The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1894-01-19
THE GAME OF FOOTBALL.
The Belief in It's Physical DAN
gers not Sustained by Facts
and Scientific Research.

! On tomorrow afternoon those oil
Corvallis who choose to attend
may expect to witness a good
game Of foot ball. All have read
more or less of the game, and the
class of comments which meets the
eye of those having little interest
in the sport has probably been de.
rogatory of the amusement. A
scientific exposition of the game
as played by college teams does
not support the impressions formed
by those who possess a superficial
knowledge Of it or who have given
the subject small consideration
Those who see for the first time,
or possibly for many times, the
desperate struggles which the
"wedge" and similar plays involves
in a strong game; who hear the
suppressed exclamation of the
man who goes down beneath a
mob of burly fellows who appear
intent on crushing the life out OF
the smaller player who has pos
session of the ball, are apt to de-
eide the game barbarous., Then,
when the participants all arise ex
cept one man and there is hur-
r,ying for thi medicine grip, the un
initiated will surely vote the
game bad thing. In a recent
number of the North American
Review there appears an article
under the heading intercollegiate
Football" furnished by authori-
ties from Yale and from the Uni
verslty of Pennsylvania. The gen
tlemen say:
''The great institutions which
this matter most concerns and
are its representatives at the bar
of public opinion are Princeton,
Yale. Harvard and Pennsylvania.
About this time last year the ques-
ton of the occurrence of fatal or
of permanently disabling injury to
any football player at these four
institutions for the previous decade
was submitted by one of the writ
ers to the special authority on the
subject in each faculty. The re-
plies, still in his possession, were
sent after careful investigation
and established conclusively the
fact that no instance of any per-
manent injury to player had oc-
Cured in all the long series of con-
tests waged during these ten years
on the football field. We ask that
until contradictory and we'll sus-
tanned evidence be brought for
ward this statement be accepted
on the authority of DIR. Sargent, of
Cambridge; DR.. Seaver, of New
Haven; DR.. Macdonald, of Prince
ton, and DR.. White, of Philadel-
phia.''
Aside from the physical dan |
gers of the game which are urged
against it there is no serious OBJ
lection to it; and the above show
ing would seem to meet this OBJ
lection conclusively. 1t at least
shows that there is lese physical
danger attending football than at
taches to baseball, shooting,
cycling, rowing and other such
sports. AS for physical develop
ment more may be said in favor
of football than any other sport.
None Of them is to be compared
with football in the direction Of ;
bringing all muscles into play,
''And, moreover" says the above
authority, sin none of them ex-i' :
cept rowing is the preliminary
SO valuable in strength 1
ening the great involuntary mus {
cles, those of the heart and dia- +
phragm, observed with anything I
ike equal strictness." |,
Almost all persons not familiar :
with football entertain a preju- G
lice against it and are not dis c
posed to encourage the sport by '
heir attendance, but. notwith- G
standing the vigor of the play t
when once witnessed there is an {
attraction in the game which is ir-i J
resistble. We would therefore T
urge that our people give the boys i,
4 good attendance tomorrow after t
noon. They have undergone Sc c
we're training to do credit to the
Institution which is our pride, andi
here is every probability that they c
will ieave the field with the fl
nonorsapf the day. c
Tha & L. Co. of this city con- +, +
,empyS presenting a society +,
1ram&eSahe opera house in the .
1ear tature..' Should the boys un- Il
iertake it they will undoubtedly q
nave the success they invariably .:
meet with in all their undertak- +.
ngs. They will be able to enlist, h
he assistance of any of our local n
alent. =
M. 5, Woodcock has been suf- al
erlng, Hom a severe attack oflcl
'neum9nia the past week, and has hi
equlrn the close attention of a Icr