The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-11-28
TRAVELLING TAX No
BAR TO BASEBALL
Meet Railroad and Pull
man Burden.
EACH TEAM TO PAY sl,f0o

Secretary of Giants Suggests That
lower PLAYER IAmit Would Meet
New Costs.
Secretary John r. Foster. OF the
Giants, has compiled a few statistics
TO show that the wa tax on railroad
and Pullman fares is not going to
be sc great burden as some of the
baseball club owners have tried to
make out Mr. Foster points out that
much of the talk OF the calamity
howlers is groundless, and that the
war taxes on each club VIII not be
so large Ga to make 1t difficult for
each team TO shoulder the burden.
The average mileage of a major
league baseball club during the sea-
son Is about II 900 miles. Pittsburg
usually has the greatest mileage be-
cause II makes more trips TO the
Western cities for Sunday games than
any Of the other clubs. and the I'i-
rates figures usually go above 1900
miles. Secretary Foster figures that
the 3 per cent tax on railroad fares
and the 0 per cent on Pullman tick
cts viii mean cost of about sl.l0o
a season for each club. So Uncle
Sans tax on the sixteen ira veling
baseball clubs OF both major leagues
next season will amount to about SiS,-
aoo
An additional cost Of more than
81 eee club for the season is. &c
cordinE to Mr.. Foster. nothing fer
the club owners TO SIT up nights wor-
fytng about AZ for additional costs
~ hotels, Mr. Foster doubts II the
prices will be much higher than the+
we're last season. The additional cost
IF baseball through war taxes and the
advanced cost of living. Mr. Foster
believes. can be me- easily by cut
liag the PLAYER Limit to eighteea or.
twenty players Mr. Foster I~ an
optjmiFt concerning the conditions IN
baseball. and although the clubs VIII
ne hit rd through the draft, he secs
40 reason why the clubs cannot SO
fieht along with the players wEo are
available
President Edward G = Barrosz 81
fne TntcrnatioHaI league, cnt hack "a
his office yesterday for the frst time
since the minor league rowwow i'm
Louisville n few weeks ago. when toe
pet scheme al Mr.. Barrow and ZEN
Johnson for . uew toT league wee
voted down hy the National sssHa cl.-
ton
II the promoters ot the new circuit
had money enough Fhe plan Womb
have been adopted According 20 tine
rules OF the national agreement. pro
visiou is made fer compulsory com.
pensaiion1to clubs which ara dropped
BY league for the purpose Of In
a1t a M IA mr..
ganization OF higher c4a~s. THIS Was
one Of the fundamental principles Of
organized baseball and II would flaye
been necessary for the promoters Of
the uew circuit as ornpensate four
International league clubs and four
~ the American association. A prop
oMition OF this sort To satisfy the In
iurad feelings OF the four clubs in
each circuit. which were TO have been
left out in the cold. would have en-
tailed an outlay Of large amount
Of money.
Another barrier which stood In the
way and which was pointed ont by
Chairman Hermann, ~ the National
commission. makes II plain that no
club In any circuit can be dropped
IL the club has fulfilled tts contractu-
raj obligations except that adequate
compensation he made for It's privi~
EGEe ana territory. W 0i8e UNANIMOUS
consent of all the clubs In both the
International league and American
association was necessary to put
through this scheme, there was not
even d majority OF the clubs on either
circuit willing TO vote for II So the
Union league or the Continental
league, or whatever they wsre going
to call 1t. perisaed, If leagues were
permitted to reorganixe in this way
70 eliminate the weaker clubs, base
ball would defeat It's own ends, nc~
eording to the opinion or baseball or
fcials-
President Johnson continues 10 rx-
plain his suggestion about the exemp-
ton of players to keep the major
lea CUES up to their high standard next
season In q statement given out In
Chicago Sunday the American league
head, among others things. admitted:
Fully 90 per cent of tho PLAYERS in