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Show FIRST SHOT IN BASEBALL WAR Injunction Against William J. Killifer Filed by Federal League President. CONTRACT IS BROKEN Advance Fee Paid to and Retained Re-tained by Defendant Tribute Tri-bute to Ability. Grand Rapids. Mich., March 'JO. The first legal shot of the baseball war of 1911 was fired here today by the Federal league in filing a poiitlon with the United States district court for the western district of Michigan asking for an Injunction to restrain William J. Killifer, Jr., formerly catcher catch-er for the Philadelphia Nationals, from playing baseball with any club other than the Chicago Federals. Killifer signed a three-year contract with the Chicago Federals, but afterward af-terward was persuaded that the reserve re-serve clause in his old contract with the Philadelphia club held him legally to Philadelphia and joined his former team. The suit involves the legality of the reserve clause, long regarded as one of the bulwarks of organized baseball. The suit was brought In the western Michigan district because Killifer Is a resident of Paw Paw, Michigan. After reciting the organization ot the Chicago Federal league baseball club for the purpose of maintaining a baseball club, the bill declared "that it was necessary to engage the services ser-vices of baseball players of unique and extraordinary skill and expert-ness, expert-ness, among whom" was the defendant," defend-ant," Bill Killifer. President Signs Complaint. The complaint which was signed by Charles Weeghman, president of the Chicago Federal league baseball club, told of the signing of the contract con-tract by Killifer in which he agreed to play for three years for the Chicago Chi-cago Federals for a total of 17,500. or 5,833.33 a year. The contract, a copy of which was attached to ..ie petition for an enjoining order, expressly ex-pressly stipulated, the court was informed in-formed that Killifer agreed to dovotc his entire time and attontion to the service of the Chicago Federals. The court was informed that $500 was advanced ad-vanced to Killifer on account and was accepted by him and is still retained. Failure to report for practice, In accordance with his contract, was alleged al-leged against Killifer. The bill then set forth the information informa-tion "that a baseball team consists of nine regular players, besides substitutes, sub-stitutes, each of whom play in different dif-ferent positions, to-wlt: Pitcher, catcher, first base, second base, shortstop, short-stop, third base, right field, center field and left field." "That one of the principal positions on a baseball team is that, of catcher; that on account of its importance and of the extraordinary .skill, adaptability adaptabili-ty and training necessary for the expert ex-pert playing of this position it Is more difficult to secure an expert catcher than any of the other players." Tribute to Killlfer's Ability. A tribute to the ability of Catcher Killifer was contained In a paragraph which informed the court "that the defendant is a baseball player, to-wit' to-wit' A catcher, of unique and extraordinary extraor-dinary skill and expertness and of such personal and intellectual character charac-ter that his loss cannot be substantially substan-tially compensated for by the services of some other baseball catcher." The bill set forth that the Chicago Federals will suffer irreparable injury unless a restraining order issues enjoining en-joining Killifer from playing with clubs other than the Chicago Federals, Feder-als, and more 'particularly with the Philadelphia Nationals, with whom the complainant believes Killifer Is now in active practice in preparation for the opening of the baseball season. sea-son. do |