The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1928-01-12

Giants. Efl0f TO THIS amazing
throughout America had entertain,
with the case.
some folks inclined to the be-
lief that Hornsby's tendency to bet
on horse races FASTENED his de-
parture from Manhattan. Others
had hunch that he had been in
volved In bets on ball games. Then
4 lot of folks suspected that he
had been trouble-maker on the
club, and inclined TO ride" his
teammates.
I sat with the mighty fence.
buster, greatest natural hitter the
National League ever has produced,
fnr more than an hour this morn.
ing ia his apartment at the Forest
Park Hotel here. He was bonn
barded from all angles by q barrage
Of questions in the hope that he
might unbosom some ray Of light on
the great mystery.
ANcGraw had nothing to do
with my dismissal from the
New York club-I am convinced
On that Point" declared Horns
~. eve were always the
rarnlest Of friends and at no
time did / ever aspire to his
position rs manager.
II never had many dealings with
Stonehaln, however. / am inclined
to suspect, though, that some ans
mostly on the part Of James Tier
ney, club secretary, may have &C
counted for the action taken. To
be frank with you, Tterney ana 1
did not exactly hitch on certain
.Ever since the news broke on
Tuesday night / have been sWamped
with telephone calls and kilograms
from ali PARTS OF the country by
newspaper friends and fans, all
asking me what It is all about.
Place q stack OF Bibles before me
and I would swear q holy oath
that / am at q loss to explain.
"One story is to the effect that
undertook to depose McGraw as
manager. That is sheer rot-to be
brufaIly truthful, 1t il q lie.
I'm my opinion, John McGraw IL
the greatest baseball manager the
world ever has produced. AS kid
/ idolized him. When the Giants
reached Chicago on their second
Western invasion last season Mac
was called away on a scouting trip
and he assembled all the other
Giants, informing them in the club
house that ! would be in charge Of
tbs club in his absence.
az merely undertook 10 fulfill
his orders, 60 win ball games for
him. wanted every mothers
son Of the Giants to hustle, just
- McGEaw would have insisted
that they should, had he been
sitting ON the bench.
'.The Giants prospered during the
two periods that I handled the
team as pinch-manager and while
We were on the road, too. McGraw
was quoted as saying that he con.
templated retiring from active man
agership of the club and that when
he took this action the post he
filled so long and successfully,
would revert to me. I never said
a thing to anybody on the subject:
il all came from McGraw. so il
Stoneham is attempting to create
the impression that ! was trying
to eupplant McGraw. he is q liar.
dare him to go into the same
room with McGraw and me and
make that assertion in my pres
ence.
sAs far the statement credited
10 Lindstrom, the Giant third
sacker, who lives in Chicago. to
the effect that ] sought to domi.
nate the team, can only reply
that that is another lie.
tLindstrom resented criticism
from me when I thought he was
not hustling and giving his best
efforts to the club. ! did give
him a few cali downs when /
thought he wasn't doing his best,
or remaining out of the lineup
when I believed he should have
been in there trying to help the
club win a pennant.
al also am accused Of having
Bndulged in fistie encounters
with Burleigh Grimes and Eddie
ROush. Mark those stories down
Is more lInwarranted lies.
elm my entire career of profess
eional baseball I have been in.
volved In only one dispute in which
d blow was delivered. and that
happened to be the affair with
Branch Hickey several years ago.
II il altogether TOO bad IL q fellow
who makes baseball his means OF a
livelihood happens to be endowed
with fighting qualities.
There is another charge which
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