SMOKING AND FOOTBALL MEN 337 



been eliminated in the investigation about to be described, yet it is con- 

 fidently believed that several of them have been largely avoided. It is 

 difficult if not impossible to obtain a large group of men conforming in 

 detail to the requirements above outlined, yet the closer such a group 

 is approached the more reliable will be the results. 



It occurred to the writer some three years ago that the football 

 squad forms a very nearly homogeneous group. In the first place, the 

 men are all athletes approaching physical perfection, a fact which tends 

 to unify their mental attitude as well as their physical. Of recent years 

 the eligibility rules have made it well-nigh impossible for transients 

 and low scholarship men to " make the team," the regulations requiring 

 the men to carry full courses not only during the year of participation, 

 but also during the previous year. Socially the football men are much 

 more alike than any group promiscuously gathered from the student 

 body. 



It is quite apparent that reliable conclusions can not be drawn from 

 the records of a single football squad. Two years ago a few of the athletic 

 directors in institutions in the inter-mountain states were asked to 

 submit data relative to their football men, of course stating whether 

 they were smokers or non-smokers. The results were very interesting 

 and suggestive, but the number of men concerned was still rather small. 



At the beginning of the present school year (1911-12) a much 

 larger number of institutions were asked to assist in the investigation 

 by submitting data. The following facts are based upon information re- 

 ceived from coaches and athletic directors of fourteen American colleges 

 and universities. The writer is fully aware of the fact that the varying 

 conditions of the schools may introduce errors, yet they have carefully 

 been guarded against and largely eliminated in the final summaries. 



The blank forms sent out to the various athletic directors provided 

 for the following data : age, weight, ordinary anthropometric measure- 

 ments ; ability on the team, whether fair, good or very good ; scholastic 

 standing of last year, including average scholarship mark, and number 

 of conditions or failures ; the number of smokers and non-smokers who 

 attempted to "make place" on first team together with other more or 

 less important features. The students were also to be designated as 

 " smokers " or " non-smokers." The following foot-note appeared on 

 each blank: "By 'smoker' is meant one who habitually smokes when 

 not in training and not an individual who indulges at very infrequent 

 intervals." It was thus desired that only habitual smokers be included 

 in the list, as it is quite generally agreed that the infrequent use of 

 tobacco is not seriously injurious. 



It will not be possible to include a constant number of institutions 

 or men in each of the various items following, as the blanks which were 

 returned were only partially filled in ; some of the institutions supplied 



