It was no go, however, as both Messrs. Hulbert and Spalding had made up their minds that I should play on their team, and both of them knew me well enough to know that I would keep my word at all hazards, no matter what my personal likes or dislikes in the matter might be.

The last few months of my stay in Philadelphia pa.s.sed all too quickly, and a short time before the opening of the regular season found me in the Garden City ready to don a Chicago uniform and do the very best I could to help win the pennant for the latest city of my adoption.

The const.i.tution of the new league provided for an entrance fee of $100 per club, and also provided that no city of less than 75,000 inhabitants could become a member. It also provided that each city should be represented by one club only, this prohibiting the danger of local opposition, such as the Professional Players' a.s.sociation had suffered from in Philadelphia, St. Louis and other cities. Other reforms were the adoption of a player's contract, which enabled the clubs to keep their players and prevented them from being hired away by rival organizations.

This was the first step toward the reserve rule that followed later. It also provided for the expelling of players who were guilty of breaking their contracts or of dishonesty, and such players were to be debarred forever afterwards from playing on the league teams. Gambling and liquor selling on club grounds were prohibited and players interested in a bet on the result of games or purchasing a pool ticket were liable to expulsion.

The make-up of the Chicago team in full for the National League's initial season was as follows; A. G. Spalding, pitcher, captain and manager; James White, catcher; A. C. Anson, third base; Ross Barnes, second base; Cal A. McVey, first base; J. P. Peters, shortstop; J. W.

Glenn, left field; Paul A. Hines, center field; Robert Addy, right field; and J. F. Cone, Oscar Bielaski, and F. H. Andrus, subst.i.tutes.

All through the season of 1876 the most intense rivalry existed between the Chicago and Boston Clubs. The management of the latter organization, smarting under the fact that the "big four" had been hired away from them by the Western Metropolis, had gotten together as strong a team as was possible under the circ.u.mstances, the list including Harry Wright, manager; J. E. Borden ("Josephs"), T. H. Murnane, F. L. Beals, H. C.

Schafer, A. J. Leonard, J. H. O'Rourke, J. F. Manning, F. T. Whitney, George Wright, John F. Morrill, Lewis Brown, T. McGinley, and W. R.

Parks.

Our strongest opponents, however, proved to be the Hartford Club, of which Robert Ferguson was captain and manager, and which numbered among its players Allison, c.u.mmings, Bond, Mills, Burdock, Cary, York, Remsen, Ca.s.sidy, Higham, and Harbidge.

As I have said before, it was anything to beat Chicago, so far as the Bostons were concerned, but this feat they were unable to accomplish until the very tail end of the season, and after we had beaten them in nine straight games.

The first game that we played on the Boston grounds that season I remember well, because of the enormous crowd that turned out to witness the contest. The advent of the "Big Four" in a new uniform was of course the attraction, and long before the hour set for calling the game had arrived the people were wending their way in steady streams toward the scene of action. Every kind of a conveyance that could be used was pressed into service, from the lumbering stage coach that had been retired from active service, to the coach-and-four of the millionaire.

Street cars were jammed to suffocation, and even seats in an express wagon were sold at a premium.

It was Decoration Day, and therefore a holiday, and it seemed to me as if all Boston had determined to be present on that occasion. By hundreds and thousands they kept coming, and finally it was found necessary to close the gates in order to keep room enough in the grounds to play the game on. With the gates closed the crowd began to swarm over the fences, and the special policemen employed there had their hands more than full of trouble.

The "Big Four" were given a great ovation when they put in an appearance, and of course the whole team shared in the honors that were showered upon them. The game that followed was, as might have been expected, played under difficulties, but thanks to the excellent pitching of Spalding and the fine support given him by the entire team we won by a score of 5 to 1, and the Hubbites were sorer than ever over the "Big Four's" defection.

Our other victories over the Boston aggregation that season were as follows: June 1st, at Boston, Chicago 9, Boston 3; June 3d, at the same place, Chicago 8, Boston 4; July 11th, at Chicago, Chicago 18, Boston 7; July 12th, at the same place, Chicago 11, Boston 3; and July 15th, again, Chicago 15, Boston 0; September 15th, at Boston, Chicago 9, Boston 3; September 16th, Chicago 7, Boston 2; and September 22d, at Chicago, Chicago 12, Boston 10. September 23d we met Boston for the last time during the season, and, anxious as we were to make our victories over them ten straight, that being the number of games called for by the schedule, we failed to do so, being beaten by a score of 10 to 9.

I think that Harry Wright was happier that day when O'Rourke crossed the home plate and scored the winning run than he would have been had somebody made him a present of a house and lot, so anxious was he to win at least one game from Chicago during the season.

Both the Athletics and Mutuals failed to play out their scheduled games in the West that fall, and as a result they were expelled at the annual meeting of the League held in Cleveland the December following, leaving but six clubs to contest for championship honors in 1877.

That first year of the League was not a success when viewed from a financial standpoint, as not a single one of the clubs that composed it made any money, even the Chicagos, who carried off the pennant, quitting loser. The men who had organized it were by no means discouraged, however, and that they finally reaped the reward of their pluck and perseverance is now a matter of history.

In the fall I again signed with Chicago, as did Spalding, McVey, Barnes, Peters, Andrus, and Glenn of the old team, while Jim White returned to his first love, the Bostons. The new-corners on the team were Bradley, who had pitched for the St. Louis Club the year before, and who was accounted as being one of the best in the business, and H. W. Smith a change catcher and outfielder.

This was a year of disaster as far as Chicago was concerned, and we brought up the tail end of the pennant race, the whip going to Boston, which won 31 games and lost 17, while Louisville stood second on the list with 28 games won and 20 lost, to its credit, Hartford being third, St. Louis fourth, and Chicago fifth, the Cincinnatis having failed to weather the financial storm, being expelled from the League because of non-payment of dues.

There would doubtless have been a different tale to tell in regard to the championship of 1877 had it not been for the crookedness of some of the Louisville players. The team on paper prior to the opening of the season was justly regarded as one of the strongest that had ever been gotten together, and going off with a rush in the early part of the year its success seemed to be almost a.s.sured. By the middle of the season the team had obtained so great a lead that the race seemed to be all over but the shouting.

In those days poolrooms were a much greater evil than they are at the present time, and the betting on baseball was hot and heavy. The Louisville having such a lead were favorites at long odds. When the club started on its last Eastern trip they had some twelve games to play, out of which they had less than half to win in order to land the pennant. On this trip enough games were thrown to give Boston the pennant, and when the directors of the Louisville Club came to sift matters down they had but little difficulty in finding out the guilty parties, who were A. C.

Nichols, William H. Craver, George Hall and James A. Devlin.

How much money this quartette netted by its crooked work is not known to this day, but it has been proven that Devlin secured but a beggarly $100 as his share, as once the others had him in their power they could compel him to do just whatever they pleased under threats of exposure.

These four players were promptly expelled for selling games by the Louisville Club, whose action was later ratified by the League, and though they made application time after time in later years to be reinstated, their applications were denied and they pa.s.sed out of sight and out of hearing as far as the base-ball world was concerned.

They were all of them good ball players, better than the average, and Devlin, a really great pitcher, undoubtedly had a brilliant future before him. The inability to stand temptation, however, caused his downfall and left him but little better than a wreck on the sh.o.r.es of time.

The year, taken as a whole, has been generally set down as being the darkest in the history of the League. As in the preceding year, all the clubs lost money and the outlook seemed indeed a dark one.

The darkest hour comes just before the dawn, however, and the following year saw a change for the better in base-ball prospects.

CHAPTER XIII. FROM FOURTH PLACE TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP.

The year 1878 saw but six clubs in the league race, there being the Boston, Cincinnati, Providence, Chicago, Indianapolis and Milwaukee clubs, and they finished in the order named, the Hub's representatives winning by a margin of four games from their nearest compet.i.tor. The early part of the year saw the Cincinnatis in the lead, with Chicago well up toward the front, and it looked for a time as though the honors of the season might be carried off by the Western clubs. The Cincinnati Club went into the air during the summer, however, and surrendered the first place to Boston, the latter team playing finely together, and though it rallied strongly afterward it found itself unable to overtake the leaders.

The Chicago team was not a strong one that season and minor ailments and accidents made it still weaker than it would otherwise have been. A. G.

Spalding having retired from active ball playing, had gone into the sporting goods business, and Robert Ferguson had been selected to take his place as manager and captain of the team, which was made up as follows:

Robert Ferguson, shortstop and captain; Anson, left field; Start, first base; Ca.s.sidy, right field; Remsen, center field; Hankinson, third base; McClellan, second base; Frank Larkin, pitcher; Harbidge, catcher; Hallman and Reis, subst.i.tutes.

There were several weak spots in this team and it was not long before the fact became evident. Ferguson himself, while a fair shortstop, was by no means a top-notcher, and neither was he a really good manager, he not having the necessary control over the men that he had under him.

Harbridge was not even a fair catcher; in fact, according to my estimate, he was a poor one. He was a left-handed thrower and made awkward work getting a ball to the bases.

Joe Start was a good ball player, indeed, a first-cla.s.s man. He was always to be depended upon, worked hard, was a sure catch, a good fielder and a first-cla.s.s wielder of the ash. He was known far and wide as "Old Reliable" and his reputation was in every way above reproach, both on and off the field.

McClellan, who played the second base, I first saw play at St. Paul in 1876. He was a nice fielder, but only a moderate batsman. Taking him all around, however, he was better than the average, but not to be compared with some of the men who afterwards played in that position.

Ca.s.sidy, the right fielder, was only an average player, and Hankinson, who played third base and change pitcher, was never in the first cla.s.s.

Larkin, who had pitched the year before for the Hartford Club, was a rattling good man and a really first-cla.s.s pitcher, who would have won more games than he did had he met with the support that he should have had.

Remsen was a fine fielder and a fast base-runner, but his weak point was in hitting. He was a good thrower, too, though I beat him in a match at Hartford by covering 127 yards and 4 inches, a performance that surprised some people who had wagered their money on his success.

During the greater part of that year I was troubled with a frog felon on my right hand that nearly incapacitated me from playing altogether. It was absolute torture to me to catch, but I managed to worry along with it in some sort of fashion, though unable to do myself justice, and for that reason I stood lower on the list of averages than I might otherwise have done.

A felon is a mighty unpleasant thing to have at the best, and a man deserves some credit for playing ball at all that is afflicted in that way.

When the season ended none of the clubs had made any money, but the game was growing steadily in public favor, and it was evident to even the most superficial observer that there was "a good time coming."

The following year, 1879, saw a great many changes both in League memberships and in the personnel of its players. At the annual meeting held in Cleveland December 4, 1878, the Indianapolis Club resigned its membership and the circuit was filled by the admission of clubs from Cleveland, Buffalo and Syracuse. The Milwaukee Club afterward failing to come to time the Troy, N. Y., Club was taken in to fill the vacancy.

George Wright, one of the greatest players of the day, and the man to whom Boston owed much of its success in winning the pennant, deserted Boston for Providence, taking O'Rourke with him, and after the hardest sort of a fight with Boston, Chicago and Buffalo he succeeded in winning the pennant with that organization, he having the services of John M.

Ward and "Bobby" Matthews as pitchers, Lewis J. Brown as catcher; Joe Start, M. H. McGeary and W. L. Hague on the bases; with "Tommy" Stark, Paul Hines and James O'Rourke in the field. Emil Grace and John Farrell replaced Brown and Hague toward the close of the season.

It was a great year of changes all around and the League teams taken as a whole were stronger than they had ever been before.

Among the pitchers outside of these I have already mentioned were such stars as McCormick, "Jimmy" Galyin, Bradley and Will White, all of whom are famous as twirlers in base-ball history.

The Chicago team was that season the strongest that the "Windy City" had yet put in the field. To succeed Ferguson, who had gone elsewhere, I was selected as captain and manager, a position that I have always had reason to believe came to me through the influence of Mr. Hulbert, and that I retained for many a year, through both good and evil report, finding it but a thankless job at best. The make-up of the team in full was as follows: Larkin, pitcher; Flint, catcher; Anson, first base; Quest, second base; Hankinson, pitcher and third base; Peters, stortstop; Dalrymple, Gore, Remsen and George Schaffer in the field, with Williamson alternating with Hankinson at third base.

Quest, Flint, Williamson and George Schaffer all came from the Indianapolis team of the year before, and Dalrymple, who afterward became a great favorite with Chicago "fans," from the Milwaukees.

Geo. C. Gore was a newcomer in the League ranks, he hailing from New Bedford, but he soon made for himself a name, being a first-cla.s.s fielder and a batsman that was away above the average, as is shown by his record made in after years.