The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1919-03-25
SEEK 100000
OF BASEBALL MEN

Nine hundred thousand dollars dam
Baltimore Federal League stockhold-
ers have brought against the National
League of professional baseball clubs.
charging violation of the Sherman
antitrust law and which is being
tried before a jury in Justice Stat
ford's court today.
In his opening statement to the jury
Attorney William L. Marbury, of Bal
timOre, representing the Federal
League, declared that organized base
ball as demonstrated by the National
League is monopoly. He said that by
reserve clause in their contracts
with the players they make slaves Of
them. II was claimed by him that
the game of baseball is a subject Of
interstate commerce. but that by
system Of monopoly has practically
eliminated competition.
Mr.. Marbury stated that the damage
sustained by his Baltimore clients
amounted to 100000 and that the law
provided for a three-fold penalty.
Marbury's Statement.
In his opening statement to the
jury Mr.. Marbury said in part:
''Since the day of the Olympian
games of Greece, no people have had
a national sport so splendidly adapt
ed to develop the young manhood; to
cultivate nlertness, quickness, eff
cheney, TesoUrcefulness, and every
physical and intellectual quality as
the great American game of base
ball. 1t was largely the training
H.
the diamond that made the American
dOughboy invincible on the battle
fields of Europe last year.
The desire TO witness baseball
games is universal in the United
States. The business of furnishing
facilities and opportunities to the
people to witness these games is a
business which no man or set OF men,
however rich and powerful they may
be, have a right to mOnopolize.
FOrbIdS Monopoly.
There is a law known as the Sher-
man ANTITRUST law which we believe
forbids such monopoly, and il declares
that any person who is injured in his
business by the monopolizing, or
even the attempt TO monopOlizc. inter
state commerce shall be entitled to
recover three-fold damages against
the mOnopolists or would-be monopo-
lists.
The decisions of our courts seem
to make il CLEAR that the business Of
organizing baseball clubs, arranging
schedules of games, contests, in differ
ent States and Transporting these or
gained bodies OF men with all their
equipments and supplies of every
character from State to state TO play
games in the different cities Of the
country and States together with the
furnishing of news Of each game and
ircidents of each game to the public,
by means Of the telegraph constitutes
and is Interstate commerce Just for
instance, as theatrical exhibitions in
Volving the transportation Of troups
Of players on circuit including sew
eral States has been held TO be inter-
state commerce by the Federal courts.
A Business Monopoly.
I'VE expect to show that the de-
PENDANTS in this case. the National
League Of Professional Baseball and
IS eight constituent clubs: the Ameri-
can League. and the defendants, Ban
croft Z. Johnson, August Hermann,
and John X. TeHer, have established
and for ten or twelve years main
tanned in most ruthless fashion an
absolute monopoly Of the business Of
furnishing professional baseball ex-
Eibitions in the United States; that
they have resorted TO the lawlcss-
ness to prevent any invasion OF their
monopoly; that they have undertaken
to treat as pirates and outlaws any
American citizen who dared to engage
iE this business in competition to
themselves.
The gentlemen whom I represent,
the stockholders Of the Baltimore Fed
eral League baseball club, and their
board OF directors, did dare to en-
gage In this business, and this suit
was brought to recover damages I'M
der the Sherman law"