Off the Record March 19, 1951

3-19-51
Speaking about Earl Jumbo Snyder’s fifty years at the Daily Record brought to my mind the occasion wherein he took a little time out one summer to convince himself and his many friends that he was not a professional league baseball player. Jumbo had a pretty good bank account and some other accessories, when he went to Maridian Miss, but as everybody knows, he also has an unusually large heart. When he pulled down sufficient salary to get along with, who had several friends on the team who showed complete lack of ability to get along on their incomes. So they made frequent touches until finally the account was depleted and the friends lacked the wherewithal to replenish it. Likewise, the baseball dimmed out, so he came home. During his absence, his position at the old Republican office had been filled. Awaiting the time when a readjustment could be brought about, Jumbo took a temporary position at Wallace Smith’s restaurant. One of the chores was to carry a lunch on a tray across the street to Charles Curry and Charles Gimbel, who operated a brokerage office. One day when he started out, it had been raining and freezing. It was slippery and the tray was very full and Jumbo, like many other citizens at the moment, was just not too steady on his feet. Witnesses on the occasion say he did his very best to keep upright and he kept the tray upright also. But it was no use. There was a grand crash. Dishes, lunch, tray and all were plastered all over the vicinity. Jim’s description of the aftermath was brief, “I did not go back.” he said. All through the years, Earl Snyder has been one of the most faithful members of the Daily Record staff. For many years he kept the linotypes running. There were not so many of them then, but if pushed to it he could probably figure it out again. And through the years he had kept his interest in baseball. He could throw a wicked pitch, and when he had it working right, there were few batters who could do anything with it. The ball just passed by. Down where the big leagues begin, they said he was a trifle wild on occasions. That is probably why another Bob Feller failed to developed. Anyway, we were more than glad around the office to see him back on the job again, and he has been there ever since through good times and bad. Aside from his own good work, he performed a real extra curricular service, too. In the days when the Wooster Daily News was everything, Ed Wertz and myself had an agreement that we were to avoid hiring each other’s employees. But the Snyder ability to pitch a fast ball was too much for one J. E. Britton when he was manager, and he made our linotype man a special offer to work for the News and pitch on the ball team. Well, that was also the time when Pat Hauenstein, who also worked on the News, and I had been figuring on some way whereby Pat could leave the Wooster Daily News and come to our paper. Once we figured he might cease work for a month or so or something like that. But when Mr. Britton offered Mr. Snyder a job, we threw discretion to the wind and ever since 1913, Mr. Hauenstein and Mr. Snyder have worked together in perfect harmony. And it would be the greatest pleasure to have the association continue for another 50 years.