mould ta tied down to any one team or place wanted to play when l felt like it and the way felt like doing it.
 We'll as I said, might have been coal miner or barber, for I worked at both jobs But l can not say that life would ever have offered me any other special oppor- tunity. I have had many offers of good things, but I'm frank to admit they all come through my success in baseball
 It has always struck me as funny that as Wagner, member of the Pittsburg club, people stare at me on the street and offer me money for doing what to me seem absurd things, such as appearing on the stage, when as Wagner, the coa, miner or barber they wouldn't have really known that l was alive. Of course l know that the publicity I have been fortunate enough to gain because I have played base ball did it, but I cant make myself believe that I am a different man from what I would have been had I dug coal or shaved faces. Do you get the idea?
 Speaking of opportunities which have come to me, one of these came from W. H Coleman. now member of congress from PennSyl- vania About 10 years ago MT Coleman stopped me on the street ere day afrer a ball game and on behalf of the County Committee he offered me the nomination SGn sheriff Now, I didn't know a thing about hanging a man and did not care o learn how to do it.
 No, I cant accept the nomina tion,' l said to Mr Coleman. T think I'll stick to the job of hang ing up base hits instead of hanging criminals
 "Stuffy" McInnis, the star first baseman of Connie Mack's Athlet- ics, has an offer of s36,000 from the Federal league under considera- tion
 The Newark Club of the Federal league. has completed arrangements for a three years lease of Harrison park at a yearly rental of $20,000
 The question, How do the Phillies manage to remain at the tOp?' has been asked The answer is simple enough-Alexander and Cravath The two stars furnish abundant impetus to the attack and stability to the defense AleX5 nder has won twen ty-siX games this season. eleven of which have been shut-outs Cravath has made twenty-one home runs
 Late reports from Cornell uni versity state that there is no fur ther doubt regarding the complete recovery of Rowing Coach Courtney who suffered fracture of the skull previous to the intercollegiate regatta at Poughkeepse, late iii June. Courtney has made steady improvement during the last two months, and is expected to be able to supervise the fall crews work at Ithaca. although it is likely that he will leave much of the detail to John Hoyle. Unless there is some unforeseen setback during the next few months, Courtney will be in full charge of the rowing destinies of Cornell when the crews take the water early next spring.
 More than sSO,00o was literally shot away last month at the Chi cago gun tournament. The money represents the amount spent by the shooters for the fun of feeling the kick of the gun, smelling gun powder, and hearing the yell of the scorer calling out dead" after each bird was shattered in bits. A total of Sl2,000 was spent solely for ammunition. The shells cost $30 per thousand and about 100000 were used during the tournament Trapshooting is an amateur sport pure and simple
 The tennis prestige which the west established during the national all-comer tournament was badly shaken in the international matches when eastern cracks swept the field. The California contingent failed to win a match. The big upset of the day was the victory of R. Nor ris Williams H., of Philadelphia, 19ll champion, over William M John ston, the national champion, who made tennis history the previous week by defeating three of the greatest stars the game has ever known-Williams Bohr and Me Loughlin-in as many days. The scores were 6-4, O-6. 69 and 6-4.