New-York tribune., 1920-10-23
w Wadsworth Is
Ready to Help
Rescue Baseball
u. S. Senator's Father Offers
Services Without Paw:
Landis May Be Head
By w. O. Mcclellan

Volunteers for a place on the new
baseball board of control, which is to
supersede the National Commission
under the Lasker plan, are plentiful.
John A. Hoydler yesterday mace public
the fact that James ". Wadsworth.
chairman of the State Racing Commis-
sion and father of Senator James "
Wadsworth jr, had offered his scry-
ices without compensation as a mem
Der CT the new board.
General Wadsworth first conCded his
wishes to work for the rehabilitation
of baseball to J. Conway Toole, who
was once mentioned as a candidate fo,.
The letter to Mr. Toole follows:
IF can be Of any service in helpino-
to put baseball back on its feet as a
member of a commission or in any
other way, will be glad to help
salary not necessary. / am too fond
of baseball belevin, in it, not only
from clean sport point of view, but
also as great help to the physical
development of young America to see
1t go down In the estimation of the
prblic'
Lover of Clean Sport
The letter was referred to John A..
Heydler, who asked permission to make
General Wadsworths s offer public. In
reply General Wadsworth wrote:
"All my life ! have been lover of
clean sport The ctate Racing Com
mission, Of which happen to be chair
man (without salary, With the aid of
the Jockey Club. has put racing in New
York state on q high plano. A Baseball
Commission with the aid of owners and
managers would do the same with base
ball"
In the mean time the report comes
from Chicago that Federal Judge X. NJ.
Lands has been prevailed upon to ac-
cept the Craftsmanship of the National
Commission, at a salary of S25,000 a
year. The story has been published
and denied frequently since the days
when organized baseball was fighting
to keep out the Federal League.
The appointment OF Judge Landis a
year or more ago might have been ac-
ceptable to ma jorty of the club own
ers in both leagues. but it is doubtful
now if the eleven clubs who indoYsed
the Lasker plan will recedc from their
main point the removal of power from
the old National Commission and the
appointment of new board Of control
for the game.
Local magnates believe that the re-
port of the nomination Of Judge Lands
Is "feeler" on the part of the five
American League clubs supporting Ban
johnson in his opposition to the Lasker
plan and the retention of the old Ma
tlonal Commission.
Colonel Jacob Rupert. president OF
the New York Yankees, formerly in.
dorsed Judge Landis as chairman oil
the National Commission. 1t is very
probable that he would be heartily ir
favor OF the judge as a member of the
new baseball board of control. Bu1
the eight National League clubs anc
three OF the American League clubs are
bound by their new agreement at the
JOINT meeting at Chicago to "scrap" the
old National Commission and to estab
lish the new baseball board of control
''War" Mere Mutterngs
In the mean time the current "base-
BAH war" has died down to mutterings
from all of the big leagne cities. Colo
mel Huston, Of the New York Yankees
yesterday declared that the majority
Of club owners hoped that there would
be no war and that enough of the
loyal five club owners now backing
Ban Johnson would be won over to the
Lasker plan to put the thing through
We did not want to go into the
CVultS on lndI Mays case, Sald Colonel
Huston. ''lf there had been chair
man Of the National Commission in
whom we could trust and who was no,
under the domination of Johnson we
would not have gone to the courts We
would have recognized a real chair
man of the National Commission and
we would have submitted to his arbitra-
tion and to his decision If there had
been real chairman of the National
Commission, the career of Hal Chase
as ball player would have been brief
We do not want to go into the
courts again unless it is absolutely