Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 19, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 January 1915 — NO GRATITUDE IN BASEBALL [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

NO GRATITUDE IN BASEBALL

Criticism of Conn in Mack for Releasing Three Veteran Player* Not Based on Business Principles. There has been a good deal of comment in the papers recently about the alleged Ingratitude of Connie Mack in asking for releases on some of his old players. Such talk is common, ordinary nonsense. Connie Mack is engaged in a business which involves the investment of targe sums of money. He is an agent or trustee for capitalists and he has no right in that capacity to feel any gratitude or to have any personal feelings whatever except as those feelings square up with his business judgment and his duty to his stockholders. Baseball has gotten beyond the point where there is any sympathy in it in any way, shape or manner. It is a eold-bloOded business from start to finish and players and managers and even stockholders real-

ize, if they realize anything, that the more business that is applied to the running of baseball, the bigger the chances are for returns on money invested Connie Mack is placed where he is because he can return the stockholders dividends and dividends are the things which investors are after these days. If Tom, Dick or Harry, old war horses and heroes of many wonderful contests of bygone days, can no longer attract crowds or deliver goods they are no longer available as dividend paying investments and must be let out. < It may look like ingratitude on the part of Mack to ruthlessly set adrift these men, but gratitude as a business asset does not always return big dividends. In organized ball, Charley Comlskey is the only man,' perhaps, who can make gratitude pay.—Exchange.

Connie Mack.