The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1896-12-03

the gambling, which is growing from
the game to enormous proportions, and
while this may not be so serious of the
college game the college must stand
sponsor for its spread. .,j
Saying nothing of the loss of limb, of
which the Mirror must remind you that
rs the president of our state university
you talk so hippantly, we come to the
actual death rate of the game, and Mr..
Box says that in four months of the
year 1894 there were forty-six deaths re-
sulting from it. Pugiism is tame and
innocent in fatality, by the side of
football, involving only the two in its
immediate danger. and yet we have wit
messed a nation in excitement while the
combatants were going to and fro in
the earth" in quest of a place for the
fight, and the Texas legislature in SEES
sion to prevent it. We have all been
taught from the beginning, and rigidly,
to look with holy horror upon bull
fight, and then again Mr.. Edward w.
Box is the high authority that during the
entire year of 1894 only twelve men
lost their lives in the arena-more' than
ten to one on the side of the college
sport.
Now with these ugly facts before US,
are we not, Dr. Winston, to borrow
over the bigger evils about our own
doors and alighting away off in a
foreign land to lecture other people
about theirs, and when we come to i'm
partially weigh the benefits of the game
with its evils. we may well adopt the
conclusion of the wise father of one of
the early English kings, who, SOC years
game of football because it was "meeter
for tanning than making able use
thereof" NgA
Again. and. after all, the biggest OBJ
lection to the game is the fact that it
is part, and perhaps the most inufiehtial
part, of a general tendency of the present
day college life to overdo all things
athletic to the neglect of the curriculum.
The military, football, baseball. boat
races, with all their concomitant ex-
penses and evils. have to be kept up
whether the boy learns anything valuable
or not. Then these things, so far from
helping, are kind of hindrance to the
ethical features that are so much neg
lected in our schools. .sf'-e 1901
And now. DIR. Winston, that we may
be brought face to face with some of
the outcome of this latter day uth-
leticism, we beg you to witness the con
where these things have reached their
highest perfection. Do you remember
only n few months back how grand old
Harvard, almost the mother of Ameri-
can colleges, presented the sublime spec
tacle of her army of students holding at
bay the organized police of city, who
on the discharge of their duty, were
only trying to prevent too much jubila-
ton over athletic results with a rival
college, releasing their heroes from the
grip of the law, and presenting dubbed
heads and bloodshot eyes as knock down
evidence of a well-developed physical
culture? Do you remember, further,
how the accounts of the doings of his
classic mob led an Ann Arbor student
to give the press of the day following
similar recital of how his college. mates
burnt up the show tent Of one of the
largest circuses in the land in their
SPITE. and then with their herculean
muscles Convincing evidence of a we'll
developed physical culture) tore up
bridge to prevent the show from reaching
it's appointment the succeeding day? Or,
maybe, this was before you had reached
our state. no t..
But if we would have something yet
fresh in memory, let us take Yale. None
of us have yet forgotten, no matter how
much we would all like to forget it, the
treatment that a candidate for president
of the United States received at the
hands of the students of that famous
seat of learning. College students didn't
once act so badly, and we think that the
change may, in the main, be laid at the
door of excessive athletics, with its at
tendant rowdyism and ru.fiianism We
would not despise these things in their
place, but as they were once neglected
it is now evident that the pendulum has
swung to the other extreme.
Again you say, by way of illustrations:
Every student should join one of The
literary societies. to take part in the lit
crary exercises if possible; if not, from
public spirit as university man, pre-
cisely rs he contributes to the football
fund, even though not player" Now.
many students that go to college ARE
poor and pressed for the means of de-
fraying necessary expenses The his
tory of college life. the world over. has
been n history of struggling, economic
self-denial, and yet a fair construction
upon your language would tax every
student to sustain the football, even
even have conscientious opposition to
its maintenance.
But do you say that the evils of the
game are being modified and largely
overcome? Read the following from
the Nashville Christian Advocate, whose
able editor is close student of current
events:
III loObDull StuSOH HIS again opened.
and the list of casualties is already as, \
Stunning formidable proportions. In a
single game, the report of which recently
came under our notice, one prominent
player got a broken nose and another
was nearly killed by brutal Kick on the
head. If such things had happened in
scuffle among rowdies On the street.
the police would promptly and properly
have marched the offenders to the sta
tiOn bOnsn Tho tip,a bnc
civilized people should insist that such
savagery among college students be pun
ished by law. To the presidents ind
professors of our colleges and UNIVERSE
ties we wish to say little more posi-
lively than ever before: Gentlemen,
you must mend the game of football or
end it. 1t will not do for you to assume
an air of Indifference to criticism on this
subject. AS the editor of a religious