The Washington times., 1926-01-16

One day just as the newspaper
hitting / started to bat and found
was in the bag. / was all broken
I'D like to find the man VINO
took my bats" I remarked, hot.
headed, as came back to the
bench There was no response
1 looked around as if TO find a
friendly face.
a little later Bill Donovan. God
rest his good soul. called me aside.
kid. he said to me. don't think
that YOU haven't a friend on this
ball club. The fellows may razz
you and pull that bush stuff, but
there are some here who are your
friends and who are going to see
that you get an even break.
81 am your friend and. when
ever you need q friend call ON
me. sFll see that you can get an
even break any time YOU start.
Don't let these fellows keep you
from being . good ballplayer.
An older man rarely ever realizes
what few words ike that means
to a youngster. But those words OF
old Bill sunk into me. l gritted my
teeth and worked all the harder.
WMU2ZEEg
also proved themselves my friends
and gave me lot OF encourage
ment.
The whole trouble was that a
few of McIntyre's friends had sort
Of formed a gang which kept aloqf
from me. They clearly made me
feel my position; that as a recruit
I had no place in their counsels.
had to 90 about alone.
IL I roomed next to other players
with a bathroom between they often
used to lock the door on the inside
and go out, leaving me unable to
take a bath and also to feel small
and disIiked.
Then they used to take my nat
OFF the rack in the hotel and twist
II out OF shape. leaving it that, way
for me to pick up. But was
always looking for the guilty man
and IL we got together 1t was a
fight. There was nothing humorous
in all this to me. Because / was
think they did much Of this to
spur me on.
The impression has gone around
that Charlie Schmidt, the catcher,
was my bitterest enemy. That is
came to me and told me he was
sorry for all those mix-ups and that
often the players had dared MIN
70 go out and pull something on me.
Schmidt also told me that when
] missed my bats the players
who had been haZing me had
broken them up and thrown them
away. / have never forgiven
them for that. A ball players
bat is q very personal thing 10
him.
It was with Schmidt that / had
my first fight It arose over some
trivial incident on the bench. He
was much bigger man than ].
but we mixed IT up. In the strug-
gle he fell over barrel and
bounced on top OF him as he lay
on the barrel. They pulled us apart,
but the feeling had started.
Sometime later the gand had
been roasting Schmidt, and as /
turned around the corner OF the
right on the jaw. There wasn't
any fight about that Schmidt sim
ply hit me and / hit the ground.
-
the pitcher. He also is dead now,
poor fellow. But he and 1 made
up and became good friends.
It seems the gang had ribbed
him up with some story to go after
me because OF ground ball being
missed in the field while he was
pitching. / didn't know this and
was standing at %he cigar counter
In the old Southern Hotel in st.
Louis buying some chewing gum.
Sieyer, leaving the gang, came over
to where I was standing. Just as
he walked up. Bill Donovan stepped
between us and putting his hand
on the counter Naid, Now, don't
have any trouble here, fellows"
] hadn't heard of any trouble
and that put me wise. / wanted
to find out more. A little later
was leaning against one of the
big columns all alone when Siever
again left the crowd and came
over to me. As he came around
the post he swung his left at me.
] was lucky.
In swinging his 'left-he was a
southpaw-he left his jaw open and
7 took a crack at It and landed. /
didn't get the worst of that fight
but it didn't add to my popularity
with the gang.
The feeling extended to the field
and it got to where l felt that Nc
Intyre wasn't backing me up.
It had come to showdown when
a long drive was hit closer to him
than to me. We were both stub
born and stood our ground. The
ball went through for a home run
Finally McIntrye had to go and
get It. The crowd-a st. Louis