Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-10-06
FRENCH SOLDIERS LEARN
GREAT AMERICAN CAME
Illinois High School Teacher, James
Il. Nelson, introduced Sport
Among Poilus.
TEACHING WAS NO SMALL JOB
Was Hard for His Scholars to Learn
to Throw and to Hit the Ball, but
They Were Earnest Students, and
Soon Caught On"
ny l.. A. DATCHELoR.

creditable an account OF himself as
the American OF The same age. tnere
VIII be a wild rush to claim credit
for having introduced the American
national game in the land of the Tri-
color. Dozens of men will doubtless
bob up and assert that they are the
p pjayeefss enGns bi9 S,d the b9 5nl
who clamor Tor recognition will be
some who undoubtedly have done much
have aided in making the game popu-
lar among the French. y ". c. a.
asSs s all hnds Of ar Go
men and workers for the Jewish Wei
fare Board have encouraged its spread.
whom the eredi, Of being the first 10
show the French soldier how 10 play
BAL eaii. honestly bsi;ondgs If i can ian be
heard He is rot that kind Of a man.
II it were not for the praise that his
you'd have achieved ev 'i the Small
recognition that this article can be-
stow.
TO HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER
JAMES a. NELSON GOES CREDIT
III. a high school teacher, is the man
Who really introduced the game Of
wa@ s9 the poSh 15y In ebs snee
TO adopt. It seriously. He has paid
baseball man" With his health. Sew
ersl months OF unceasins labor as a
Ne d1 soaI IN S Sns P e ses
that he had 10 go hack to America on
hopes TO return to France in the spring
and take up baseball and other sports
where he left off in August. Over
work was the diagnosis. and Nelson
was in such bad shape that he had 10
be assisted to board the steamer home
ward bound But though his legs have
snd he is ,dete rmined 70 .ry Il again:
sui,ory way, and most OF the games
Ere after trying It politely
usually had given it UP as hopeless be-
cause there was no one to teach him
be learned from books: it has to be
demonstrated and explained by some
ne wh? IS Neson Wien h.
assigned 10 the rest. camp with the
French army, he found the men hungry
ideally none OF their own and eagerly
adopted the games that the American
chief n among msn ,hese sas f baseball The
lob OF teaching tho Yankee pastime
10 men that never had seen II before
one Who who wa was the leas, bit afraid OF
work. and who had anything hut an
is stock Of paee Mr. r Pq.
You 60 out to the games fairly often
and you understand most OF the hner
YOU could start at the bottom and teach
il TO somebody who never had seen
bat or ball before?
NELSON SOON BEGINS
TO SECURE RESULTS
The French were SO eager to learn
and arc BY nature intelligent and
energetic that Nelson soon began 20
&c, results First he s fxpiained n one
BAYS on a blackboard. After that he
gave practical demonstrating Of throw;
ing catching. stopping srounders' ana
batting. An American ,n,.,N who sees .esoa!
n ball miSht make the hasty decision
that they ac:er would learn the proper
way H ibs ne Wo"'a Peg ike girls is
BECAUSE they never have had any one
teach them to use their arms in the
muscle as anybody. and when it comes
10 brains are eqLa'. class for class, WIN
any people in the world. Before sev ehe ~
ma n would do it il he had not been
not only, taught large number Of
men to throw Ike Americans: put ne
has 5sa' Walter ti Johnson's speed rs d. nor
Gs9ssa sp nauSss n eos con
get 'em over" and he has a fairly
time that he has been psactictng, he
is doing wonderful work.
One Of the hardest things I'M Nelson c nsd
tom of using the feet to stop bafit;
Many of the Frenchmen are expert
SsTe bayer ra Ina I1sa pe the
natural impulse is to use the dogs.
Nelson explained very sarsfu aLd tn NAT
Kicked. and that one of the most use
ful words in American baseball slang
boot Which means naseaa fs of pas ~
ffRna'iily registered and now the men
mar aru an' Yankee nKe horror Or Of boots"
ba se1ae developed in his camp, This
in height. has wonderful reach and
q great pair of hands. Furthermore,
he Is .1 the PICK picEup hai
h his glove i ns Of on his shins is a
n nrs has played the initial sack will
ioin in fcrvent Amen.
PROGRESS MADE by
POILUs SLOW AT FIRST
OF course it was hard for the, French
to 1sar uness they are bor ara With fe
an instinct for meeting the ball and
FASTING II on line But tut mo, most amer snnr
az they big snoHgh to Ser hold ro the
o,en before they ever picked up the
ash hludEeon 4 big League s, manager ns ger
sparse hair trying, to make .iS7 bat
Ter Ter improve enough to , break ~ In With With
progress made by Nelson's pupils mar
velous. At least they soon o got so
than some Of the n,n major nnod crc1i, pas
timers can DO aga againSSe , good pitchin ME-
squad had progressed to q, q point where
Legion, probably the most'fan,ous regi-
ment In the world. with eleven eta
q 90 men2ieft OF the $4,000 that 1t had
& when tho war started. After the Fors
e eign Legion went back to the front,
teams We're formed In two regiments
OF Colonials They had regular
8-.ya