In the early days we witness the strange spectacle of the game being indulged in by the wealthy and leisurely class on the one hand, and the idle and vicious on the other. It is easy to understand why. The first group was the logical extension of the old-world aristocracy. The second group lived in an age when the great middle class was struggling for a foothold in a new country. Men had very little time and disposition for play, and this, coupled with the remnants of Puritanic influence, left the game in the hands of those who lived by their wits rather than work.
From these two extremes, therefore, the game began to work toward the great middle classes. In process of time recreation became a necessity, until today it is considered a duty. Men learned to play and, casting about for a game worthy of them, naturally laid hold of billiards.
Toward this desired result the Y. M. C. A. and church clubs have contributed greatly. They have broken down much of the illogical prejudice against the games, and have shown the public-room keepers that billiards can flourish under good and healthful conditions.
As the game became more universally played, a better class of billiard-room keepers entered the commercial field, thus helping to eliminate the incompetent and vicious.
Today the game has practically thrown off the last vestige of disrepute. In those sporadic instances where such is not the case, it is due to two causes. First, the majority of people in the community have low ideals. Second, excessive license taxes forces certain room keepers to resort to disreputable means for keeping alive their business.
Nevertheless, billiards today throughout the land is ranked among the highest and cleanest forms of recreation. The exceptions mentioned prove the rule.
Through a long, hard, vigorous opposition the virtues of billiards have asserted themselves. Today the game stands vindicated and triumphant. It is entering thousands of homes, church clubs, industrial welfare, charitable, educational and all other institutions. There are more billiard players in the United States than there are baseball players; not mere spectators, but actual players.
One large company alone manufactures 500,000 cues every year, and we must remember that a billiard cue, unlike a baseball bat, can be repaired and lasts for many years. This fact is sufficient to convey an idea of the vast extent to which the game is played.
In the early part of the nineteenth century there were no manufacturers of billiard equipment in the United States.
In 1840 J. M. Brunswick, who operated a small furniture repair shop in Cincinnati, Ohio, conceived the idea of making a pigeonhole table. Success in this line led him to experiment in the manufacture of billiard tables, practically all of which were then imported. The business flourished. At first only the 6 x 12 English pocket tables were made—later the small French carom tables were built.