j PftRT THREE j
PAGES 25 TO 32
VOL. XXII PORTLAND, OREGON, SUNDAY MORNING. JUNE 14. 1903. y0- 2L
TpA-P-SHOOTlNG POPULAH WITH SPOPyTSMEN H0srH
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LITTLE over a quarter of a cea
.Ja tury ago, just about the time that
Dr. Carver was electrifying the
world with his brilliant- work with the
gun and trap, a few of the lovers of the
run and rod in Portland got together and
organized what was then known as the
Multnomah Gun Club. The club since Its
organization has not always had smooth
sailing. As the- city grew the gun club
also grew, but the .clab also was hounded
from first one shooting grounds to anoth
er, until today thoy have a shooting place
where they will not bo molested.
Twenty-live years ago the shooting
grounds of the club were on the flats just
south of the old water works. On this
spot Dr. Carver broke glass balls much
ti the delight of the first members of the
Portland Gun Club.. Ho used an old
fashioned single-barreled shotgun and
black powder. Edward Ladd was the
first of the early citizens of Portland to
get interested in trap-shooting. When
Carver came to Portland he secured a
glass ball trap, and the first members of
the gun club would stand around and
watch Dr. Carver's wonderful feats of
marksmanship. In the mind's eye one
can eee the veterans: Bob Bybec. Uncle
Dave Monastes, Johnnie Hughes, Judgo
Wh alloy. Cap Xnkeny, Sam Stevens,
Woodson Scoggins. H. T. Hudson, Boss
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MDLTNOMAH
ROD and gun
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SHOOTING-TOSlTIONu
Schenck, Frank Thorn, Homer Daven
port, W. Ll Curry, Ell Morrell and oth
ers. Some of thse men have passed to
the great beyond, while others still live in
Portland, and others are standing before
the traps In other cities Homei Daven
port, for example. This great cartoonist;
in spite of the bustle and hurry of New
York newspaper life, still enjoys a day
with the traps and the blue rocks.
A year or so afterward some of the
same shooters, with their traps placed
where the O. R. & N. roundhouse now
stands, used to gather and shoot dough
balls, with the following new 'shooters
added: W. A. Storey, E. W. Moore, Hen
ry Prettyman and others. A little later
the Multnomah Club made its headquar
ters at the White House, where they shot
XJgowisky clay pigeons, among the
sportsmen being Will Chapman, Theodore
Davis, Bob Bybee, Judge Whalley, Frank
Ajle. D. K. Howe and others. A few
years later the following became Inter
ested In the sport at the traps: Henry
Corbett, William M. Ladd, W. F. Burrell,
H. J. Burrell, the Honeyman brothers, C
C Clark, C E. Hughes, C Hoxie, Cap
Gilliam and others.
Trap shooting continued In various lo
cations in the suburbs of Portland until
1S93, when a new class of shooters faced
the traps at Monta villa. Among them
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were Lee Hoffman, Dr. P. S. Langworthy,
W. A. Storey. B. J. Hall, J. Roberts Meade
and many others. About this time trap
shooters had settled on Blue Bock targets
;and expert traps thro j by electric pulls.
Within the past tea 'years the old Mult
nomah Club has been crowded from one
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point to.another on account of the growth
of the city, "and for the pastxfew years
had been shooting Blue Rock targets at
Irvlngton grounds east of the Irvington
race track. The club for the past few
years was "known as the Multnomah Ama
teur' Athletic Rod and Gun Club, being an
anex of the Multnomah Amateur Athletic
Club. It Is -now reorganised and known
as the Multnomah Rod & Gun Club; the
grounds are at the old City View race
track, directly south of the Crematorium.
A trip to the shooting grounds of the
club after a glance over the records of
the club show how great the change Is.
About the only veteran present is the
pioneer gundealer. H. T. Hudson, and F.
B. Thorn. These two men were among
the first of Portland's trap shooters. They
still shoot and shoot well, hut their
equipment is new and up to date. There Is
no longer-the heavy, lumbering fowling
piece that was loaded from the muzzle.
There Is no longer the ear-cracking re
port following the word "PulL" The first
shooter that faces the score has a ham
merless. double-barrel,, ejecter shotgun and
la shooting smokeless powder. The next
shooter stepping to the score has a re
peating gun, and bo on down the line.
The days of the old hammer gun, as well
as the muzzle gun. are past. Note with
what eagerness' some of the shooters face
the trap, for Instance the gentleman now
shooting, who has that peculiar position.
is Mooch Abraham, present secretary of
te Multnomah Bod & Gun Club, and the
iaau oruuo mux uiiu uic ycuun-ii.- uuvn
fn his back is Harry Kills, shooting a
pump gun. The next man, that has the
beautiful shooting position, is Caldwell,
although he Is shooting from his left
choulder. The next man Is Frank Howe.
Ee is shooting with all the vigor and vim
In him, as he fs interested in making the
top score. The other men shooting are
Sheriff W. A. Storey, Mr. Kohn, Jl. K.
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Bentley, John Eubankft. Dr. Langworthy,
Watt Monteith, F. B. Thorn, A J.
Winters a"hd others.
Not only does the club claim men who
have become famous, but In its rolls are
some of vhe best shooters In the Pacific
Northwest. They have shot at most 'of
the tournaments, and have captured their
share of the trophies and prizes hung up
by the different clubs. Portland's Gun
Club, ever progressive and up to date,
has abandoned the live-bird shootlngt In
fact, the members would rather shoot the
blue rocks than the live birds.
The traps are quite complicated pieces
of mechanism, screwed down tightly to a
wooden base and set 15 feet apart, five
of them in a row. Electric wires connect
them, and when the shooter yells "pull"
the trap Immediately releases and throws
a yellow-back blue-rock target a distance
of from 50 to 73 yards at an unknown
angle from the shooter, who is very for
tunate if he succeeds in hitting it. Tha'
blue-rock target Is made of tar and clay,
and Is of such a consistency that when
hit In the air with two or three No. 7,
74 or 8 shot, will break, and for each
target broken In the air Is scored a dead
bird. The modern shooter is no longer
shooting live birds; this shooting is a
thing of the past, as the sentiment among
up-to-date shooters is against it so strong
that the probabilities are no more live-
bird shooting will be practiced In the
United States. The sentiment against
Hve-blrd shooting is not only strong with
shooters in Portland, but it Is universal
among all gentlemen sportsmen on the
Coast.
As a pastime; trap-shooting is undoubt
edly one of the most Inspiring outdoor
sports; It -furnishes the shooter the neces
sary fresh air and outdoor exercise, giv
ing him health, strength and vigor; It
quickens his j eye and steadies his nerve.
In fact, a nervous, weak man is not to
to
f.-C if
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be found among its followers; they are
all robust and healthy. As evidence of
the popularity of the sport, it is but nec
essary to state that in every town and
village in the .United States there Is a
gun club. In the Northwest the various
clubs have formed Into an association.
called the Sportsmen's Association of the
Northwest, and annually hold a threa
days' shooting tournament to test tha
shooters ability. This year the tourna
ment is to be held at Dayton. "Wash..
June 25, 25 and 27.
BLISB BASEBALL FAX.
Bis Ears Tell Illm How the- Gsae -Xs
Going;.
He never saw a game of baseball in his
life. "But if there is any other fan that
can yell louder than I can," says James
Judge, aged 61 years, of 231-1 Clinton ave
nue, Minneapolis; "it there'3 anybody can
lose moro bets on the homo nine, just
trot 'em out."
The circumstance that Mr. Judge has
been totally blind for 40 years tdld not
prevent his being more eager than an of
fice boy to enjoy the first game of the
season at the Minneapolis grounds, says)
the MinneapolIsjtJournal. It did not keep
him away from the game on the follow
ing Saturday. "I'll 'see' every game this
ypar," he says. "I seldom allow my busi
ness to intorfere when there's something'
dola at Nicollet Park or Minnehaha."
Tet Mr. Judge has business enough-
business both profitable and important.
He Is a master stcamfltter. a successful
contractor, a mechanical Inventor of pro-
nouncea ability. The oldest master
steamfltter In the state, if not In the
country, he boasts that he has always
been a master fitter, always a "boss,"
never a journeyman nor a helper.
"One of our Milwaukee steam Otters."
explained Mr. Judge, "introduced me to
the ball-players. Then they got to visit
ing my shop. "We all made a living with
liot air, I s'pose. Anyhow, I got ac
quainted there with Bennett, the great
Detroit catcher, and with Ward, that used
to do some magic pitching for the old
Janesvllle Mutuals-. This was about 1378
and 1S77. No, I hadn't ever seen a. game
of ball before I lost my eyesight. The
game was played a little by boys when I
was a young fellow, but I never paid any
attention to it.
"But, beginning about 23 years ago, I
caught on to all the line points. Soon I
was buying season tickets and betting
money on my friends. I had great luck,
too. Once I pulled oft seven combinations
In pool bets for seven consecutive days.
"I usually try to get a seat in the
'grandstand, just about(opposlte first base,
and three or four rows back. I don't
really care whether the woman before me
has a big hat, though I sometimes catch
myself howling 'Down in front"' Who
ever is with me reads over once the bat
ting list on each side After that I can
tell whose turn at the bat It is without
looking at the programme. And I can
generally make out a foul from a fair
ball by the way the ball sounds against
the bat. If I can hear the umpire call
the balls and strikes, I can follow the
game easy enough, only I have to have
somebody tell me the result of the runs.
But I know pretty near what to expect.
When Wllmot hits the leather, for in
stance, I know he's going to drive it. I
also know that he won't hit it once in ten
times." , - ' - -
IlEASOX FOlt IXVAStOJf.
An Eastern Critic Tells Way Turf
men Are Travellngr.
Every year it becomes more noticeable
that Western owners of prominence pre
fer to race their horses under the juris
diction of the Eastern Jockey Club. Often
this Is the case In -spite of serious personal
disadvantage, such as the necessity of
neglecting business if the running of the
horses is to be watched. This year more
Western owners than ever are racing
in the vicinity of New York, and there win
be notable vacancies when the more im
portant meetings of the Chicago circuit
begin.
It need scarcely be said that there is
good and sufficient reason for this state
of affairs, and the reason Is more com
plimentary to the East than derogatory to
tho West.
It has been realized that our jockey
club has obtained a thorough grasp ot
the situation and, having its affairs com
pletely in hand, is prepared to administer
justice with strict impartiality. There la
nothing hysterical or spasmodic about
the turf government of the East. The
man who Is running his horse3 honestly
has nothing to fear, though the evildoer
Is apt to get a short shrift.
As much cannot be said of tho Western
Jockey Club. Of course that body is much
younger, but a far more serious defect
than Its youth is found in the absence
from the list of stewards of men practic
ally fitted to administer racing. This
weakness of the supreme body leaves the
individual racing" man, whether owner,
trainer or jockey, virtually at the mercy
of the ste'wards of any individual meet
ing, and in the strenuously professional
atmosphere of the racecourses of the Mid
dle West stewards, or Judges, as they are
called there, are apt to yield to hysteria
and issue edics frpm which there is prac
tically no appeal. In such environments
the Innocent may suffer without a chance
of rehabilitation. Hence the pilgrimage
Eastward.
IS SMITH A "PUCES.?"
"Plttsbnrs Phil" Has Given Up Race
track Plunging-.
Georgo E. Smith, "Pittsburg- Phil," not
so many years ago a corkcutter in a
Pittsburg factory, and now known
throughout the sporting world as the most
successful plunger on the American, turf,
declares he is no longer a plunger. He
has made so much money in his vast bet
ting transactions that he now is satis
fied to step aside and let others do the
heavy betting.
"I am no longer a plunger," he said.
"In fact, I am what you call a "piker,
and a 'piker I will remain. I have been
in the business a long time, and I have
made enough money to satisfy me. Now
I am willing to let others take the plung
ing for themselves.
"I am not as strong, physically, as I
used to be, and as I don't need to worry
about the future. I am going to take nara
of myself and give up the labor' attending
the bfg betting operations. I have been
at it for 12 years or more, and I guess I
have made enough.
- "I have not made any big bets this year
and I don't intend to do so again. Why.
there are any number of men who bet
much more than I do, and a score of them
who bet ten times as much. It is not be
cause I have not made money or that Z
am in any way dissatisfied, but I feel that
I have made enough money and do not
care for the worry of making more.
"I have a few horses and expect to win.
some races with them, I shall continue to
race horses, for nobody loves a good horse
better than I, but I will not bet as ex
tensively as I-have In the 'past.
"I have always made it a point to bet
on my horses openly- Anyone who cares
to can stand In the ring and know what I
bet; for I make no attempt to keep it
secret."