South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1916-07-03
CHARLIE EBBETS
NOW COLLECTING
Squire of Brooklyn After
Thirty Years of Baseball
is Getting the Coin.
BY Frank 6. Menkc.

international News service
NEW YORK. July after more
than 80 years Of patience. Charlie
Elbets at last is beginning TO col
lect bulky dividends on his baseball
investment.
Shortly after Noah's skifi anchor
ed on the mount the Squire Of
Brooklyn began TO dabble in base
ball. Since somewhere along in the
early SOS. he has been a magnate.
Year after year he risked his
bankroll by tying il up in ball club.
Times innumerable ne finished the
season far behind in a financial way.
Once or twice. over that long sweep
of years, Ebbets ball club made
money for him-but the sum was
trihing. The Brooklyns were pro-
verbal taii-enders.
With his genius and his energy,
Ebbets might have gone into an
ether business and made a huge
fortune But he stuck 10 baseball.
He loved the game as a sport and
70 com bine his pleasure and mis- bus
mess all in one enterprise was an
ideal arrangement for him.
Waits 30 Years.
Patiently. hopefully. Ebbets waited
through. the years for a turn in the
tide of fortune-for a bit Of luck
that went TO other magnates but
always seemed to pass him by.
But the same refused TO smile
upon the owner Of the Brooklyn
Dodgers: instead of lettering, con-
ditions became worse.
The darkest hour is just before
dawn" goes an old sying, and il
never was truer than an the case of
Ebbets Just trife more than a
year ago he was in financial straits.
m such a plight that it was reported
on several occasions that he would
have to sell out his club to satisfy
creditors. How true these reports
we're, we cannot say with authority.
But il cannot be denied that when
the 1915 season began, Ebbets' wal
let was so thin that it hardly could
be noticed.
The outlook for 1915 was drearier
than any other in the long history
of the veteran magnate. His team
didn't size up at the outset as a
pennant possibility. Patronage in
the Dodger park promised to be the
smallest in many years, first because
the fans seemed TO have lost interest
IT. the game, second because the
I Dodgers weren't figured as a draw
I ing card and third. the Feds were
| intrenched in Brooklyn and were
making fight for popular favor.
And right at that time" Ebbets
7 told us. Il was assuming the bur
! den Of the biggest payroll l was ever
/ called upon to meet. Practically
every man on my roster then was
! drawing from $1,000 TO $4,000 more
7 than in other years. The Federal
! loaguers wanted my stars-and so
/ did L. That meant / had TO outbid
them. and, ] assure you, those fell
/ lows certainly did boost their figures.
! But / met them. ] didn't let one of
my good players get away"
Ebbcts is Rewarded.
Soon after the 1915 season began,
! the clouds rolled back-and the sun
began to shine through upon Eb-
bets. His team, to the surprise Of
the league. showed unexpected
strength. 1t jumped away from the
April barrier at a smashing clip and
on and on it went. Brooklyn fans.
/ accustomed TO seeing a sixth, seventh
or eighth place club. woke up to
TIE novelty of the situation Dodg-
er club in a pennant fight.
The fans came out-in droves.
The turnstiles clicked and clicked
and continued clicking. The Dodgers.
contrary TO predictions. didn't skid
in Junetime They fingered among
the leaders right into the April
/ stretch. Not until then were they
really beaten i'm the bunting race.
And the shekels poured in upon
Ebbets as they will do upon any
magnate whose club is in the race.
Ebbets who had feared another huge
financial setback when the season
began, found at the end that not
only had he cleared all expenses but
that his books showed a neat profit.
The Dodgers were one of the few
clubs in the big leagues last season
that cleared expenses.
Ebbets Golfers Filling.
Dame Fortune continues to smile
upon Ebbets. Probably she figures
that the veterans deserves a little
. reward at least for his 90 years OF
patience. The Dodgers as YOU prob
ably have noticed, are in the thick
est part of the 1916 pennant fracas.
They have outdrawn other clubs on
the road and they are averaging
close TO 10000 day at home. in
Guiding the usual $4,000 Saturday
crowd.
Huge as was the Dodger home at
tendance last year. that of 1916 will
so far beyond. The Brooklynites
during the first three months have
played 10 almost as many folks as
they did during the entire home at
tendance for 1915 At home and
on the road they already have drawn
almost three times as many fans as
they did in the entire six months
during the lean years.
II the Dodgers dropped out of the
: pcnnant fight night now, and didn Z
, draw more than a few hundred fans