Newark evening star and Newark advertiser., 1915-07-20


major league team As baggage he
brings his red-headed son, John Wesley
Jones When his wife died Jones prom
lsed never to forsate the child. and so
the youngster has lived baseball dia-
monds almost all his life.
THEY christened John Wesley
/ little Sunset" and he shone in
glory reflected from his fathers bril-
liant performance, and while Jones,
senior, was capturing the newspaper
men, Jones. junior, was making
friends among the players.
HE Amt bad KID" said Pete
Carr. And smart. too"
Like a razor" said "Walrus" Pot
ter, the change catcher
Gus Bergstrom, the mighty hitter
and the highest-priced baseball
player in the league, voiced no
opinion about the lad, but Carr
noticed that Bergstrom offered to lend
Brick Jones one of his bats, and as
the Terrible Swede seldom noticed a
recruit, Peter wondered what 1t
meant.
One night at the hotel Bergstrom
heard John Wesley ask his father for
\ baseball suit.
You're too little" said Jones.
walt q while.
The next day Bergstrom stole away
from the ball park, taking John Wes-
ley with him.
1--WE take a little walk" said Gus.
No one by looking at Gus or listen
ing to his conversation would ever
have suspected him of having soft
streak In his peculiar makeup, but
there was a white-halred girl in
Minnesota whom Bergstrom had been
trying to forget for ten years without
any great degree of success.
That walk brought them to a tailor
shop, and Gus produced from his
pocket two pieces of flannel, one gray
and the other white
II want for the kid two suits" said
Gus, "and you make 'em yust like a
big league uniform" :,
"Yes, sir; yes, sir, Mr. Bergstrom,"
said the tailor, fiuttered by near con-
tact with SO much greatness. Your
little boy?"
mo" said Gus. "I kind of adopted
him"
NOW, little faller," said Gus, as
they walked back to the park where
the members OF the team were prac-
ticing at running out bunts, don't
say a word. We surprise EN-"
John Wesley bobbed his head. He,
too, knew how to hold his tongue.
"Will have a cap like yours?" he
asked
"By Ylmmlny," said Bergstrom,
slapping his thigh with a resounding
smack, ~ forget the cap. and he re-
members It'll Sure You Will have
two caps"
The strange couple went back to
the ball park. hand In hand.
Pipe that big boob of Swede."
said sea Cow" Hamilton, tho
pitcher. Zones, I'll be that fellow
has been filling your kid up on Ice
cream soda or some other fool stuff"
''Yust a little secret we have to-
Ketherl" said Bergstrom, grinning
n HAT night the Terrible Swede
1 sent for pens, ink and paper, and
lahoriously sweated out an order for
4 two caps, two pairs Of stockings and
one small pair of spiked shoes and a
glove, the same as you make for
me-" This done. Bergstrom addressed
an envelope to tho sporting goods
house which supplied the Apaches
with their uniforms and equipment.
Slipping downstairs, he dropped the
letter into the box.
Tho day before the Apaches left tho
spring training ground for the North
ley into his room, and there fitted
him out from head to foot. complete
from the button on the top of the cap
to the tiny spikes on the soles of the
seven-dollar shoes.
'Now, you're q genuine big Lacquer.
kid" said Gus. II guess we show
them other fallers. hey7"
Next day the ball players swarmed
aboard their special car. and that
Ia
up, the porter saw a strange sight.
Gus Bergstrom the highest priced
man in baseball, the greatest hitter
of the decade, the man who had
shaken hands with two presidents and
shaken his fists at millions of ordinary
citizens, sat in the smoking compart-
ment of the car, painfully sewing but
tons on a pair of knickerbockers.
"That Yones, he don't know that it
somebody don't fix these pants, tho
kid won't have nothing to hitch his
suspenders to-" said Gus IN a lamo
attempt at explanation.
Thus early in his acquaintance with
the Jones family, the numbering Berg
strom placed his finger upon the weak
spot in the relation between father
and son. Charlie Jones had been
good husband and proud parent, but
when 1t came to caring for the daily
wants of his small son he was as
helpless as a hen In duck pond.
Almost from the very first little sun
set became the charge of the entire
team, and particularly the charge Of
the silent and sometimes taclturn
Bergstrom. It was with feeling of
relief that Jones watched the process
of adoption.
7 TITLE SUNSET amazed the ball
~ players by his easy acquisition OF
all sorts OF baseball knowledge. Like
his father. who was fast making big
league reputation, Little Sunset