With an Introduction by Al. G. Spalding of the Chicago Base Ball Club
Pictorial hardcover no dust jacket; 202 pages; Size Approx. 7 X 9.
Published by E. P. Dutton and Company; copyright 1884 and 1896; 1896 printing.
Details: This is a scarce old book from the late 1800's that avid collector's of baseball memorabilia desire to fill out their collection. "Our Base Ball Club is touted as 'the first novel devoted exclusively to baseball.' Its story begins when two teams from different sides of the track start a game, and presents an interesting picture of baseball a decade or so before the book was published. The town fathers decide to sponsor a team, putting together the best players from both the teams that open the book. They bring in some others, begin to pay them on a scale so that most of them are professionals. The Catalpa team eventually wins the state championship, and the star from the wrong side of the tracks makes it as a lawyer on the good side of town."
Contains ten full-page wood-engraved illustrations. The endpapers are decorated with a small leaf pattern.
A great addition to your collection of baseball books!
Condition: Some wear and fraying at spine ends and corners, the front cover has some worn spots, name in the front, inner hinge papers just beginning to crack but hinges still firm, a couple of bent page corners and a couple of very small spots on several pages, the lower corner is torn from the last illustration (doesn't affect the illustration, see picture), otherwise the book is in good condition with a solid binding and generally very clean pages.
NOTE: The letter/number at the end of the title line