The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1918-12-06

sion nTrIe bit Ont Of the forty try
Ing for the team. tweRty-eight insist
ed on being catcher. They wanted TO
wear that mask. IL there had been a
camera, each Of the forty would have
had photo taken Of himself wearing
the "wire cage" Here was a great
dilemma. At that time / was only a
private. and there were sergeanfs. cor
porals, and even an officer, who want
ed to catch. Stewart again came to
the rescue. Calling me aside, he said
leave 1t to me, Emp, I'll fix 'em.
III try out each one Ia turn. Let them
wear the mask, and I'll send in some
curves. and when the bali cracks them
on the shins a couple of times you
couldn't pay 'em to put on the cage
The TDmnies were strange TO curved
balls. and Stewart had speed. 1t did
my heart good to see him dampen their
ardor and dent their anatomy at the
same time. The Tommies would see
\ the ball coming to them and would
reach up their hands to get IT, Then
the ball would "break" and bit them
on the shin or knee. After i've or six
had retired, rubbing sore spots and
cussing Stewart out, no one else want
| ed to catch, and the situation was
saved.
Tommy is a natural born soccer
| player and clever with his feet, but
stupid with his hands when 1t comes
to baseball. Several Of them had a
bad habit of stopping grounders with
their feet, especially our shortstop. He
would see hot grass eater coming his
way, then, instead Of using his hands,
he would put his foot in front Of it.
The bali would climb his leg and get
him on the chin or in the eye. After
receiving a puffed-up lip and beauti-
full black eye. he fatty refused to play
upIess would let him wear the mask.
Americans, picture shortstOp wear
ing a eatcher's mask, and then sym.
pathize with Stewart and me. The
shortstop was a sergeant, and through
diplomatic reasons. I gave the mask
to him. At this every indelder wanted
to wear it. Stewart solved the prob
lem by putting in another shortstoI
and giving me the mask.
In England they have a game called
| FOUNDERS" in which you are sup
! posed to hit the baserunner with this
, BAH to put him ont. This is general
ly tennis ball and does not hurt YER
. much.
Well, those Tomnies had a habit o
II 10 al 81
/ might at the unfortunate runner. Man.
an early practice was broken up thi
, way. because the team would lose in
terest in baseball when they had
; chance to view a fight between a give
J and receiver.
After about ten days practice W
5 had picked two pretty fair teams an
: arranged for a scrub game. Stewart
side won. due to his pitching.
/ Then, as is usual in baseball, thing
| began TO happen A jinx seemed |
rest on our candidates. Every time "
| had to go up the line on a workin
party, one or two of the players woul
get wounded or killed; in fact. bein
baseball player got to be perfec
LII
getting superstitious. If one of on
team happened TO be working anon
ten or twelve other company men, b
was sure TO get hit, while the other fe
] lows came through without scratch
1 Stewart and 1 also began to get fright
/ ened, and decided to chuck up th
| whole thing before we got it ourselves
II Then We went further back benin
| the lines. During this stay we rounde
/ out passable team.
HI, A Canadian battalion, Just sent OF
from England. on their way
''Wipers.n went into billets about
mile from us. This was our ehane
Il Stewart went over and challenge
1 them TO game for the following SUI
day. The challenge was accepted.
III We had a weeks time in which
a strengthen some weaknesses and
teach the bunch little inside has
ball. Then the jinx popped up again
On the morning of the game wit
" the Canadians, our cleyerest infielde
Il the first baseman, picked up an o.
!. German hand grenade and brought
to the billet. This man was a gre;
. souvenir collector; always hammerir
g at -dud' shells, trying TO remove Il
a nose-caps.
). Seeing him fooling around with Il
4 German bomb. / told him TO throw
d away; that one could never trust tho
A. things. and that did not want to tai
any chances of losing a first basemaT
D. but being Of a naturally curious disp
If Sition. he refused to do so. Taking Il
3 bomb out behind the billet. he procee
ed to take liberties with its mocha
k ism; result. right hand blown of ar
4. another vacancy TO be filed at fir
b base. What we said about him won
it not be fit for publication.
1t The game was scheduled for tv
<. o'clock. and exactly at one-thirty-fi'
IT Mr.. Fritz plunked a stray five MIN
ID shell into our infield between hon
it and first base. making a hole b
"a / aDo,,0b en-- q lipnhar RI bids en- Th