Nebraska Newspapers

    8 A
THE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE: DECEMBER 30, 1917.
r 4
f:'
I:
The Bee's Special Sunday
Sport Pages
'WAR SETS HEAVY
HAND ON SPORTS
DURINGTHE YEAR
Few New Records Set, While
"Who's Who'! is Made Up of
- the Many Who Answer
ed Nation's Call.
War, now our own war, set its heavy
hand on sports in the year tottering
to its end. Glancing backward, then,
- one feels moved to emphasize the
parts sports played in doing their "bit
rather than in recounting the accom
. plishments which in happier times
r yrtrt the. natural substance of. any re-
view.
t:l No "who's who" in sports can be
.published this year, : for the reason
lithzt it would require two full pages
' and perhaps more to list the names
;';Of those who answered the nation's
v call ' in the grimmest game ever
: played.
" This list would contain the names
-of a big majority of the leading ath
letes in one field or another who in
7 -Other vears have made unnrlintr his.
', tory. This honor roll would contain
V the names of those who were prom
' 1nent in foot hall, has hall. volf. lawn
tennis, rowing, yachting and all other
Drancnes. r.ven ooxing nas sent a
i lew. .
How Different Now.
k ,:' How different it all is from a year
" ago wnen in glancing back over a
15 twelve-month, which was rlch in
, really great accomplishments, one
" felt called upon to write; "Great
was the year 1916 in sports. Great in
the deeper sense and involving wide
"V participation, serious consideration
' and important consequences."
''Even then strife and bloodshed
; were numbing the nations of Europe.
, ;.But this country was looking on
from afar and sports thrived and
x waxed fat
The year 1917, however, was as
'anaemic as 1916 was buxom and ro
tund. Sports were maintained for
' , . purposes of distraction and physical
y preparedness rather than for pur
f poses of championship competition.
!:.: Same Champions.
' Titles in golf and lawn tennis did
'-not pass, with an exception here and
there. The few national fixtures
conducted were run as patriotic tour
naments. Thus Chick Evans still
wears the double crown in golf
" through winning "the amateur and
- open championships in 1916. Thus
Miss Alexa Stirling still holds the
national golfing title among women.
Thus. R. Norris Williams 2d is still
the lawn tennis champion of the
. United States. . y
Rowing, both club and college, was
practically eliminated. No other
sport suffered such a stunning blow
because of the war. Yachting also
was all but wiped off the state. The
yachtsmen were among the first to
feel the pressure and responded by
turning over the larger boats to the
government for such use as could
be made. -
College base ball and amateur tase
ball too was cut in half, while The
minor leagues suffered a disastrous
m season from all reports and are now
hanging on the ragged edge.' Major
league base ball, however, more than
held jts own and, all things consid-
- ered, commanded far more support
- than was indicated early in the sea
on. . Racing Prospers.
' Racing also enjoyed a prosperous
year and this applies to the trotters
and pacers as well as. to the thor
ougbbreds. There was a reason for
t this Every encouragement wasjent
and extra efforts made to stimulate
through racing the breeding indus
' try the economic value of which is
now being appreciated more than
. :ever before by. the government be
f cause of the scarcity of horses suit
i; able for cavalry, artillery and re
; mount purposes.
Boxing had an unhappy year for
1 'reasons apart from the war, Gover
nor Whitman brought about the re
' peal of the Frawley law and boxing
- In New York, while not dead, is reel
ing and dizzy from a knockout blow.
"Incidentally the sport has suffered
-" in the minds of many, because so few
of the fighting men showed any in
clination to do. any real fighting.
..rWny r doing their bit by serving
rt as instructors at the various army
V camps, but mighty few have enlisted.
i v. 1 v More Foot Ball.
; More college foot ball was played
;-71han ever before, for the reason that
t . .the game spread like wildfire at the
various army camps and, naval sta
tions. In tactics, in strategy, in phya
ical contact it more closely resembles
,'the grim war game than any other
sport and for that reason it was wide-
ly encouraged. The season, how-
. ever, lacked the usual glamor, be
cause of the fact that Yale, Harvard
and Princeton did not put varsity
teams on the field and because the
vi. elevens of the United States Military
academy at West Point and the
' United States naval academy at An-
"napolis, Md., did not clash in yearly
' - combat.
Track and field athletics were con-
" . traded in the outdoor season, and
jvfew of the really classic records were
- J-: accroached, much les heaten The
-inter-collegiate championships were
- : dropped, but the national champion
'f ships were held in St. Louis and at-
' traded far less interest than heretn.
- fore. Overton and Ray set indoor
f' recoras, nowever, wnicn may s last
ing.
V! . As to championships in general, lit
tie need be said here. They can be
found in the more detailed reviews of
the' leading sports which follow.
. It mav he siicffcstrrl however that
more and more in the last few years
men and women have been turning
. . .L. -
to sports some ior xne exercise in
volved, some for the love of com'
' petition ana some ior pure recrca
. T-i " . I 1 - . .
lion, inis irenu is aimusi sure
continue, even with the approach
what looks like a darker vear.
to
of
for
sports now a. c proving their value
as never before as a body builder
for the nation)
Athletes
1 - S
V-r ''jVXt s
' Ail
i ''Am '
' -,,. i , .", I;
TOLL OF DEATH
THINS RANKS OF
ALL ATHLETICS
Frank Gotch, Bob Fitzsimmons,
Les Darcy and Many Others
Summoned by Grim, Reaper
During Year.
Just a thought for the men promi
nent in sports who passed along in
the year now drifting out. The list
reached much bigger proportions than
usual. ' ,
Of the 40 more oromient only four
died in service. Natural causes wtre
responsible for the other deaths.
David Bispham, jr., A. T. Hum
phreys, jr., 'Major B. B. Lewis and
Soldier Johnny" Shaw, were the four
who came to their end after answer
ing the call to the nation.
The three first named were gentle
men jockeys, while " Shaw was a
boxer. '
Thoroughbred Racing. '
Racing, in truth, was the biggest
sufferer. The sport lost such earn
est workers and loyal supporters as
Schuyler L. Parsons, Philip J. Dwyer
and Oscar Lewisohn. In addition to
the three famous jockeys already
mentioned. John Hutrnins. the fam
ous trainer, and Arthur Redfern and
foe McCahey, two of the leading
jockeys of tlieir day, answered the
last call during the year just clos
ing. Andrew Welch, harness racing
veteran and owner, died in February.
. Arthur James, another famous race
orse owner, diid in London, Knap
McCarthy., veteran race driver, was
another.
Boxing.
Boxincr also was a heavv sufferer
in the Joss of Charley White, famed
as a referee; Bob Fitzsimmons, one
of the greatest fighters of all times;
Less Darcy. who was climbing last
to great heights, when his untimely
death came after unfortunate exper
iences in this country: Dick Roche,
one of the biggest plungers of his
day and the backer of John L.Sulli
van and manager of Jack JJempsey;
Bob Vernon, wel known as a stake
holder; Al Palier, the man who killed
Luther McCarthy ana was nimseu
shot and killed by his father;. Jim
Barry, who was shot in Panama; Wil
lie Lucas, lightweight boxer, and
"Soldier Johnny" Shaw,
Base Ball, x ;
Base ball will miss many men who
were closely identified with the game
and who ever worked to elevate tne
standard W C. Temple, who really
originated the world's series by of
fering the Temple cud a number of
years ago and former president of
. Tl.. I. U.ll -1..V. T. If....
me n.isDurgn uau viuu, nm wui
nane, dean of all base ball writer.;
William G. Weart, Philadelphia base
ball scribe andN secretary of the Ba.s
Ball Writers' as-ociation; EJdie Do
heny ,who used 1j pitch for t'.:e Gi
ants and Piiates; T. H. Stuckney, for
mer president of the Louisville Na
tional league club; William Sudhoif,
former major league pitcher; A. C.
Buckenberger, formerly manager .
the Pittsburgh team and later its
president; William A. (Tony) James,
veteran base ball catcher; t-y Alberts,
another veteran of minor league fame,
and Steve Brady, once captain of
the famous Metropolitans of New
York.
' Tennis and Golf,
Dr. James Dwight, called the father
of lawn tennis, was the chief loss to
this sport. Robert Powell, former
tennis champ'on of British Columbia,
was killed in France. Hundreds of
golfers mourn the death of Willie
Smith, open champion of the United
States in 199 and counted as the
most graceful player in the profes
sional ranks.
4 Track Athletics.
Track and field athletics did not
escape either. Evert Jansen Wendell
of Harvard was the friend of all boys.
He devoted his life to philanthropic
work, and amateur athletics was his
hobby. He was the first American
college athlete to run 100 yards in
10 seconds flat.
Wrestling.
Wrest liner Inst turn rrat rtism.
I pions. Joe Acton.- formerly champion
1 (Continued m Vi Mae, Colama Blx.1
The Omaha Sunday Bee
OMAHA, SUNDAY MORNING, DECEMBER 80, 1917.
Who Won Championships in
, ,i "". " iiiiiii nu ll rrniiniiirMiirrnr" 'VJ''M0l''' v'' jii-"' mi)'" ' T iy.giiiM!iMMn K
M i ' " -A-,? ' 'A ' ' jrT I' X
!l plptiillllltilflll, JgilWm U iH
n - - . - i v., ' : ." - ; ' y - i
9 A
11 U J
Champions
AITOMOBIUNO.
Blph Da Plm. v
BASE BAIX. . ,
Bsttlnr Ty Cobb, Amcrlrma league; Ed
die Boiuh, National leairue,
Fltehln Kddla Cleotte. .
World's Cbamplunshlp Chleaf White
Sot.
Pennant Winner Major lea rural Ameri
can, Chleasoi National, New York.
t'lai AA International, Toronto I Amer
ican AMoelatlon, India napollil Faclfle Coaat,
San Franclico.
riaaa A flonthern Association, Atlanta!
Western, Dea Moines.
Olasa B New York Htate. Wllkrt-Barrei
Kastern, New lit". en i Central, Grand Rap
id at North Western, Oreal Falls) Texas,
Dallas i Three-I, Peoria.
Class u south Atlantic, coinmniai Vir
ginia, Newport News. . I
Class l nine Kids, tiafemont central
Association, Marshalltawnt Central Texas,
Ennlsi Dixie, Moultrie t Georiln-Alabama,
Annlstoni North Carolina, Durham Western
Association, McAiester,
BASKET BALL.
IlUnoli Athletlo club.
BIIXIASDS.
Balk Line Willie- Iloppe. '
Three Cushion Alfred De Oro.
facket BUUarda Frank Taberskl.
BICYCUNO.
Frank? Kramer, V
BOXING. ,
HeaTywelcht Jess Wlllard.
Unlit Heavyweight Billy Mlske.
MlddleweiKht Mike O'Dowd.
Welterwelfiht Ted Lewis.
IJfhtwelsjht Benny Leonard.
j Featherweiirht Johnny Kllbane.
Bantamwelcht Pete Herman,
riywelsht Jimmy WUde. ,
FOOT BALL.
i ww
' v I 1 MIKB
tL '" 11 O'DOWD,
- - I- vyf,
VP-
- I J?0 info"' Vs fm- . "Vj fMJ
,- 7,- -'-j s" V ' ,
f F y :'; . - :
Team Won. Lost. Tied. P.O.
Oeonrla Tech 1.000
Plttuburtth ..10 0 1.000
William , 1 0 1 l.CDO
Stevens tS O S 1.000
Hyracusa 8 1 0 .M8
Kntcers 7-1 1 .815
Army 1 10 .875
Nary 7 1 .875
Georgetown 7 1 .875
Pennsylvania .......... -V SO .818
Hamilton 4 1 0 ,800
Brown 7 t 0 .778
Fordham 1 I ' n
What? Get This! St. Louis j
Cards Cut 6 Per Cent Melon
For the first time in five years the
St Louis Cardinals made' money, this
year. ' ' .
The club cleared about $20,000, rep
resenting 6 per cent on the $350,000'
paid to Mrs. Bntton last winter lor
the grounds, franchise and players.
This turn in the tide was due to two
reasons the excellent showing of the
Cardinals under Miller Muggins and
the capable business management of
Branch Rickev
The St. Louis Browns, on the other
hand, lost twice as much as the
Cardinals earned. The Browns, led
by Fielder . Jones, narrowly escaped
the cellar berth in the American,
league. . . 1 '"' .
Long Distance Speed Star j
Enters Artillery Service
Abel Kiviat, one of America's most
nnteii miler has enlisteri in the armv
h Thirteenth rnact nrtil -
lery at Fort Hamilton, N. Y.,Nnaking
one more from the ranks of sport to
get into the fighting forces of Uncle
Sam. """
in the Field of Sport 'in 1917
Swarthmore 8
Bowdoln , S
Wash. Jeff 7
West Virginia
Lehigh , 6
Colgate 4
Dartmouth 5
Tuft 8
Wesleyan , S
Boston ................ S
Amherst 4
Maine 8
Holy Cross 8
S
1
8
8
8
t
S
t
t
t
8
t
8
1
8
0
0
0
1
O
0
t
0
1
0
. 8
1
e
o
s
'8
9
0
0
1
0
8
0
.750
.750
.700
.667
.607
.667
Mi
.600
.600
.600
.571
.500
.500
.500
'.500
.444
.429
.429
.400
.400
.875
.878
.838
.833
.000
.000
Bate 1
Springfield S
Penn State
Columbia
B. P. I. ..
N. Y. V. . .
Haverford
Cornell ...
Lafayette
Union ....
Carlisle ..
Colby
Hobart
GOLF.
Only three championship golf tournament
were played In 1817 and none nuder the di
rection of the national body, because of the
war. Those played were a follow t
Western Amateur .....Francl Oulmet
Western Open .Jnmes Barnes
Women's, Metropolitan.... Mr. W. A. Gavin
The national title went over for a year
and consequently are still held by those who
won In 1016, as follows!
Amnteur ... C. A. (Chick) Fvans
Open ,........... A. (Chick) Eran
Women Miss Alexa Stirling
HOCKEY.
Amateur Boston A. A.
Intercollegiate Dartmouth
Pacific Coast ........ .Seattle Metropolitans
Canadian Montreal
H0B8E BACING. ,
8-year-old colts Sam Briar
-year-old flllle Bosle O'Grady
-year-old colt ,i Omar Khayyam
8-year-old flllle......., Sun Bennct
Older horse , . . .Old Rosebud
Jumper ., St. Charcot te
.SWIMMING.
Sprinting .............. .Duke Kohanamoko
Middle distance .Norman Boa
Marathon Joseph Gunther
Women's, sprinting, Dorothy Burn
Women's, middle distance. Claire Galllgan
Women's, long distance Lucy Freeman
Bush Sours on Indianapolis
' As Jack Dillon Fades Away
Owen Bush, veteran shortstop of
the Detroit Americans, has about de
cided to move from Indianapolis and
make his winter home in Detroit.
Bush is unmarried and lives with his
mother, who keeps house for him dur
ing the playing season.
Bush seems rather downhearted
recently, because his bosom friend,
Tack Dillon, has closed hi career, as
a fighter. The "Hoosier Bearcat" and
"Donie" have been chums since boy
hood and Bush often insisted that Dil
lon wsa about the greatest fighter in
the universe.
California Seeks Clash ,
: With Notre Dame Eleven
Andy Smith, head coach of the
University of California, formerly
fool ball coach at Furdue university,
has been making overtures for a foot
1 halt came with Notre Dame to be
played in California in 1918. He would I share, instead, will be donated to
' like to schedule a return game for 1919 charity. The rule will be inserted
I with the South Bend eleven rto bein all future contracts signed by the
' slajed la Chicago, it is aid. boxers.
Their Respective Sports
V I
vpj r
St v i 1 :
TENNIS
National R. Llndley Murray.
National Junior Charles Garland.
National Boy's Vincent Richards.
Woman's National Mary Browne.
Court Tennis Jay Gould,
. TRACK EVENTS
Event. ' Champion, Time.
100-yard dash, A. E. Ward 0.10 1-5
820-yard dash, A. E. Ward... 0.28 1-5
440-yard dash, F. Shea 0.49 8-5
Half-mile run, M. Devanney 1.57
One-mile run, J. W. Ray.... 4.18
Frve-mile-'run. Charles Fore.... 86.20 t-S
120-yard hurdles, H. E. Barron 0.15
220-yard hurdles, H. F. Loomla 0.24 4-5
Three-mile walk, G. GonlUIng 81.15 1-6
FIELD EVENTS. .
Feet. Inches
High jump, C. Larson 6 8 8-8
Broad Jump, J. Irish 22 4 8-4
Pole vault, E, Knourek 13 9
Disco throw, A. Mucks 140 1-8
Hammer throw, P. Ryan ......168 71-2
Shot put. A. Mucks 45 10 5-8
Javelin throw, G. Broader, 154 1-8
66-pound weight, P. Ryan S3 8
Hop, step and Jump, D. Ahearne 47 8
TRAP SHOOTING. ,
National Champions.
Amateur, SinglesMark Arte of Thomas
bore, 111.
Professional, Singles Homer Clark of Al
ton, IU. i -
Amateur, Doubles Clarence B. Piatt of
Brldgeton. N. J.
Open, Doubles WUllam Ridley of What
Cheer, la.
Amateur, 200 Targets Charlea B. New
comb of Philadelphia, Pa. ,
All-round, Open Bart Lewi of Auburn,
ni.
AM-aronnd, Amateur Mark Arte of Them
asboro. 111. t
Eighteen Yards Fred Tomlln of Penn
grove, N. J. -
V. 8. 8. Navy F, P. WUllam of V. 8. S.
Solace.
Intercollegiate, Team Princeton.
Intercollegiate, Individual C. V. Caesar,
Princeton.
Handicap Winners.
Grand American C. II. Larson of Wan
para, Wis., 88 from 20 yards.
Eastern K. R. Noble of Hartford, Conn.,
87 from 18 yards.
Southern L. G. Richard of Richmond,
Ye., 82 from 81 yards.
Western M. H. McDanlel of Durant, Old.,
87 from 80 yards.
Pacific Coaat Charles Yocum of Tulare,
Cat.. 85 from 18 yards.
'Professional.
Harry Coveleskie Will
Try to Stage Comeback
Harry Coveleskie, formerly the
leading left-hander on the pitching
staff of the Detroit Americans, will
try to come back next spring. He
was almost worthless to the club last
season because his pitching arm went
back on him. Coveleskie has been
taking treatments and hopes to con
vince Manager Jennings that he
should receive another trial. "Covie"
is married and not subject to the
draft. .
Wisconsin Commish Takes ,
Slap at Dancing Masters
Boxers seeking "soft" matches hady
better look elsewhere than in Wis
consin rings. The state boxing com
mission, in a new edict to stamp out
shamming, has ruled that any boxer
found guilty of stalling will not re-
. ceive a penny! of the purse
HJS
All the Latest
All the
TY- COBB. f
I
CM I-
Ml i
1918 PROMISES
LITTLE TO THE
LOVER OF SPORT
Base Ball, Boxing, Racing, Col
lege Athletics. All Headed
Toward Toboggan as New
Year Approaches.
The sport fan, looking forward to
1918, finds little solace for the disap
pointing year of 1917, Prospects for
a successful year are slim.
Base hall, the national- pastime,
faces a precarious outlook at best.
Major league ball, no doubt, will con
tinue but it will fall far belpw the
standard set by the last decade.
Many young stars already have, ans
wered the colors, many more will
be summoned by the draft and many
of the fans are wearing khaki.
Little hope is held for minor league
base ball. Of the 50 leagues active
three years ieo, only eight are sure
to start in the spring and of the eight
no one knows how many will be able
to finish.
Automobile racing ceases entirelyTl
l he American Automobile associa
tion, under whose auspices all sanc
tioned speedway and road events are
held, has decided to permit no more
races as long as the war continues.
The . only excitement for the speed
enthusiasts 'hen will be outlaw races
which amount to little.
Thoroughbred and harness racing,
both of which prospered during the
year now closing, have prospects of
another successful season, but the
element of uncertainty is so pre
dominate in all sport that one cannot
venture "to prophesy success for any
enterprise.
Boxing, having lost its grip in New
York state, has little to look forward
to. Wrestling is fading fast College
athletics are bound to continue to
deteriorate. '
The outlook for 1918 is far from
bright lor the sport fan.
Eddie Cicotte Marks Two -American
Hurling Records
Eddie Cicotte of tfie Chicago White
Sox hoKds undisputed title to king
among American league pitchers for
the 1917 season.- The official aver
ages show he not only allowed the
lowest percentage of earned runs, but
he further demonstrated his value to
his team by 'pitching more innings
than any other twirler in the league.
The little shine ball artist of the
world's champions had a great year
all around, he made a brilliant start
with a no-hit game and he wound up
just as brilliantly with good work
in the world's series. What makes
his record more remarkable is that
he is no longer a youngster and was
even counted- as about ready for the
minors several years ago. Cicotti
says that was because he didn't take
the game seriously enough. He con
cluded to get down to-business afid
show the world what he could do.
The American league pitching rec
ords for 1917 show how well he suc
ceeded. '
Omaha Champs
' of the Year 1917
Base Ball Armour, Class A j Marphy-Dld-lta,
Class Bj Sample-Harts, Clasa C.
Basket Ball Brmndeln, independent;
Omaha National bank. Commercial leasee;
First Methodist, Church league.
Billiards IV. ' N. Chamber. -
Bowline Oma's team champions; Walt
Goff and Ken Sclple, doubles champion;
Al Wartchow and H. I- McCoy, tied for
lujles championship: H. L. McCoy, all
events champion; A. B. , Sweet Shops, wom
an's team champions: Mis Verda PlUlac,
woman's single champion.
Chess Howard Ohman. .
Curling Balmorals, team champion;
Alee Melvln, Individual champion.
Fxit Ball Nonpareil.
Golf 8am Reynolds, Transmlsslsslppl
champion; Gay Beckett, state champion;
Jack Hughes, city champion.
Hand Ball C. G. Linn. :
Motorcycling Otto Bamer.
Pocket BiUiards Benny Owen.
Soccer Townsends.
Sqaaxh Spike Kennedy.
Tennis Roy. John Calvert; Addle Fogg,
we man's champion.
Trap shooting C. V. Waggoner.
Tna-af-war row
Sport News
Time
SPORT LOVERS IN
IPi! A LOOK BACK
OVER GOOD YEAR
Nineteen Seventeen Fails to
Equal Record-Breaking Mark
of 1916, But it Does
Fairly Well.
Glancing back over the old year
before we give it a parting kick in
the slats and speed it on its way, into
the dark recesses of the forgotten
past, one finds that 1916 was a pretty
good old year at that. i
' The Rourkes didn't win any pen
nant, the Armours didn't get very far
in the amateur world's series, Creigh-"
ton got lolloped a couple of times
and the University of Nebraska's
showing on the gridiron was nothing
to get into ecstasies" about, but' the
jchap who plunked down his. change
at the box office generally got his
money's worth, so there is no kick
coming.
Omaha's failure in the Western
league race, of course, was the prin
cipal disappointment. The Rourkis
looked like winners at the start of
the season, but as usual the dope
fliwered abominably. But- some
mighty good games of base ball were
staged out at the Vinton . street lot
and it is with a feeling of regret that
we look back over the base ball
season. N
Many Big Events.
In the way of big sporting events
Omaha got more than its share. No
city of corresponding size entertained
more big events this year than die!
Omaha.
s A handful of big wrestling lilatches,
the automobile classic, the Great
Western circuit harness races, the
state golf tournament, all were ..rare
treats. " t. -
The Earl Caddock-Joe- . Steelier
match was the biggest wrestling vent
of the year. In this match the cham
pionship hanged hands and' the
wrestling game all over the xountry
given new life. -.-":
It also was one of the 'greatest
surprises of. the year. Rather- small
of baild for t heavyweight, wrestler,
the trim and well-prdportioned Cad
dock was not even, given an outside
chance to win. But he startled all the
experts, students and just plain fans
by pinning the great Stecher'sNshoul
ders to the mat for a fall "and 'then
making , him quit the . ring' and lose
the match. ;
The Stecher-Caddock ."watch;.5 was
not the only big mat event of the year
in Omaha. Stecher and Charhjy Pet
ers fought two hard and successful
matches. Stecher and Marin Plestina
grappled over two hours without t
fall. This match, however, is 1 cm
upon which the stamp of failure can
be placed because of Plestina's watch,
ful waiting policy, Stecher's inability '
to carry the attack to Plestina ant
the refqreej unusual and some say
impossible decision at the con
clusion. Automobile Derby.
Th automobile derby July 4 was
Omaha's last big speedway irace.. The N'
huge oval now is being torn down
and no more will gate city speed en
thusiasts see the gasoline, demons
charge around the saucer in pursuit
of fame and fortune at the risk of
life and limb. ,
The race was a huge success and'
nearly equalled that famous classic
of 1915 the race which has gone
down in racing history as the greatest
speedway event ever staged in any
city, state or country in the way of
thrills. . , ,
Smiling Ralph Mulford, who fost a
heari-breakinsf rice to Dario Resta in
1915, came back this year and won
the Ind:pendence day classic at the '
record-breaking speed of lOt miles an
hour after a gruelling contest in
which he barely outdistanced Joe
Thomas, Tommy ., Miltdtv Walter
Haines and 6th rs. -. s
Harness Racing;
Five days of Great Western circuit
racing were staged at the Omaha
Driving club's track for lovers of har
ness stepping. Some of the classiest
pacers and trotters in the country
took part in the events and.no more
interesting contests were to be seen
on any other circuit, not even the
Grand circuit. Three days of state
circuit racing also were staged in
Tune on the local track.
Tug-of-war fans were treated to
several interesting pulls. The Omaha
coppers and the Denver coppers
clashed in one classic and the cop
pers and the Nonpareils in another.
Despite the war, golf, tennis, ama
teur base ball, foot ball, trap shooting,
billiards, pool, in fact all of the ma
jor sports enjoyed a prosperous year
in Omaha, and although 1917 Hid not
live up to that record breaking year of
1916, it probably will show itself bet
ter than 1918 for which prospects, it
must be admitted, are slim indeed.
Big Ban Spikes Talk of
Switching Senator Games
President Ban Johnson of the Am
erican league has recently expressed
disapproval of a suggestion that has
been going the rounds - that one set
of Washington's home games 16 in
all be transferred to Toronto next
summer, in case the International
league is not in operation. 'Whiles
paying compliments to Torontd as a
base ball city, Mr. Johnson says such
action would not be fair to the fans
of Washington. -He agrees with
Clark Griffith that base ball may
draw more patronage in- Washington
next year than it has for several sea
sons past y ' - . v, ,
Chick Gandil Leads All
; American First Sackers
The American league fielding aver
ages show. Clark Gandil, theWhite
Sox player, to be the best, fielding
first baseman in the league.- In 149
games Gandil had 1.490 chances and
handled all but eight of, them per
fectly, this giving - him : an average
ot w, A