Clipping:Another account, from a correspondent
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
 |
| Add a Clipping |
| Date | Saturday, October 13, 1866 |
|---|---|
| Text | A Philadelphia correspondent, who seems to have had an eye on the proceedings on the grounds, sends up the following report of men, matters, etc., as they came under his observation:- FRIEND QUEEN.- October the 1st being the day selected for the great match for the Championship of America, between the Atlantic, of Brooklyn, and Athletic, of ye Quaker City, I wended my way to the scene of strife arriving on the ground at fifteen minutes after twelve. I found at that time every available seat was occupied; in fact, standing room from which a view of the field could be obtained, was at a premium. Having secured a seat on one of the places arranged amphitheatre style, by giving a small boy the sum of one dollar, I sat down to wait two mortal hours for the play to begin. A cheer now arose on the arrival of the Atlantic, accompanied by the Keystones, in an omnibus, drawn by four horses; they immediately went to the club house and in an astonishing short space of time had doffed their civilized suits and donned their playing suits and went on the field for play. The specified time 1 o'clock to play having arrived, the services of Theo. Bomeisler were secured for umpire, and the Atlantic—winning the toss—sent their opponents to the bat... ...Here the crow pressed forward so that it was impossible to go on with the game. They broke down the fences and benches, ran across the field in defiance of the numerous policemen in attendance to keep order, and as there was no hope of bringing the crowd to subjection, the field captains of the respective clubs decided it a drawn game, much to the indignation of the orderly spectators, also those who bet their pile on the result of the game. The field committee, in my opinion, were very inefficient, there not being half enough appointed. The police force was also too small: there should have been at least four times as many. The ropes were not one fourth thick enough. The police, considering their number, did very efficient service until the rope broke and then it was impossible to keep the mass of human beings back. The crowd inside and outside the gates numbered between thirty and forty thousand people, many of the fair sex of Philadelphia, as well as New York, lending their pleasing presence to the occasion, and applauded lustily when their favorites made a good play or secured a run. Let me add, that the persons accompanying the Atlantics from New York must observe better order hereafter than they did on this occasion. It is surprising to me that everything pass of as orderly as it did. R.B. |
| Source | New York Clipper |
| Tags | |
| Warning | |
| Comment | Edit with form to add a comment |
| Query | Edit with form to add a query |
| Submitted by | Richard Hershberger |
| Origin | Initial Hershberger Clippings |
Comments
<comments voting="Plus" />