The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-11-10
INVASION HERE
Is NOT FEARED
Johnson Threats in That Re-
gard Bring Only Smiles
From Club Owners.
BY WILLIAM h. HANNA.

BY WILLIAM II. HANNA.
Baseball Is In for stormy and quite
likely non-prosperous times IL the pres
ent disruption lasts and actual war re-
suits The game will receive a setback
1t won't get over In a day, but maybe a
setback will be good thing In the long
run, in financial way at least. Tor It's
commercial and financial side was get
ting out of proportion and developing
lavish scale which needed curblng.
Furthermore if war eliminates certain OF
the present baseball element it will be
additionally good.
II that reform does come then good
will come out of the war, If war eventu-
Allies, and good also will come In the
form of reconstructed government such
as the progressive. live element known
as the nllied eleven are fighting for.
War Is not a sure thing yet, though II
looks that way According to latest
advices from the West, the minors were
divided on the Lasker plan. some being
against it and some for II. We might
as well have good war while We're
about It, so let the minors draw the
sword, too, If they want to.
Likelihood OF peace had not vanished
entirely yesterday. The door was left
open for tho Johnson five TO recant. drop
their nlossback attitude and come i'll !;
also to select one member of the new
board Of control. A good deal depends
on what attitude the minor leagues take,
and from the way various members or
that organization have expressed them
selves there my be a split in their body.
The statement that the minors can
govern themselves can be taken with
pinch of salt There have been condi-
lions in the minors this year quite as
bad as what was brought to light In
Chicago The minors need one control
ling head fully as much as the majors
all organized ball needs II. Only stub
bornness or short sightedness on the
part OF the standpatters-the Johnson
crowd and the 1--WE can govern ourselves
crowd OF the minors-prevents them
from seeing that. The "childishness' of
the majors OF which Mr.. Fultz speaks
quite possibly isn't on the part of the
big league faction, which is fighting for
q new deal, but on the part of those who
won't or can't see that the old order
changeth, and that baseball. major and
minor, has reached a point where it's
government must be reorganized
Ban johnson says the twelve club
league will fail. Johnson is not an infalli-
BILE prophet. but whether or no, II isn't
bit mora likely to fail than is a league
which fights II. II has a better chance
OF living than the opposition forces will
have and then again maybe the sup
porters of the Lasker plan believe IL
better TO try 1t and fail than to go ahead
with methods they are sure are out OF
date and incompetent.
Magnates of the allied eleven faction
smiled when they read that the Johnson
five will put clubs in New York. Boston
and Chicago. why" said one of the
! forrYr', crowd yesterday. sit can't be
done for less than 100000 a plant"
The Johnson crew maintain that the
| three rebellious American League clubs
cannot take their players. out OF the
| American League, because they belong
TO the American League under contracts
previously made.
The Yankee contracts read "the Amer
/ lean League club - New York" Only
two of the Yankee players are under
I contract for next year. and new con-
tracts could be made for the others. IL
anything like attempts to win away
players belonging TO "a club were made
| no vivid imagination is required to see
| that there might and probably would
be reprisals which would give the orig
inators of this form of warfare severe
headache. 1t has not been such a great
while. if memory is right. since the
courts expressed no high regard for the
lacked mutually.
Politics. according to baseball man
close to the inside. began to get active
in the American League In January.
I 1919 Ban johnson remarked TO this
man that from now on five clubs will
run the American League" The five he
named are the five now supporting John
son. The loyal five'' they call them.
the speaker went on. but they ought 10
call them the "wilful five" for that's
what they are--just wilful FIVE.
A former football player OF renown
said yesterday that he looked for Prince
ton to put II all over Yale Saturday.
He doesn't think Yale can handle Prince
toms wide open and ultra modern Of
fence he thinks Princeton has the bet
er backheld. Is playing smarter game
at present than any of the others. and
! that Yale II a dumb team. Also that
/ Princeton Is a better team than Harvard.
He isn't Princeton man. either. One
bet of IN TO / was made on Princeton
yesterday to beat the Ellis.
Yale is going to number its players,
and that leaves only the Crimson still
an advocate of the obsolete and inde-
fensible practice of not numbering.
There IL no particular advantage in IL
for u.s." says Coach Fisher OF Harvard
Of numbering. Which for an ingenuously
selfish reason can't be beat. Just whit
particular advantage" is Fisher looking
I for?
You'd think that after the Chicago
scandal baseball club owners would well
come with open arms a change in the
administration OF the business part OF
the game instead OF ciinsing 10 old IDEAS
and precipitsting n war.
Having heard that SO and So OF
I Princeton is a fast and scientific TICKLE
! Il occurs that a large and polyglot guard
a,d ouicl. and literary end also might