COLLEGIATE ATHLETICS 



279 



likely to suit him until it fails to suit almost 

 every lover of the sport. 



Now, if there is less talk of legislation 

 and more activity among coaches, looking 

 toward the diversification of play, there will 

 be seen a football season that, in point of 

 real progress, will surpass any previous year 

 in the game's history. 



The benefit to the game of a team such 

 as Pennsylvania showed last year is incal- 

 culable. The only trouble is that few elevens 

 can have the quarter-back to succeed with 

 such an elaborate and diversified system of 

 play. It was nearer the ideal from the play- 

 er's and spectacular standpoint than any team 

 that has ever before taken the field. If the 

 men had physically been up to the highest 

 standard, it certainly would have ranked 

 higher than any eleven the college world has 

 ever seen. Let's see what others can do along 

 the same lines this year. 



One passing word before the rowing and 

 track seasons of 1905 are forgotten. At- 

 tention has been called to one characteristic 

 of the comment upon the results. Almost in- 

 variably the intercollegiate regatta at Pough- 

 keepsie was referred to as a victory for 

 Courtney over Ten Eyck, and the track cham- 

 pionships as a victory for Moulton over Mike 

 Murphy. Cornell was forgotten by nine- 

 tenths of those who figured on the results, 

 and Yale and Syracuse were entirely over- 

 looked. The man who wants to do away 

 with professional training is on the same 

 plane as he who thinks it possible to elimin- 

 ate the gate receipt feature of college sport — 

 a man of admirable ideals but entirely im- 

 practical. But would it not be a good idea 

 for all of us to subordinate the trainer a 

 little more than we are accustomed to doing? 

 That can be done without injury to the 

 sport, and it's pretty nea/ly time that we 

 began it. 



The visit of five American college athletes 

 to England to compete in English games, in- 

 cluding the championships, has resulted as all 

 similar invasions since the fashion was in- 

 troduced same ten years or more ago, with 

 a continuous succession of American victor- 

 ies. The meets in which these men have com- 

 peted have been too numerous, and in the 

 main too unimportant, to attract more than 

 passing attention. The championships, of 

 course, where the men met contestants of 

 caliber, was a good opportunity to test their 

 merit. While but one victory fell to Ameri- 

 can skill, the circumstances attending the fail- 

 ure of the others makes them virtual suc- 

 cesses. 



H. A. Hyman won the furlong dash in 

 22 2-5 seconds, easily defeating Jupp, the 

 holder of the title and the cream of English 

 sprinters handily. E. S. Amsler," in the 

 hurdles, won his heat and was leading by a 



good margin in the final when he fell over the 

 last hurdle. J. B. Taylor, the colored quar- 

 ter-miler, was also leading his field easily in 

 the stretch when he tripped and fell and was 

 out of it. J. B. McDonald, the high jumper, 

 and J. H. McGuckin, the quarter-miler, were 

 unsuccessful in their events, but scored num- 

 erous wins in the smaller meetings. 



Hyman made what was thought to be a 

 new world's record for the 300-yards in a 

 subsequent contest, but was robbed of his 

 honors by the remeasnring of the track, 

 when it was ascertained that it was a few feet 

 short of the full distance. His speed in the 

 event was equal to his best, which means that 

 the contest was very fast. 



The regrettable feature of all such under- 

 takings is that they partake so markedly of 

 the pothunting character that it is hard to 

 sympathize with them. Any legitimate effort 

 to bring about international competitions each 

 true lover of sport is anxious to encourage, 

 but where the invasion is made on an indi- 

 vidual account and is significant of nothing 

 but an individual effort, either for glory or 

 gain, it deserves little more than mention. 

 This trip will test the efficiency of the Ama- 

 teur Athletic Union's effort to control such 

 enterprises, and it will be interesting to see 

 just how the men concerned will comply with 

 the regulations laid down last year by the 

 athletic unions of both countries. , 



This naturally brings up the whole ques- 

 tion of amateur status in the summer ac- 

 tivities of college athletes. There have been 

 well-substantiated charges brought against 

 a number of leading college baseball men on 

 the score of summer ball. In the fall it will 

 be interesting to see how the authorities 

 act upon them. The whole fabric of sum- 

 mer baseball is honeycombed with rotten- 

 ness, and while it adds to the efficiency of 

 the play beyond a doubt, it detracts from 

 the sport something of the highest value, 

 and the honest ball player suffers with the 

 dishonest. Since it is so important that the 

 standard of college sport be kept clean, it is 

 better to make a rule disqualifying all who 

 participate, even though it works a hardship 

 to the few, than to attempt to sift out the 

 evasions of the rule, permitting those who 

 clear their skirts on a technicality to continue 

 in the game while ruling out those who have 

 some legitimate excuse for the infringment 

 of the rule by which they are prohibited from 

 further intercollegiate competition. 



Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Cornell and 

 Pennsylvania are all besmirched by the 

 charges recently made. The big three are 

 quoted as offending more seriously than the 

 others, and it behooves all five to cut out, 

 root and branch, all who can not absolutely 

 clear their skirts of even the semblance of 

 wrong doing. 



