The Washington times., 1938-08-22

ago, K q ole
MN was one Of
Bob Addie the best auto
mobile drivers in the business.
The record books tell US that
Rickenbac"er never won the In
dianapoiis classic, but he was
better known than a lot Of win
ners whose names were only an
echo in the winds of time.
There's a quality of evanescence
about most sports figures. They
strut about in their brief mo-
ment of borrowed glory, but
once they come off-stage and
out Of the spotlight, they go
down the alley of oblivion to
be remembered no more.
No Dust Gathers
Somehow, you're reminded Of
the prophetic words in Keats
lode to a Grecian Urn" The
poet writes of a powerful king
who had inscribed upon his
tombstone: II am Ozymandias,
king of kings. Look upon my
works, ye mighty, and despair"
But Keats adds one cryptic SEN
tence about Ozzie'S boast: Moth
ing but dust remains"
Well, no dust is gathering
about the name of Ricken.
backer. Eddie made brief re-
turn to the sports field couple
Of years ago when he "fronted"
for the Roosevelt Raceway.
That was the auto track that
was laid out with so many
curves it appeared the archi-
tect had followed some drunk
home from the corner saloon
and made the guys footprints
draw the plans.
The track was situated in the
exact spot where a young cap
tain, Charles A. Lindbergh,
took off for France one May
morning in 1927. But Ricken-
backer didn't stay long with the
raceway people and he went
back to his planes. Eddie
Rickenbacker made a lot of his.
tory but somehow you always
remember that sports saw him
first.
Jimmy Is "HOnle"
This is purely a sentimental
thought. I can never think of
the approaching football sea-
son without thinking Of Jimmy
Moore. Jimmy went to Ala
bama about the same time I
did and he was plenty Of foot
ball player. He was a blond,
tow-headed giant whose hands
seemed to be a magnet for for
ward passes. Jimmy played on
the same team with Freddie
Sington, who was with the
Mats for a couple of seasons.
There was nothing Jimmy
loved better than football, and
he used to spend most of his
waking moments around the
gym. At Pasadena, on New
Year Day, 1881, Jimmy Moore
was the outstanding football
player on the field when Ala
bama beat Stanford in the Rose
Bowl game. That was his great
est triumph and his last. Jimmy
died the next summer from
spinal meningitis, and he sleeps
today in front of the building
he loved so well-the gym.
The Curious Umpire
Tony Wakeman, the VOL
sports chatterer, tells the story
of Pie Traynor, whose Pirates are
doing pretty fair. Pie, says
Tony, was never known to pro-
test decision and was one Of
the most gentlemanly players
ever to make the big top. One
time an umpire called Pie out,
although he was safe by 10 feet.
Traynor stood up, brushed him.
self off, and walked away with
out a word. To top it all, Pie
was banished from the game.
After the game, everybody
wanted to know how such an
atrocious decision could have
been made. It remained a mys-
terry for a long time until Pitts
burgh newspaper man thawed
out the ump with some giggle
soup.
"I'll tell you, confidentially,"
the umpire whispered. "Pie was
safe by a mile. But I've never
heard him Squawk once over q
decision and always thought
that if he got mad enough he'd
kill you. Well, when he stood
up, he just looked at me and I
wanted to see what would hap
pen. So I gave him the air.
Nothing happened. But I was
T1nUoT. ca cnarod in all nv lift" "