Look What Robert Lifson Found; 1898 BB (Parody?) Profanity!

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Posted By: Howard W. Rosenberg

I was just tipped off to the following links, and I apologize (in a non-profane way) if this subject was already raised:

http://s210975194.onlinehome.us/blog/?p=41

Robert Edward Auctions has found a presumably authentic contemporaneous parody (including actual curse words) about verbiage leading to the 1898 National League adoption of the "Brush rule." If you'd like a little background on the rule, here's something that I explained in one of my books: "Named for Cincinnati owner John T. Brush, its goal was to reduce obscene speech on the field. Dirty play had nothing to do with it. If a player did something dirty to another player and shouted an obscenity, the obscenity was what triggered the Brush rule. Expulsion was a potential punishment for a finding of obscenity."

Also, the following online chat room has been weighing in:

http://www.baseballthinkfactory.org/files/newsstand/discussion/can_we_even_run_this_1898_obscene_language_basebal l_document_not_for_kids/

Maybe having profane words appear on baseball cards would be a way to liven up the industry.

Howard

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Posted By: Steve Murray

OMG!!!!!

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Posted By: MVSNYC

interesting...

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Posted By: Larry

I had no idea those expressions have been used in the same way for over 100 years.

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Posted By: MVSNYC

i think all of george carlin's 7 words that cannot be used on TV were used in this document...

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Posted By: Paul

What I found most interesting is that almost every one of those profanities is still around today. I thought slang evolved more quickly than standard language.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

I had always wondered if the writers of the series "Deadwood" were taking liberties with all the swearing, but now I think maybe they did talk that way. I also didn't know that "flipping the bird" was that old until I saw the Hoss Radbourn N172.

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Posted By: Rhys

I took a linguistics class is college from an Ivy League trained professor and on the first day she explained to us that swear words are always some of the oldest words within any language. I have never forgotten that and I guess this is further proof. Makes you realize a little bit why baseball players were looked down upon in the 19th century.

Rhys

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Posted By: Denny Walsh

Christy Mathewson wasn't called "The Christian Gentlman", for nothing! While most everybody else were potty mouths, some actually held true to their upbringin'....

Life's Grand,
Denny Walsh

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Posted By: boxingcardman

There was a hilarious exchange in that movie involving one of those expressions. I think Ball Four also noted that if you used one of them in reference to an ump you would immediately be ejected.

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Posted By: Darren

Sounds like Thanksgiving dinner at my step-mom's house.

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Posted By: MVSNYC

i had a great conversation with Rob Lifson this morning...they are very excited about this document. he said they have been getting so many calls and interest in it, not only from Sports Collectors, but from College Professors and English Experts, who are all fascinated by it's content. he also noted that the piece has just set 2 records, both for the earliest known documented use of 2 certain phrases (neither of which i can post here)

Rob is a class act, and i am very excited about his April auction.

Best-
MS

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Posted By: Ed Ivey

Now I can imagine the founding fathers throwing this expression around on the floor in Philadelphia.

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Posted By: Randy Trierweiler

Darren--I laughed so loud when I read your post, that I woke up my wife, and she was upstairs!

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Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

No one had a filthier mouth than McGraw. The magic word in the early 20th century which got you tossed from a game was if you called an ump a coc$*%*%*ker.

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Posted By: MVSNYC

jeff- that's one of the magic phrases that Rob Lifson said this document was the first to have recorded in print...

i'll tell you the other one at our dinner...

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Posted By: Fred C

Baseball is a gentlemen's sport...

crickett is for sissies...

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Posted By: Bottom of the Ninth

I was looking over the scan of the document and did anyone notice how there is absolutely no degradation to the quality of the text at the heavy folds? I have many documents that are not even 10 years old which display heavy folds and the print has been significantly compromised.

Thoughts?

Greg

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Posted By: Jeff S.

I don't see anything wrong with this document - it displays foxing, expecting aging. Very legit in my opinion.