SPEED THE BALL!

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 146, 27 July 1914, Page 2

SPEED THE BALL!

AN INTERESTING EXPERIMENT.

An article which appeared in the "World of Cricket" last month has caused an interesting fact to be rescued from obscurity. The article in question related to the pace, attained by a baseball when hurled by crack American throwers. An experiment conducted at Bridgeport, U.S.A., had settled that question with mathematical accuracy. The apparatus to eonduct such an intricate experiment was one used by a firm of gun and revolver makers for 1 the purpose of testing the speed of the flight of bullets. It is an electrical device, made in the form of a wooden frame equipped with fine copper wires running perpendicularly, but not clear across the frame, so that the test calls for a certain amount of control when experimenting. At a distance of five feet on the other side of the wooden frame is placed a steel plate. By means of electricity the time consumed by the <teall in travelling from its contact with the wires to the steel plate is registered. , '

In order to get an idea of how fast a ball can T>e made to travel when thrown by a human being, it was decided to secure the services of Walter Johnson and N. Rucker, who are recognised as the speediest throwers playing America's national game of baseball, and as no other game in the world callß for the same amount of throwing ability as baseball, it will be admitted that these two men are capable of throwing a ball faster than anyone else in the world. Johnson and Rucker were placed about 6ft or 7ft Away frpm the coppef wires, as they figured this distance would be- tlie best for' obiaining the greatest velocity by the time the ball reached the machine. Johnson's first throw registered 120 ft per second, and Rucker's registered 106 ft per second; Johnson made another attempt and registered 121 ft; Rucker'a second attempt registered 113 ft; at Johnson's final throw, the machine registered 122 ft' per second. 'Those present expressed the' opinion that Johnson, at his top speed, was eatable pf fcuriing the ball at pretty near . the ; 150 ft per second roark.- ; A railroad triiti : travelling at a mile a : miriute la Only going at about tWo-thirds the ; velocity attained by JohnSon in thistest.' Now/it' was Mated in that article that the question of the speed of a cricket, ball > : when 1 bowled' by'; 'lightning trundlers' had often been ■ but never answered with any certainty. .In the following issufe'of "the " World of Cricket,'' a' correspondent pointed out that this statement was not entirely Correct. He.wrote:r-"C, Tk B; Turner, the famous Australian: —though 'the terror' was never a, whirlwind—once,, when at Woolwich.. Arsienal, through the electric screens which , are used for ascertaining; the velocity of projectiles, and it was found that at a point halfway between the wickets the speed registered ,81ft per; second, or, in, other words, -about • 50, miles jair hour. ■ judging,,froni • thjs,' may be' "taken for granted that. when; Hitch is in form the ball flashes along between wicket and wicket at about 70 miles an hour./' I