Because they’s no use of a man killing himself pitching baseball and then when your arm gives out you haven’t got no business to go in to because business men won’t hire a man that’s 33 or 34 yrs. old and no experience and besides if a man has got a family like mine why not stay home and enjoy them in the stead of traveling on the road ½ the yr. around you might say. So even if Comiskey should send me a contract calling for $4,000.00 per annum I would send it back though that is the lease I would sign up for if I was going to sign at all.
Well Al xmas is over and I only wished you could of been here to see how little Al eat it up. Besides all the junk we give him all of Florrie’s friends sent something and all together he must of got about 25 presents in the 1st place and now he has got about a 100 as everything he got is broke in to 4 peaces and they also sent the baby a load of play things that means as much to her as the hit and run but Florrie says never mind they will be put away till some xmas when she is old enough to enjoy them and then we won’t half to buy her nothing new. Well the idear is OK Al but it reminds me like when Sept. comes along and a man has got a straw Kelly that looks pretty good and you give it to your wife to take care of till next June and when it comes June you go and buy yourself a new hat.
Well Florrie’s present to me was a phonograph and of course that’s a mighty fine present and will cost her or whoever pays for it a bunch of jack but between you and I Al I wouldn’t be surprised if she was thinking to herself when she bought it that maybe she might turn it on some times when I am not in the house. What I give her is 1 of these here patent shower bath attachments that you can have it put up on a regular bath tub and you can have a regular tub bath or a shower just as you feel like. They cost real money to Al but what’s the differents when its your wife?
Chi, Jan. 16.
Friend Al: Well Al I don’t know if you have been reading the papers but if you have you probably seen the big news where Kid Gleason has been appointed mgr. of the White Sox. Well old pal that peace of news makes all the differents in the world to your old pal. As you know I had entirely gave up the idear of going back in to baseball and figured where I would take up some other line of business and work myself up to something big and I was just about makeing it up in my mind to accept 1 of the offers I got when this news come out.
Well old pal I haven’t no idear how things will come out now as I guess you know what friends I and Gleason are. You know he was asst. mgr. when Callahan had the club and then again the yr. Rowland win the pennant and he seemed to take a fancy to me some way and I guess I may as well come out and say that I was his favorite of any man on the club and I always figured that it was because when he tried his kidding on me I always give him back as good as he sent wile the rest of the boys was a scared of him but he use to kid me just to hear what I would say back to him. Like 1 time we was playing a double header with the St. Louis club and Jim Scott lose the 1st game and Callahan said I was to work the 2nd game so I was warming up and Gleason come out and stood behind me and I had eat something that didn’t set very good so Gleason asked me how I felt and I said “Not very good. I’m not myself today.” So he said “Well then it looks like we would break even on the afternoon.” So I said “I will break your jaw in a minute.”
But a side from all that he was the 1 man that ever give me the credit for the work I done and if he had of been mgr. of the club he would of pitched me in my regular turn in the stead of playing favorites like them other 2 birds and all as I needed was regular work and I would of made them forget Walsh and all the rest of them big 4 flushers.
Well Al Gleason lives in Philly in the winter so I expect he will either wire me a telegram and ask for my terms or else he will run out here and see me and if they give me $4,000.00 per annum I am afraid they won’t be nothing for me to do only sign up though I have got several chances to go in to some business at better money than that and with a future to it. But this here is a matter of friendships Al and after all Gleason done for me why if he says the word I can’t hardly do nothing only say yes though of course I am not going to sacrifice myself or sign for a nickel less then $4,000.00.
You see Al this will be Gleason’s 1st
