or, who
went through the world's series of 1912 ever will forget it. There never
was another like it. Years may elapse before there shall be a similar
series and it may be that the next to come will be equally sensational,
perhaps more so.

Viewed from the very strict standpoint that all Base Ball games should
be played without mistake or blunder this world's series may be said to
have been inartistic, but it is only the hypercritical theorist who
would take such a cold-blooded view of the series.

From the lofty perch of the "bleacherite" it was a series crammed with
thrills and gulps, cheers and gasps, pity and hysteria, dejection and
wild exultation, recrimination and adoration, excuse and condemnation,
and therefore it was what may cheerfully be called "ripping good" Base
Ball.

There were plays on the field which simply lifted the spectators out of
their seats in frenzy. There were others which caused them to wish to
sink through the hard floor of the stand in humiliation. There were
stops in which fielders seemed to stretch like india rubber and others
in which they shriveled like parchment which has been dried. There were
catches of fly balls which were superhuman and muffs of fly balls which
were "superawful."

There were beautiful long hits, which threatened to change the outcome
of games and some of them did. There were opportunities for other
beautiful long hits which were not made.

No ingenuity of stage preparation, no prearranged plot of man, no
cunningly devised theory of a world's series could have originated a
finale equal to that of the eighth and decisive contest. Apparently on
the verge of losing the series after the Saturday game in Boston the
Giants had gamely fought their way to a tie with Boston, and it was one
of the pluckiest and gamest fights ever seen in a similar series, and
just as the golden apple seemed about to drop into the hands of the New
York players they missed it because Dame Fortune rudely jostled them
aside.

As a matter of fact the New York players were champions of the world for
nine and one half innings, for they led Boston when the first half of
the extra inning of the final game was played. Within the next six
minutes they had lost all the advantage which they had gained.

It was a combination of bad fielding and lack of fielding which cost the
New York team its title. And if only Mathewson had not given Yerkes a
base on balls in the tenth inning the game might not