Hide Article Text (OCR)
*1ball as 1• 444unda botheAmgric44(JarIBalls“Base-balls are like human-beings— jou never know whet’s in them un^il you cut them open,” said A1 Reach, | “£e the old-time second-baser, to a reporter [ for the Philadelphia Record, as he placed | a ball before a circular saw, and after i -some little trouble halved it. “There! | g What do you think of that? A great deal of science and hard work is required in the manufacture of balls. Forinstance, the ball is patented. In the center is a round piece of the best Para gum. Then there is the best stocking-yarn. This is stretched first by ma-chinery to its utmost tension. Theli it! is wound by hand so tight that, as you see, it resembles one solid piece of material. The winding is done by single ^ strands at a time. This makes it more ! compact. A round of white yarn is1 now put in, and the whole covered with a rubber plastic cement. When this becomes hard it preserves the spherical shape of the ball, and prevents the inside from shifting when the ball is struck. You have seen some balls knocked egg shaped the first blow they are struck. Well, with this cement covering that is impossible. Then comes more yarn, and finally the cover.The covering for all the good balls is made of horse-hide. Long experience has shown this to be the best. Cow orc* Kof’Icoinches in circumference. It is calculated that about live millions base-ballswonachlt;4 4*44yan had airtl4 4 44 44 44i44nowgont-skin will become wrinkled and ^ j;themanwe (menwear loose. Why, there is as much change in the making of base-balls in j ““V.j the last ten years as there is in the game itself. The sewing on of covers is done by hand,and the thread used is catgut.” I j_no No one man makes a ball complete.— |One person becomes proficient in the first winding, then some one else tkes| it; another man will fit the cover, but there are very few of the workmen who I ('r’0't become; proficient in the art of sewing | |jey( the cover. A dozen men in the course of a day will turn out about twenty-five dozen first-class balls, and as a rule | they make good wages. Some manufacturers put carpet list in the balls, but I can easily be detected when the batting begins, because the ball soon loses its jjshape. Of course, for the cheap balls, ‘usuch as the boys begin with, not so -much care is exercised in the manufac- j ture. They are made in cups, which i,jrevolve by fast moving machinery. The -t|insides arc made up of scraps of leather .,jand rubber, and then carpet listing is wu wound around the ball. It takes a man] j0,u about ten minutes to turn one of these out complete. The professional ball“iwonweighs from 5 to ounces, and is 9H ..t■ ’ a A V . • V 1 Aself i“Iire made each year, and these are not sers| extravagant figures when it is considered ' hat upon every vacant lot in the large jities and upon every village green in s(‘)t he country there are crowds of men '^ ,’j md boys banging away at the ball v lie never the weather permits. And!,’et people say the national game is dy-nn out' _ . __fack:
Newspaper Details
Terre Haute Saturday Evening Mail
Terre Haute, Indiana, US
Sat, Feb 03, 1883
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
SC, USA 19 Mar 2020
Other Publications Near Terre Haute, Indiana
Western Register and Terre Haute Advertiser
Terre Haute Wabash Courier
Terre Haute Tribune Star
Terre Haute Tribune
Terre Haute Star
