| Show landis Hits I Baseball Morale Aid By Davis J. J Walsh CHICAGO April 26 Old INS INS Old prints of Patrick Henry haranguing haranguing haranguing ha ha- the first continental congress congress congress con con- gress and of Blackstone the barrister barrister barrister bar bar- rister In grim grini repose were among the exhibits that glowered down from the walls of the hotel suite last night But none were quite quito as arrestIng arresting arrest- arrest Ing lug as the gaze with which theman theman the theman man Impaled his visitor as he asked us what we wanted him to talk about We said the man power situation as it related itself to the life of major league baseball and he snorted derisively Cant Can't Discuss That said K M M. Landis leaning leaning leaning lean lean- ing forward to thump us on the thigh so urgently that we wound up with a Chas horse is the one thing I 1 cant can't talk about And then he did Before he was finished he left little doubt as to Just where and how baseball stood on that question It doesn't expect any help from official Washington In the matter of ot conserving its personnel so that the season can be finished and civilian morale sus sus- tamed It doesn't even want such help Our position is that of ot any other unessential business said he with proper emphasis We Weare Weare Weare are abiding by the law of the land If the war wants every man mannow mannow mannow now in a baseball uniform it shall have them them them-as as perforce it should have them Were We're not unusual In this Were We're Just like everybody else in America And this is everybody's war There was a touch of the old courtroom manner as he paused drew breath and then spoke with the measured slowness of one who senses that his climax moment has come But there was no doubting that the Judges Judge's sincerity was deep and very real Ill ask you a question he stated with quite the air of one who knows the answer If you had one or more sons doing combat duty with the armed forces forces and and Ill I'll tell you now that such a parent never loses the thought of this during any of his waking hours hours hours- would you want to see 18 men of draft eligibility out of a field playing playing playing play play- ing baseball for a living Jiving Any such performance in my measured and considered opinion would be the worst thing that could possibly happen to baseball Weddo Weddo Wed We'd Weddo do better if we closed our parks not only for months but for years if necessary Judge Angry Yes but hadn't it been represented represent represent- ed eel that those in the combat units were petitioning that baseball be continued that the few men it could furnish the military machine were a comparatively ively negligible factor The Judge was moved almost to a show of anger I I dont don't know who's doing the representing you speak of he said with asperity And I l' dont don't know who is receiving such r- r mati mation on It isn't the kind I re re- re Ive seen letters from boys boyson on Guadalcanal l and In New Guinea and nd North Africa and I say they're getting damned annoyed by some of this piffle we keep prating about back here They bleed they die and they get maimed They undergo under under- go terrible privations and sometimes sometimes some some- sometimes times there isn't enough equipment for them to fight back with And what do they hear and read that were we're worrying about back here Another pause not for dramatic effect this time but to give his words all the scorn h he felt were their valid due I C CIVILIAN 1 V I L LI 1 A AN N MORALE |
