The controversy over Ehrich, the Harvard School catcher, has been settled by the I.S.A.A. Executive Committee, and the championship pennant has been awarded to the protested nine. More inconsistent and illogical action could not have been taken, and the way it was done reflects little credit upon the dignity of the association. Controversies such as this one are always regrettable; but when they do arise they ought to be settled upon their merits, and all personal feeling in the matter should be disregarded. Ever since De La Salle protested Ehrich, the delegates from the various schools to the I.S.A.A. have dodged around the question to be decided by them, and have adopted a policy of irresolution and delay. Several meetings have been called, but not until this last one was there a quorum present—and this was a quorum with a very small q. The delay between the time the protest was filed and the day the decision was made was put to very good use by the Harvard scholars. They did what politicians would call "some tall lobbying." They did it to such good effect that the vote stood 15 to 5 in favor of Ehrich.
The arguments advanced by them in favor of their man were truly amusing, and none but the most obliging of delegates would have consented to allow the wool to be so gracefully pulled over their drooping eyes. These arguments were to the effect that although Ehrich had spent a year in the sub-Freshman class of the College of the City of New York, he had failed to pass his entrance examinations into the Freshman class in 1894. Nevertheless, he was admitted to that class, and remained a member of it until the Christmas term examinations, when he failed again, and so left C.C.N.Y. for the more congenial precincts of the Harvard School. Therefore, according to the Harvard representatives, Ehrich was never really a member of the C.C.N.Y. Freshman class, because he did not pass his Christmas examinations. The mere fact that he attended recitations with the class, and enjoyed other privileges of Freshmen, has nothing to do with the case. This is inconsequential, and the De La Salle men were really drawing the line too fine when they referred to it. At least so must have thought the members of the I.S.A.A. committee, for they so decided. If Ehrich had passed his examinations he would have gone on with his class at C.C.N.Y. This was no doubt his intention before Christmas.
But the incident is closed now. Harvard School has the pennant, and the whole matter may as well be dropped. I don't suppose the members of the I.S.A.A. committee feel very proud of their work. They find themselves now in a peculiar position. By awarding the championship to Harvard they practically admit that they had no business sending the De La Salle nine to represent the League at Eastern Park four weeks ago. Their only justification for sending that team to Brooklyn would have been to award them the championship. But in all these incidents some lesson is to be learned. From this one I think we can gather that protestors should not wait until the last moment to make their objections, unless, of course, the act to be protested is not committed until this very last moment arrives. Another lesson is that executive committees ought to attend to their business promptly, and decide knotty points in time for their decision to be of some value—not a month after the contest to be affected has been settled.
The standing of the several nines in the N.Y.I.S.B.B. League, according to the games played, is therefore as follows:
FIRST SECTION.
| April 23.—Harvard, 8; Berkeley, 7. |
| April 30.—Woodbridge, by default from Columbia Inst. |
| May 7.—Columbia Gram., 30; Barnard, 4. |
| May 14.—Harvard, 15; Woodbridge, 0. |
| May 21.—Harvard, 19; Columbia Gram., 1. |
SECOND SECTION.
| April 25.—Condon, 20; Columbia Inst., 19. |
| May 2.—Cutler, 7; Drisler, 3. |
| May 9.—De La Salle, by default from Hamilton. |
| May 16.—Cutler, 13; Condon, 0. |
| May 23.—De La Salle, 25; Cutler, 5. |