670 VITALITY AND EFFICIENCY WITH RESTRICTED DIET. 



counted for each man, who also made a statement as to his previous 

 best record. Table 198 shows the number of pull-ups for each man, the 

 length of time that the men were hanging on the bar, and the previous 

 best performance of the men. The men thus exercised the arm 

 muscles practically to the limit of endurance. 



The length of time suspended on the bar is of itself a test of endur- 

 ance, and possibly we should have timed this alone without the chin- 

 ning.^ The average number of pull-ups (11) is certainly not a dis- 

 creditable performance for the whole squad, although the competitive 

 element was in part lacking. Each man was supposed to do his best, 

 but as some men were recognized as trained athletes and others were 

 not, keen competition hardly entered into the performance, save, 

 perhaps in the case of Mon and Pea, who remained suspended a much 

 longer time than the others. 



With reference to the best previous performance, Vea showed a 

 falling off of two-thirds. That this is a fair criterion hardly seems 

 possible, as the best previous performance was undoui)tedly preceded 

 by special or general athletic training for the contest. It is not without 

 significance that the best performance of the squad was made by Gar, 

 who reports the record of 22 as probably his best. 



The " chinnilig-the-bar " test, while strongly indicative of endurance 

 capacity, can hardly be suggested as an endurance test capable of 

 general use and particularly for comparison purposes. 



A satisfactory test for endurance that meets the requirements of all 

 critics does not as yet exist. In his study of the effect of excessive 

 mastication of food,^ Professor Fisher, of New Haven, made an exten- 

 sive series of experiments in which he employed certain simple tests 

 designed to show the degree of endurance. 



Among other tests of endurance. Professor Fisher employed that of 

 holding the arms horizontally at the level of the shoulders, with palms 

 of hands down, and reported the results obtained with a group of 

 flesh-eaters and a second group of flesh-abstainers. One of us, P. R., 

 was a member of the second group of subjects. It seemed desirable 

 to apply essentially this type of endurance test to the members of 

 Squad A. Professor Fisher kindly wrote us at length regarding the 

 conditions that should be met in a test of this kind, and due considera- 

 tion was given his suggestions. The final plan was to have the men 

 hold the arms, palms down, at the level of the shoulders, but pointing 

 forward at an angle of about 45°, the idea being that if they were held 

 directly out from the body and in opposite directions the head would 

 have to be turned from side to side to see that the arms were being 

 held in position; if they were extended directly in front, the arms 



iMarsh, Psychol. Rev., 1916, 23, p. 437. 



^Fisher, Yale Med. Journ., 1907, 13, p. 205; also Trans. Conn. Acad. Arts and Sciences, 1907, 

 13, p. 376. 



