Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 144, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 June 1919 — WORLD IS MADE SAFE FOR BASEBALL GAME [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

WORLD IS MADE SAFE FOR BASEBALL GAME

At Least 100,000 More Players Because of Late War. Grover Cleveland Alexander and "Rabbit" Maranville Came Over Recently and Given Warm Reception—Biggest Year. The war has- made the world safe for baseball. There are twice as many bail players as there were before Uncle Sam got busy in the big world’s series along the Rhine. If you want figures to be convinced harken to Tom Nokes, secretary of the National Baseball federation: “I think it is safe to say, from a federation standpoint, there are 50 per cent more teams this spring than there were three years ago.” And only a part of our soldiers have come back from France. Nearly all

of them played ball in the army. The ones"who hadn’t donned a mitt for years went back to play when they were sent to camp. Others who never played learned. The ones who always played kept on playing. They will want to keep it up. It is more conservative to say, we believe there are at least 100,000 more ball players as a result qfi the war. They’re pouring back from overseas.

Grover Cleveland Alexander and Rabbit Maranville came in a few days ago. They were heralded with much ado. But on the same boats came other players —some who weren’t players when they went in the army. The big amateur baseball body of which Nokes is the working bead is planning for 1920.

“Rabbit" Maranville.

Grover Cleveland Alexander.