Editor’s Open Window
Editor’s Open Window
THElegislative work of the season of 1888 ended with the conventions of the National League and the American Association; the former being held in New York on November 21st, and the latter in St. Louis on December 5th. What was accomplished by the two organizations will unquestionably lead to an improvement in the working of the professional baseball business in 1889. Not only were the playing rules of the game greatly improved—though there is still room for further advancement toward a perfect code—but a movement was made toward the adoption of a system of salaries for players, more in accordance with the merit of the individual, and with the increase in the financial success of the clubs as a whole, than is possible under the previous star systems with its fancy salaries. The plan of grading salaries which was adopted at the League convention, and which could not be successfully carried out without the co-operation of the American Association, was virtually endorsed by the latter at their December convention by the appointment of a special committee to work out with a similar committee of the League a plan of grading salaries. These committees meet in New York in March, 1889. Neither organization took action at their respective conventions as to the adoption of the double umpire plan, which is the only true solution of the umpire difficulty. The American Association, by reducing the salaries of umpires to figures below those paid to their lowest-salaried player, took a decided step backward, as it is a short-sighted policy to discourage the entrance of the best class of men into the corps of umpires. The onerous duties of a capable staff of umpires exceed in the value of the work done those of the most important players of the club team, and they should be placed on a par with the best players in the matter of salaries, especially in view of the fact that good umpiring conduces as much to the financial success of a club as the work of successful battery players. Thousands of patrons were driven from ball grounds last season by the disgraceful rows which were induced by unsatisfactory umpiring, and this fact should be borne in mind when arranging the umpire salary question of 1889.
The movement, inaugurated by the editor of the DublinSport, in favor of the introduction of our national game, as one of the established sports of Ireland, naturally excites great interest in the United States. It is to be hoped that it will be followed up until the American game is practically inaugurated in Dublin. Since the baseball teams now in Australia have decided to return by way of Europe and the British Isles, an opportunity will be afforded our Irish friends to see how the game is played by our professional experts. It will give a great impetus to the game if the efforts ofSportin organizing an Irish professional team can be practically carried out in time for the season of 1889. It only needs some of the Yankee energy and enterprise illustrated so strikingly in Mr. Spalding’s Australian tour to make the Irish movement a decided success. As Colonel Fellows says, “There’s millions in it!”
HENRYCHADWICK.
* **
NOgame has taken a greater hold on the public than bowling. The game has always been very popular at summer hotels, and most of them have half a dozen alleys. One reason of its popularity is that both sexes can join in it, as in lawn tennis; and though, of course, a man has a great advantage, there are ladies in New York who can hold their own with the majority of the men. This was shown last year at the Knickerbocker Bowling Club, when the ladies’ aggregate scores were but a few points behind those of the men, and a score of 232 was made on one occasion by a lady. So great a demand for alleys has arisen that several have been specially built in such a way that portions of the building can be cut off. Thus several clubs use the same building, and yet the members of the one club need not intermingle with the members of the other.
Of the physical advantages derived from this exercise it is unnecessary to speak, but on the matter of appropriate dress some few remarks may not be out of place. A lady’s dress should not have too abundant skirts. They should be plain and fitting to the figure as the hand is apt to catch in flowing draperies. The bodice should be tight at the waist and loose in the arms, to allow ample room for the play of the muscles. It is impossible to bowl properly in a tight bodice that restricts the action of the chest and shoulders. For the same reasons a man’s costume should be loose and easy. Care should be taken to wrap up well after bowling. The exercise heats the body and a chill is easily taken.
As a rule, people are inclined to over-bowl,i. e., they will insist on using a ball too heavy for their strength. A “strike” can be made as easily with a ball of medium weight as with a very heavy one, and not one man in ten or woman in a thousand is capable of using the latter. The ball should be held firmly and a short run allowed of about six to ten feet. The ball should leave the hand easily and smoothly so that no decrease of pace or deviation of direction occur from the ball bumping. The center pin should be aimed at. It is well not to aim toomuch in the center of the pin, as the ball is apt to “cut” through and take only the center pins, a result usually alluded to as “hard luck,” when it is in reality bad play. It does not pay to use too great exertion, for a medium pace ball is as effective as a very fast one, and the strongest cannot keep up the pace through a long game. Complaints are often made that the fingers get sore and raw from bowling. A little alcohol applied in the morning and evening and occasionally a little alum rubbed in will be found very efficacious.
One thing is absolutely necessary, viz.: that there shall be efficient boys to place the pins exactly on the proper marks. A boy can if he chooses defeat the best bowler by misplacing the pins. This may not be visible to the bowler, but it will make a vast difference when the ball reaches the pins.
C. S. PELHAM-CLINTON.
* **
EACHyear marks a decided advance in the popularity of this delightful sport. It appeals to a great variety of tastes and temperaments. It can be enjoyed on almost any sheet of water from a small stream or pond to the ocean itself. It is so many-sided--cruising, paddling, sailing, racing, exercising--that any one who has a taste for aquatics must be interested in it, even if not to the extent of owning a canoe. The season of last year was a memorable one in many ways. The coming season promises to be a still more remarkable one in the line of racing and the perfection of the sailing-canoe, on which a great amount of thought, work and money have been spent.
It is not probable that any one canoe will be able to beat the ’88 record of theEclipse--seventeen first prizes and four second prizes out of a total of twenty-one races--but it is quite likely that canoeEclipsewill find a worthy rival, as the last races of the season showed canoeFlyto be quite her equal if not her superior in point of speed under sail.
The canoe is limited in size by the Association rules to a length of sixteen feet, with a beam of thirty inches for that length. The problem, therefore, is to get the very best lines for this size of boat, and the best sail plan. It is wonderful that the speed of the canoe has been so increased from year to year, each season showing a marked advance over the previous one. It does seem as though the limit must soon be reached unless some better material than wood can be invented to build the boats of. The fact must also be considered that these racing-canoes are not simply racing-machines, but generally good honest boats, capable of a variety of uses and remarkably safe for navigation. The most minute details of construction and rig receive great attention, and all sorts of experiments are tried with the hope of increasing the speed a few seconds in a mile. That 1889 will show some new boats of marked speed is certain from the amount of building and designing now going on--although there seems to be little chance of any international matches being arranged.
More is written and said of the racing-canoes than of others, but the fact remains that the cruising-canoe increases at many times the rate of the racers. Cruising appeals to so many--racing to the few--canoeing has “come to stay.” As racing is now carried on the sport presents almost as many purely scientific problems as yacht-racing and building. The solving of problems is a universal occupation--and all the canoe problems will not be solved for a generation at least, so there is no fear of the interest abating.
C. BOWYERVAUX.
* **
ANencouraging feature in the athletic improvement noticeable throughout the country is the increase of the devotees of the foil. Fencing is acknowledged to be the accomplishmentpar excellenceof the nobility and gentry. To its practice may be attributed much of the grace and dignity of deportment conceded to the seigneurs of the ancient regime. There is no exercise that assists so materially in keeping the members of the body in good all-round condition during the winter months. We hear of active work being indulged in by members of the leading athletic clubs in New York, Washington, Baltimore and Boston. At the New York Fencers’ Club Captain Nicholas has his hands full and is giving more lessons than ever before. Three days in the week he devotes to a large class of lady pupils; friends, sisters or relatives of the male members only being admitted to the privilege of the elegantsalle d’armesof this club.
Professor Regis Senac is fully employed at the New York Athletic Club, and with such pupils as Messrs. Lawson, Bloodgood and others to point to, it is no wonder that hisclientèleis a strong one.
The Knickerbocker Fencing Club is undoubtedly one of the most perfectly appointed and most thoroughly workmanlikesalles d’armesin this country. With the services of such an able and accomplished swordsman as Monsieur Louis Rondell, it is not surprising that some very fine exhibitions of clever fencing may be witnessed in the rooms. M. Rondell also has a promising class of lady-fencers. He says that his fair pupils seem to thoroughly enjoy the sport and enter more enthusiastically and spiritedly into the bouts than hisprotégésof the sterner sex. Great things are promised in the way of a grandsalle d’armesin the new building that will soon be the home of the Manhattan Athletic Club. Those who don the “double diamond” will see that fencing is not neglected. In fact, they have now, under the tuition of Louis Tronchet--a graduate of the famous college of Joinville les Ponts, and the present champion of America--a very promising class.
With such an enthusiastic following as this fascinating accomplishment now boasts of, it is somewhat surprising that a champion amateur tournament is not instituted. We hope that the present season will not be allowed to pass without an attempt of the kind being made. We feel sure the leading clubs in Annapolis, Baltimore, Washington, Boston and other cities will be glad to send representatives. Will not some one take the initiative?
CHARLESE. CLAY.
* **
“THEnoblest study of mankind is man,” quoth Pope; but since these words were written man has been presented in new aspects which would have made the poet open his eyes in wonder and amazement. What would our forefathers have thought if they had been told that a man could be treated as an automatic machine, and be set going and kept going for a certain length of time? What would they have thought if they had been told that a man would succeed in covering 623 miles in six days? Yet marvelous as such a performance appears even to a man of the present day, it seems probable that the limit of endurance and pluck has not yet been reached. The outcome of the contest between the four great walkersof the world, Littlewood, Albert, Rowell and Herty may and very possibly will eclipse the new record. The remarkable feature of the last “go-as-you-please” is that no less than ten men shared in the gate receipts--a record hitherto untouched. The excellent condition of Littlewood at the end of his task speaks volumes for the thoroughness of his training, and the other contestants who had undergone a course of preparation, suffered remarkably little from their efforts. The management of the show was all that could be desired in the hands of Mr. O’Brien and his able colleagues.
SPORTINGTRAMP.
* **
THEExecutive of the National Dog Club at its last meeting passed the following resolutions:
“That the American Kennel Club be formally notified that the National Dog Club of America is ready, and will be pleased to aid it in advancing the interest of the breeders and exhibitors of this country.
“That should the American Kennel Club desire to confer with the National Dog Club, the latter, on receiving such expression, will meet it in the person of Dr. J. Frank Perry, the chosen representative of the Executive Committee.
“That hereafter at all bench shows there shall be appointees of the Executive Committee of the National Dog Club to take charge of the dogs of those of the club’s members who are unable to attend; to see that such dogs are properly benched, fed, watered, groomed, brought before the judges, etc., and at the end of the show to superintend their reshipment. The expense of such service to be borne by the National Dog Club.”
A committee was appointed to consider the expediency of “listing” the breeders of America, with the ratings of each as regards fair dealing. Twenty new members were admitted to the club.
THEAmerican Kennel Club will do well to bury the hatchet and meet the N. D. C. half way. Far more good can be accomplished by united action. No fitter representative could have been chosen by the National than Dr. J. Frank Perry, the honored president.
That is a bold venture, their proposed appointment of attendants at all bench shows, to take charge of members’ dogs. But it is a praiseworthy one, and will act as a most tempting bait to those fanciers who like to get their money’s worth.
HOWEVER, the American Kennel Club has not been idle. They have not only drafted a new constitution and by-laws, materially differing from the old, but they propose to publish a Kennel Gazette and to form a club of associate members. This last scheme seems a great mistake. It is intended as a rival to the N. D. C.; but instead of being an autonomic association, it will be entitled to one representative in the counsels of the A. K. C., just as if it were a club of the local stamp, “run” by one man. As it is hoped that the unattached representative breeders will join, it will clearly be seen what an utter farce the thing would be. A body of our leading breeders would have no greater a representation than the one-man figure-head clubs!
The Kennel Gazette, it is proposed, will publish the prize lists, etc., of shows held under its rules, judges’ reports on their respective classes, and the official news of the American Kennel Club. President Belmont will provide financial support for the venture.
THEdetailed report of the last American Kennel Club meeting has not been received up to the time of writing, but the telegraphed synopsis conveys news that is gratifying in the extreme.
When kennel editor of the lately defunctSport, of Montreal, a case was brought to my notice which I thought demanded the fullest ventilation. It was nothing less than the fraudulent substitution of a borrowed dog for a dead one that had been entered at the Westminster Kennel Club’s Show in ’87 by a Mr. J. F. Campbell, of Montreal. I exposed the matter editorially and demanded that it should be brought before the A. K. C. for consideration. The culprit blustered, and threatened me with a suit for libel; but I was determined to see justice done, and had all the papers bearing on the case placed in the hands of a friend who “licked” them into shape, and forwarded them to an A.K.C. delegate, a friend of his, to be submitted at the earliest meeting of the club. Judgment in the case has at this last mentioned meeting been delivered, and John F. Campbell is declared suspended for one year and ordered to repay the amount of the prize-money fraudulently won by the Yorkshire terrier “Bertie,” alias “Sir Colin,” to the Westminster Kennel Club. The A. K. C. is slow, painfully slow, but in this instance it has “got there all the same.”
Last year witnessed the importation of a great number of high-class dogs. As a rule, in previous years, we have been content with buying second, third or no-class-at-all specimens in England; but not so in 1888. First, that king of all St. Bernards, the giant Plinlimmon, was exchanged for five thousand one hundred and thirteen good Yankee dollars (the highest price ever paid for a dog). Then, the hardly inferior Burns is soon to cross the pond, and Lysander and many other grand specimens of the mighty Alpine breed. The mastiffs, Orlando, Baldur and others, must not be omitted from the roll, nor the great English setters, Champion, Comet, Howard, Blue Nell and others. Gordon setters have also had added to their ranks the Champion Beaumont and his kennel mates, and the Irish setters, too, have several recruits. Nor must the many spaniels, Sussex, Field and Cocker, be forgotten.
From present indications, moreover, it would appear that we are to see other new faces from across the water on the show benches this year. Mr. E. M. Oldham, of New York, has gone to England, intent on purchasing some Black Spaniel flesh of the highest quality, especially, though low be it spoken, something with which to trail Bridford Negress’ colors in the dust. He also gives out that it is his purpose to import some Clumber Spaniels, the best obtainable; and I truly hope he will, for they are a grand breed, and are deserving of a far larger share of public favor than is at present accorded them. Our Canadian cousins have the best dogs of this breed and our State-bred specimens stand no chance in competition with them.
“Scotch” Baillie, of Lexington, Ky., has also crossed the seas, on the purchase of dogs intent. Gordon setters will probably head his string; but be on the lookout for something else. Our people are recognizing more fully each succeeding year the satisfaction to be derived from owning high-class specimens of man’s best friend. They think like an acquaintance whom I overheard say: “I love a dog, but hang it, life’s too short to waste affection on a cur, when a thoroughbred can be bought for a small outlay!”
DOGWHIP.