The Oregon daily journal., June 28, 1908, Page 29, Image 29

TIIE OREGOn SUNDAY JOURNAL. PORTLAND. SUNDAY HORNINGb -JUNE 28, 1903
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' A Work that Gives
5 Years of Labor to the
: Minutest Details
I - By Leigh Mitchell Hodges . . , , :
71 ILLIONS of persons have seen por
fyt traits of Henry Hudson, who dis-'
covered the rrver bearing his name.
At least, they think they have I -But they have
not. For no- authentic likeness of him has
yet been found anywhere.
The same is true of Champlain and Ed
ward Braddock, and many another historical
character of earlier times, whose supposed
likenesses are common enough in textbooks
and histories. ..
Thousands of school children have
learned that the first raising of the Stars and
Stripes in battle was . on August 2, J 77 J,
when, as a matter of fact, the correct date of
this important event is August 3, 1777. The
flag in question was not even maJe until the
morning of this latter day I .
, Multitudes have read how Columbus, on
his return to Spain, cast anchor in the port of
Palos on Friday, March 14, 14Q3, and yet
there never was such a date as Friday, March
14, 140 3 It was Friday i M arch 15. ,
With many persons it ts an historical fact
that the immortal encounter between the Bon
Homme R ichard and the Sercpis took plate
of the coast of Flamborough Head, SCOT
LAND, on the evening of September 25,
1779, and that the contest, was waged through
"the long hours of the night," whereas, in
truth, it was off England on September 23,
and the fight was finished? by 1 0.30 P. M.i
t These and numerous other corrections of
important historical facts which we have long
accepted as final are the result of a desire
for accuracy which is the ruling passion in the
life of a certain man in Cleveland, Ohio.r
Anjl, if this man's dearest wish be grant
ed him before another Man with a Scythe
comes along, he shall have reared as his monu
ment a history of our own country frqm its
very beginnings which will be as nearly accu
rate as ts humaiily possible.'
CHARLES WriXJAM BURROWS waa a young
New Englander with a West Point training
when be went to the thriving city of Cleveland
year ago, and be was poor. Today1 he is the
head of a big publishing bouse in Tom Johnson's town,
and already famous as one of two men who are mak '
ins; over our history according to Its FACTS, and not
the fancies, more or jess correct, with whiob most his
torians have contented themselves.
And in this great and interesting task, to which he
Is devoting his time and bis fortune with all the enthu-
over the mistakes made by less careful chroniclers of
the past; mistakes such as those Just cited.
Twenty-one years ago he conceived the Idea, which
was with blm a patriotic purpose, of producing an ac
curate history of the United States and Its people from
the earliest records to the present time. Ho saw In bis
mind a row of eight or ten octavo volumes which
would, in the course of a few years, realise bis ambl -tlon.
" -;u ' -V.-
Too busy to assume the writing thereof, he sought
a scribe to co-operate with him, and selected his friend
and fellow-townsman, Elroy McKendree Avery, already
well known as an author and scholar. The two went
over the preliminary plans for the vast work and
agreed that It would be at least a matter of four years.
At the end of four years not even the first volume
had appeared, though both men bad been working '
away steadily and enthusiastically. At the end of ten
years It was the same. Now, at the end of twenty-one
years, four volumes have come from the press, and the
total number to be Issued has been Increased to fifteen.
So prodigious of growth Is history of this sort
when once It la taken In band!
' And back of the quartet of tomes that are, and the
remaining eleven In various stages of preparation, are
scores of experiences roroantlo enough to form foun
dations for so-called works of fiction. .
. EXHAUSTIVE TASKS
Think of spending several years of time and much
good money to make sure of the fact that bo genuine
likeness of Champlain exists! Think of traveling thou
sands of miles to get first-hand evidence that the so
called first printed picture of the American bison waa
NOT the first! Think of working nights and enlisting
the assistance of five famous authorities to secure a
perfeet chart of the movements of one warship in a .
famous sea flghtl -.,
Tet these are only samples of what these two men.
iBieijr joina ot nui Aeiana niworta, nave done
in their labor of love, for such it really is.
Not content with such access as they themselves had
to the libraries, museums and universities of the world,
they, from time to time, called to aid them the fore- '
most of authorities on matters in hand Even then, not
content to risk accuracy in any degree, they delved -Into
odd and half-forgot nooks and corners to unearth
the original documents and data upon which these au- '
thorlties based their decrees. ...... ,
"And yet, we have not attained absolute accuracy In
every instance," said Mr. Burrows to me the other
day. "We have gone as far as we could; but in somo
cases we have been compelled to rest with what might
beat be termed 'hearsay evidence, even though it be
the highest order of hearsay and one commonly ac
cepted by historians as final." i,- -
Then he smiled, and showed me a big bundle of let
ters of different shapes and colors.
. "These are acknowledgments from historians whom,
we have corrected." be said. "Whenever we found evi
dence that a historian was wrong, we communicated
with him at once, and our proofs have usually been
accepted with good grace and gratitude. Because of
them many a book long adjudged .standard has bad to
jFjff VeTt 1 1 ysf T'T-s-n'tF --ifiniTiTnej-'-r -i --nii i nni" ni" in1 ttt nir-ri r-'-Ttirn-fTrni innnrniiiirnrti-i'Tiiiisii'iinir" i i nun h i . m i n iiimh i "niiiism sum i sjsw swmsweswej r " '
tSfUhi 1 ' X "'.-:'- ."s:' '. '.tGL : 0 iwiV t.imni"n ni,iui,i'i.l(ri-.-- :..-. i ..:5--,;,.-i.:,:..i:.;S. R.tW;C2'7. OW- 'IT'S- 4
n' S ' . i I r of fre J&irtero
U , -1.-: !? t i,--.-i,T .L . '
.11 J""CJ -:., ' gsth,, mi n .w,f.v irv-,.,, -.mt. v, -t-i-ii. r.i.n.i, n i.iii.,i..,niOTn.,iftl.m,n,li,-t- , .-Ma,...- -..mtMmmHUAm
add new notes, or even be put through a 'revised edi
tion." Sspselally notable is the case of the first raising
of the Stars and Stripes In battle, which Instance will
serve to illustrate the methods of these historians of
a new sort. . 4
"In bis History of the Flag of the United States
of America' Preble gave the date of its first use in
action as August S, 17T7, and the place as Fort Stan
wlx, N. Y while so eminent a historian as John Fiske
gave August as the data and Oriskany, N. as the
place," says Mr. Burrows. "Aside from these, certain
local historians claimed tha honor for Coocb's Bridge,
Del., on September t. Insisting that the flag raised at
Fort Stanwlx was an improvised rather' than a regu
larly manufactured ona
"Both Preble and Flake are authorities, and. In the
main. Worthy of full confidence. The correct date for
the first raising of the flag in battle, however. Is Sun
day, August t, 1777. and. as Preble gives it. Fort Stan
wlx was the place.
"This fort stood where Rome, N. T now la on the
portage between the headwaters of the Mohawk, run
ning east to the Hudson, and of Wood creek, running
' west to Oneida lake, to Oswego river and Lake Ontario,
at Oswego. N. T. , This fort was defended In the sum
mer of 1777 by Colonel Peter Oansevoort in command
of aTeglment of New York colonial troops, consisting
of eight companies.
' "When Burgoyne came south from Canada upon
bis campaign which ended In the surrender at Sara
toga Heights on October 17, 1777, be sent Lieutenant
Colonel Barry St. Leger (acting brigadier) with about
7 SO regular troops, together with Indian allies, to
cross Lake Ontario to Oswego and ascend the streams
to the portage and fort, which, it was planned, he
should Invest and reduce, and then , rejoin Burgoyne
In the vicinity of Albany. '
"In our researches wa came upon two Journals
kept by officers of Gansevoort's regiment one that of
Ensign William Colebreath and the other that of Cap
tain Abraham Swartwout the latter being privately
printed In 1899 in an edition of 100 copies, none of
4HEM5
OTEKK OF THE
As ffr& Or? r&t
CcvTzf yt-ts Cur
L
OOE at it the baseball of today I .
- It la perfectly spherical., The seams of
its sorer present the only perfect solution
of one of the most difficult problems in
the application of geometry. ' The sewing of the
seams presents vthe. only solution of a problem
equally difficult, yet arrived at by the dogged, stub
born slogging of repeated experiment. ;
It has saved you fortunes) it has cost you for-
o
NE sporting goods firm alone manufactures 1600
dosen standard baseballs every working day of
the year. Any one can calculate the millions In
the twelvemonth: and any one can count the mU-
lions of dollars that total output brings the best spent
millions any people ever paid for' the health that comes
of honest outdoor sport. . '
Two members of the firm of A. j.' Reach A Co. linger
on, hearty as the youngest of them, from the-days when
professional ball players were not and the game was
strictly a gentleman amateurs' game. They are "AT
which was offered for sala V
"In' these Journals it Is plainly shown that the
knowledge of the enactment of the flag statute by
Congress on the Kth of June. 1777, got to Albany, N.
Y on the lst of July, 1777, and that Lleutanant Col
onel Marlnus Willett, commanding some troops, 200 la
number, started on the same day to proceed up the
Mohawk river in' bateaux, carrying to th garrison
supplies, ammunition and provisions and his men as
reinforcement.
$ -ITheir arrival at Fort Stanwtx did not occur until
t o'clock on the afternoon of Saturday, which was the
d of August A great dear of enthusiasm was dis
played, and during Sunday forenoon an Improvised
flag, in accordance with the new statutes, was pre
pared. The only piece of blue cloth to be found in the
garflson was the blue cloth military cloak of Cap
tain Swartwout, which ha sacrificed for the Occasion,
and,' after the flag had been prepared. It was flown
on the northeast bastion and a cannon leveled and
fired at the enemy, who had, In the meantime, ap
peared in force before the place.",
And as a further and even mora striking example
of the time and labor devoted to the verification of
details, let me cite another Instanoa as told me by this
indefatigable seeker after historical certainties:
"The surrender of Fort William Henry, on tha
shores of Lake Oeorge, occurred, as you know, on the
morning of August I, 1757. The surrender was made
by Lieutenant Colonel Monro. In no history known to
us, though we have carefully gone through thirty
standard works on the subjeot, la Monro's first name
given. It was Oeorge.
"Moreover, the spelling of his last name Is given
In at least eight wars Monro,' Monroe, Monrow, Mun
ro, Munroe, Munrow, etc. and ha la often referred to
as 'Colonel.' We, therefore, attempted to secure cor
rect data as to his first name, correct spelling and
correct rank. For eighteen months we corresponded
with all the great archival libraries of the world,
seeking this Information. Search was also mads In
the archives of the French Department de la Guerre,
French Rolls and Records Office. English Army Coun-
tunes. It has flung away one vast fortune anctit is
making other fortunes.
The modern baseball is a miracle of mathe
matics, 4 prodigy of patience, a triumph of science)
which the nation has made its work and its play, '
its world-famed industry and its world-famed re
laxation. -t
And it bids' fair, also, to be the national mys
tery, the eternal enigma, more dubious than the
Reach and. "Ben'. Shlbe. It Is an old-fashioned partner
ship, where the partners are cronies, with the good old
; times constantly recalled to cheer the good new times
and the victories of youth revived to push the pulses of
benignant age. And always the cronies' chat ends thus:.
"Ben I wonder whether we'll ever find out who It
. was made the first real ball?"
ii- "Al, there Isn't a man alive to tell the world the
. name to put on his monument." .
That four-leaf clover thing, among the Illustrations.
' Is the cover of the old-time baseball and that sphere
with the straight line of stitching across the top, where
V" liiainsssaTtr-
It. .
Porfn&rt rr Sqn&fare cf CbimiSzs
Afu-scurrr f- fecfra
cil, English War
Records Office, to
Office and the English Rolls and
find any original document signed
by him.
"Finally there was discovered, through the kindly
aid of our embassy in London and the English Army
riddle of the Sphinx, more debatable than the au
thorship of the Junius letters, more puzzling than
"The Breadwinners" more tinsolrable, even, than
the origin of "Beautiful Snow."
For who invented the double figure 8 cover now
universally in use! That is the great mystery of
baseball manufacture. The man who invented tha
modern cover and neglected to patent it misBed a
great fortune. . '
the seams of the clover leaves Join, is the ball Itself. .
It is one e( the two gilded trophy balls that remain
out of the bushel they used to treasure. One of those
balls bears the glorious legend. "Athletics vs. West Phila
delphia, July. 1X66; 44 to 19." The other harks back
another classic year: "Athletics va Union Of Morrisanla. .;,
August S. 28 to IS." ..... .' - '
"The old ball used to cost us 12," said Mr. Reach, in
one of his vain efforts recently. .Just before he went to
his Adirondack camp for the summer, to solve tha base
ball's mystery. ,! -
"There were two manufacturers with reputation
BA5EBALL(bVER
i v t ' - " I
s ' A
Council, by the keeper of the rolls and records In Ire.
land, an authenticated letter of Monro, of September
17, 1761. recommending the promotion of an officer,
and from this was facsimiled, on tracing cloth. ht
signature, which has been engraved for reproduction
In Avery's history. . .
"In addition, it was discovered that Monro was
lieutenant colonel of the Thirty-fifth Fusileera, so an
examination was made of the records of the two bat
talions of the Royal Sussex Regiment, of England,
this being the name borne today by that regiment.
When finally obtained, it may be of Interest to know
that the tracing came to me as a Christmas gift. The
letter now in my possession, .bearing the desired In
formation and tracing, left the office of our embassy
In London on December 12, 1804; reached New Yoria
December S3, and was distributed In Cleveland In the
last mail of Saturday afternoon, December 14, 10,
the day before Christmas, and. needless to say, after
a search extending over a year and a half, waa re
eelved as a highly valued Christmas gift." . :
The bugs history wlllbe full of facsimile signa
tures of the great ones who pass through Its pages,
and In many instances these will be the first genu
ine reproductions of the sort ever made public, for
here, as in othsr ways, we have all these years been
accepting certain bits of chlrography as original with
certain men, when. In fact, their handwriting was
vastly different. -
To get at such signatures has often-been a ticklish
task, requiring the aid of diplomats In gaining access
to documents of priceless worth, which are kept bid In
the secret places of the Old World. But such detertnl-
nation as has been displayed by Mr. Burrows and Dr.
Avery usually wins, and thus far they have met no
obstacle beyond its power.
MASTERPIECE OF WRITING
As to the literary excellence of the work, the four
volumes now off the press proclaim it a masterplsce
of historical writing. Dr. Avery has the rare ability
of making a few words say a great deal, as witness
this description of the discovery of America, from the
first volume:
"In his Journal, Columbus says that on this Thurs-
day they encountered a heavier sea than they bad met j
with before on the whole voyage,' and that 'after sun-
set they sailed twelve miles an hour until two hours :
after midnight, going ninety mllea' When, at 2 o'clock ;
In the morning. Rodrigo deTriana sighted land two j
leagues distant (its direction from the ship Is not re- !
corded), the mariners took in sail and remained under
square sail, lying to till day C;;V'v-i; ;'
"With what impatience the dawn must have been :
awaited! Who can comprehend the emotions of Colum-
bus in those hoursT The wisdom and the sublime j
faith, the persistence and the enthusiasm that tor
eighteen years had kept him from, despair, had guided
him to triumph triumph over the sneers of monks and
scoffs of sages, triumph over the treachery and doubts
of monarcha. triumph over the errors of ages and the
superstitions of millions, a triumph that revealed tha
great mystery of the ocean and realised the visions of
a lifetime. - , "
'"There before him in the gloom of early morning
lay the Indies, with all the opulence and splendor of
her palaces and cities. There in peaceful slumber lay
the countless millions to whom he bad come as the
messenger of the glad tidings of salvation. He thought
that be had discovered a new route to India. He knew
not. nor did be ever know, that he bad found a world
and not a way. He had sailed upon the unknown sea
to seek the El Dorado of wealth and power, and found
Instead the battlefield of liberty." ' v
Each volume thus far produced baa been written;
and rewritten, and no manuscript has been allowed to
reach the printers until the best of authorities on the
subjects included therein have bad it in band for re
vision and possible correction. Ip this way It la hope.?
to get at and preserve the truths of our history for sZt
time, and to sanction these truths the wide world has
been ransacked for nearly a quarter of a century, and
neither of the men Interested can say bow much longer
it will take to complete the -.task. -V': .;
Already Mr. Burrows baa spent a fair fortune
nearly $200,000 In the acquisition and preparation of
the facts, but this does not seem to bother htm In the
least.
"Of course, I do not expect to get It back," be says,
"but I shall be fully repaid if I am allowed to live
long enough to see the work finished as Dr. Avery anJ
I have planned It
when I began to play ball back In the fifties-JXin-v
Ross, of Brooklyn, and John Van Horn, of Mew Xor,.
city. The cover wa made of horse hide then as sow
Koss was. a member of the famous old Atlantlo club, atu
they used the Ross ball. Van iiora belonged to the Union;
of Morrlstana, and they used the Van Horn ball.
"Both were good balls, as well made as man ooulU
make them in that day. Their one weak spot waa wrier,
the ends of the cover were stitched together; It wa
usually there that the cover ripped during a hard gain,
for the batsman waa a hitter Uien and runs were many.
"Even when I went into business, in those twu
were the standard bails. When the new ball did appear
oh, what a fortune the man threw away who inveuted li
and did not patent it It did not at first spring Int
popularity. , The reputation of the Ross bail was tu.
firmly fixed. But gradually' the absolute perfection c
the new design, combining such simplicity with such
maximum of strength, compelled the total abandonme
of the old form. The figure 8. as we call the modi
cover, became the standard recognised the country ov
To Ben Shlbe, Indomitable slogger at any problem
undertakes, belongs the credit of the final victory
mind over the rebellious matter that enters into '
modern cover of the baseball. "Al" Reach was in '
sporting goods business in Philadelphia, while Buib v
a manufacturer from l6t. In the two funned t
fartnerahlp, mutually advantageous as giving Keoa
nterest In the control of an excellent tnanutnctui
business and Shlbe a partnership in a leading sales c
corn. . - . , !
Shlbe, at the time, was deep in the mysteries of '
modern , ball cover, for the Inventor that great !
known, learned mathematician or untaught, lnv;
genius had not perfected his wondrous schema
things. In 186S a ball player who had bought t
queer novelty in some shop gave his stray mnr :
Shlbe, and that expert of the whirling sphere compr .
ed at first glance the marvel that had been wroiis' '-
when he came to make it and for a long whU 1
make It and even while he sold it, wlt vtr-.
creasing success and profit, be was dissatisfied.
OLD COVER LACKED SMOOTIINr-3
Perfect as was the design, it never worked out t
fectly in the stitching. Bomewhere usually where
tips of one "8" were fitted on either side of U.
of the other, the stitches always "tlrew." ca iini f r t
nicest skill of workmen in the adjutmnt of t .
' yet never making the absolute smoothness Uku
protection to the full strength, of the hU. '
: For years after the partnership was formed
Bhlbe struggled with that vexatious prohtin t
. In,, trvlnsr moaeurinar. desisminr all in t
would not elve It uo: and. at lat. by lnt of
conquerable pluck and ptino, lie tiww'
nature of the sphere demanded tbnt t .
end of the "S," If ttiy were to " "
stitches In the waist they Joined, musf r.
and more closely grouped. In a tA.-v
of separation, than the rtlicrs. lia wui - J U
last obdurate stitch of the 111 Ut. he, i .
the Columbus of the nw hmii;;n. t. i i te
be took a patent on it in h.