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BASE BALLS*Manner and Extent of ttaelr Manufacture In (bin Country—Mow they were Made Fifty Fears Ajjo— Gradual Growth of the Business—Preparing-for Next Season’s Trade—Bead Balls Going- Out of Far or—Ball Makers’Wageii '*Leas than a half a century ago such haseballs as are in use at the present time were entirely unknown. The balls then used were made of rubber and were so lively that when dropped to the 8round from a height of six or seven feet they would rebound ten or twelve inches. A blow with the bat would not drive them so far as one of the balls now in use can be driven with the same force, but when they struck the ground they were generally much more difficult to stop on account of their bounding propensities. Fifty years ago there were no ^professional ball players and the demand for manufactured, base balls of any description was very small. Many of the balls then in use— in fact nearly all of them—were home made. An old rubber overshoe would be out into strips a half inch wide and the strips wound together in a ball shape. Over this a covering of woolen yarn would be wound and a rude leather or cloth cover sewn over the4yarn. Sometimes the strips of rubber were put in avessel of hot water and boiled until they became gummy, when they would adhere together and form a solid mass of rubber. This, after being wound with yarn and covered with leather by the local shoemaker, was a fairly good ball and one that would staud considerable batting without bursting. In the lake regions and other sections of the country where sturgeon were plentiful, base balls were commonly made of the eyes of that fish. The eye of a large sturgeon oontams a ball nearly as large as a walnut. It is composed of a flexible Bubstanoe and will rebound if thrown against a hard base. These eyeballs were wound with yarn and afterward' covered with leather or cloth. They made a lively ball, but were more like the dead ball of the present than any ball in use at that time. These, of course, were all rude, homemade balls. There were no manufactured base balls of the present description until about twenty-five years ago. As clubs of professional ball players began to come into existence there sprang up a demand for a better base balls than could be obtained at that time. Several parties in different sections of the country began to experiment in base ball maxing, but the demand had not yet become sufficiently great to make their manufacture a paying business.ONE OF THE EARLIEST MANUFACTURERS. Among the first to begin making base ba lie in this country was a man named Rice, who commenced business in a small room In a frame building on Nsissau street, New York. He continued in the business until about 1870, and became quite an expert base ball maker, although he was aevor able to make more than a living out of the business. About 1670 he sold out to B. W. Brock, a Brooklyn man who was then doing a small novelty business in the samo locality. The new owner soon became convinced that the manufacturing of base balls was likely to become a large and lucrative business. He disposed of bis novelty business and Invested his entire capital—only about two hundred dollars—in base ball material. From that time the demand for base balls began to inoresseiand the success of the business was assured. It soon became necessary tohave more room* and in order to obtain it the business was removed to a large building on Dey street, wharo it still remains.There are now five or six base ball manufactories in the United States, and they do an aggregate businessof about $225l0(MJJper annum, There are three leadingmanufactories. The largest of these Is located in New York City, the second in Massachusetts, and the third in Portland avenue, in this city. The New York establishment is the only one in the country that continues manufacturing throughout the year. The Brooklyn establishment, which is known as the Wilson Carr Company, is now just commencing business for the Spring trade, after having been closed for some months. Thirty-five bands are now employed in theBrooklyn fastory—twenty girls and fifteen boys. The New York factory employs seventy-five hands the yeat round, and does.a business of over $50,000 per annum.Over twenty different grades and'varieties of base balls are made, end the prices obtained by the manufacturers vary from twenty-eight cents per dozen up to ten dollars per dozen, according to the grade. Those sold afc.tbe latter price aro. the finest base bails made. Each one of these balls is carefully packad in a paper box by itself and sells at retail at one and a half dollars. The balls beiug made for next season's use are generally being wound on a small base of rubber, which gives them more elasticity and life than is possessed by the dead balls which have been in ute for some time past. The dead balls am said to be going out of favor, besauso of their liability to burst when ■truck a hard blow with the bat;The first steps to be taken in making base balls is to out the covers and wind the yarn, The covers are made
Newspaper Details
Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Brooklyn, New York, US
Sun, Feb 03, 1884
Page 21
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
SC, USA 19 Mar 2020
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