View source for Clipping:Intellectual property of scores

{{Clipping
|Type of Date=Day
|Date=5/24/1890
|Title=intellectual property of scores
|Text=<p>May a man who has paid his money to see a base ball match write an account of the same as it progresses and throw it over the fence, for the information of persons not present?  This is one of the questions that will come before the courts shortly, two Western Union reporters having been arrested at the Athletic grounds for sending reports in this way.  The men so treated are Horace A. Shinn, of 1607 South Juniper street, and D. S. Fister, of 700 Preston street, employees of the Western Union Telegraph Company.  They were held on Saturday last for a further hearing this week by Magistrate Romig, charged with illegally securing for their employers scores of the games played at the Athletic Ball Park, Twenty-sixth and Jefferson streets.</p>
<p>The prosecution is the outgrowth of a rivalry between the Western Union and Postal Telegraph Companies.  The latter secured exclusive privilege of running wires into the ground, and to overreach its rival the company first named had its employees take the history of the game as it proceeded and throw the copy over the fence to a waiting messenger boy, by which means it was enabled to telegraph reports of the game as rapidly as the Postal Company.</p>
<p>At Forepaugh's Park Western Union reporters have also from time to time been ejected for the same offence, the Postal Company having the same exclusive rights on this ground.</p>
<p>It does not seem good policy for base ball clubs to offend a company like the Western Union, and to peddle out telegraphic privileges for such a comparatively small such as $250 per club, but having sold the privileges it is at least necessary for the managers to try to keep the privileges exclusive.</p>
|Source=Sporting Life
|Submitted by=Richard Hershberger
|Origin=Initial Hershberger Clippings
}}