Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-03-06


8, he said, was official.
The above Associated Press dis
patch sets at rest all doubt as to when
the Three-Eye league will hold its
midwinter meeting, originally sched-
uIed for the first week of last Deem
Der. The meeting will be important,
although it has been lost sight of in
the fight over Rock Island which ter
minated last Thursday in favor of
the Three-Eye league. The principal
business before the meeting will be:
The arrangement of the circuit.
The adoption of a schedule.
Revision of the constitution.
The schedule-and it will not be a
split-season chart-will be adopted in
all probability in Moline this week.
II will provide for eight clubs and
will consist of 40 games. Frank Lam
deTs of Rockford has already submit
ted one scheme of dates. In this
schedule the season opens on April 81
with Davenport and Moline at home
and Rock Island on the road. Landers
is veteran schedule drafter and has
built charts for the Three-Eye III
years gone by.
Manager Pete Lister announced to-
day that he would be unable to give
out names Of players he had signed
until after the Moline meeting.
Biltz Signs With Lister.
According to story in the Decatur
Herald yesterday, Heine Biltz, out
fielder and julius Munich, catcher,
formerly Of the defunCt Decatur club.
have both signed with Rock Island
Three-Eye club. The story has it that
Biltz, in q letter to Munich, tells him
Of accepting terms with Pete Lister.
Biltz and Munich are both seasoned
men and considerable clouters.
Precedent is Set.
Handy Andy in the Chicago Tribune
Of yesterday, says: The Rock Island
decision, in which the national COM
mission reverses the finding of the
national board Of arbitration by decid-
ing that the Three-Eye league rather
than the Central association is en-
titled TO the territory, brings I'D many
interesting points in baseball jurisdic-
ton, and indeed produces the rara
avis, dissenting opinion in the YER
dict Of the triumVirate when John X
Tener differed with his colleagues, B.
B. johnson and Garry Hermann.
"Messrs. Johnson and Hermann. il
reversing the finding of the minol
league body, held that the statemen,
OF President Tearney that the Three
Eye league would occupy the TERRITORY
in 1915 or relinQuish it, could not be
enforced on the ground that the
league president had no authority tc
deprive his league Of vested rights
This no doubt is good logic, although
the Three-Eye league has never for.
mally repudiated such action, either
when it was first announced or since
The case has been under consideration
The basic law behind the decision
OF course is the fiye-mile limit rule
as both Moline and Davenport Three,
Eye league franchise holders are with,
IN five miles Of Rock Island. This
fTe-mile rule is something of which
the major league clubs are especially
jealous, and indeed the protection o.
territory is one Of the principal rea
sons for organized baseball.
President Tener in his dissenting
opinion questions whether TERRITORY
once occupied but later deserted be-
comes a vested and inalienable righI
of league. He argues that it Is I'M
just to baseball community to de-
priVe il for an unreasonable length
OF time just because it is claimed as q
territorial right Of another league.
In fact, his whole contention is in
behalf Of the rights of fans to have
baseball more than in regard to the
promises made and the technical dis,
putes Of this particular case"
All the news all the time-Tbe
Argus