Whatever may be the opinions of the Base Ball Association of the subject, it seems to us that it would increase the interest in their games if they followed the lead of the National Base Ball League, and abolished the foul bound catch. The tendency in the game of base ball during the past few years has been for the fielding and pitching to increase in a marked manner out of all proportion to the increase in the ability of the batsman to hit the ball. It is becoming quite a veriety in a well played game for a man to reach first base. Yet base running is certainly one of the most interesting and exciting features of base ball; eliminate it, and just so much is subtracted from the pleasure of witnessing a game, To raise the batting average and give men more opportunities to run every possible chance which will not spoil the game, should be given them. The League found during the past season that the abolition of the foul bound catch worked no injury to base ball, and there seems to be no reason why the Inter-Collegiate Association should not take the hint, and give the batsman another chance, so that batting and not alone pitching and catching may be a prominent feature of the game.

A New York paper, an authority on the subject, said well when it advocated the abolition of the objectionable rules in these words: "Why this boyish rule is maintained is a mystery. Twenty years ago the same puerile arguments now used in advocacy of the foul-bound catch were urged in defense of the catch on the bound of a fair ball, and with just as much reason. If we are to help the batting, we ought to do away with a style of catch that restricts batting. It is bad enough as it is that a batsman should be put out on a catch of a foul fly ball without any compensation in running a base. To inflict a double penalty by adding the bound catch is making matters worse."