San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1896-01-13
"swEEP, SWEEP, MY BROOM"
Big Curling Bonspiel at Duluth, on
Superior's Shores

western Curling association, which
meets here today, promises to be
the most interesting event of the
kind the Northwest has seen in
years, If ever equalled before.
Nearly 500 curriers' are expected to
take part. Not the least enthusi-
astic visitors will be the Mantle.
bians, who have long wanted the
spiel held in this city. Clubs will
be present from places never be-
fore represented, and even Eastern
Canada will have her men on the
ice. AS the delegations arrive
a rough estimate divides the par
Elephants thus: Manitoba, rs; st.
( Paul, so; Minneapolis, so; Wis
consin towns including Milwaukee,
100; Chicago, 90; Michigan 20;
Ontario and Quebec, 20. These
added to the local contingent will
raise the total to nearly 500.
The events will come oil at the
Glen Avon rink. Five sheets Of
ice are under the cover, the interior
OF which is beautifully decorated
witty fir and balsam boughs, bunt-
ing and flags. Each piece OF ice is
AZ yards long and l6 feet wide. The
thirteen outside Kinks are we'll pro-
tected from the wind by the big
building and high board fence.
The Glen Aron rink is situated on
an elevated plateau, where ice can't
help freezing sooner than at any
other place in the state of Mime
sofa. The building cost $1,000.
Play is to begin overy day after to-
day at $3.50 a. M, 2:30 p. M, and 8
p. m. Today play begins at 2 p. m.
Curling is good old-fashioned
game, it is no "mooshroom fad" as
some call golf. The Royal Gale
donna Curling club, OF Scotland has
been for years in existence, and
the Grand National Curling club
of America was formed and the
first meeting held in New York
City on June 26, 1867. Other clubs
are the Royal Caledoniap, the
Ontario association, the Manitoba
branch of the Royal, and the
Northwestern association.
The game is played in this way.
The tees are placed 3S yards apart,
and as the player must stand four
yards behind the tee, the whole
distance played Is AZ yards. This
prevents the rink or brough from
being broken up by tho delivery OF
the stone, as it strikes the ice on
its passage to the further tee. The
hog score or colly is marked on the
ice, yards in front of each tee, or
sixth of the whole distance
played, should a change of weather
necessitate a shortening of the
rink. And any stone not passing
this score is out OF the
game and put off the ice. The
brough or rink is IA feet in diane
ter, divided up by concentric cir
cles, drawn around the tree, and
all shots to count must be inside
the 7-foot radius. When curling
becomes a matter of mere strength,
then the science of the game takes
a rest; and the umpire now has
power to stop the game, when great
physical force has TO be used
to propel the stone the whole
length Of the rink. The true
science of the game is seen to adj
vantage when the eight players on
keen frosty day and smooth ice
have some difficulty In keep
ing their stones from going too far.
Then such shots as inwicking, out
wicking, drawing, guarding, wick
and curl in, drawing through aport,
outwicking, chap, and lie, ETC., re-
present the true inwardness Of the
game and the skill of the curler.
Thu curler sends his stones whir-
ling down the ice and his part
isans run before with brooms and
sweep the Ice clean so that nothing
shall obstruct its flight. Compe-
titors alternate till certain num-
Der of stones have been sent at the
mark. Then they count up points.
For the general spectator the game
is not very interesting, but 1t
makes Scotchman's blood boil.
A feature of the bonspiel in a
social way will be the reception to
be rendered the visitors Friday
evening. The entertainment of
the week is to be provided by the
reception committee, composed OF
III. Hurdon, George G. Howe, A. E.
Chantler, @. Henage, Capt. f. La
Sale, L. P. Hall, Ronald Smith, r.
A. Eve, and Samuel F. Fulton.
The gofficers Of the Northwestern
Curling association are: III. w.
Cory, president, st. Paul; j. B.
Hill, first vice-president, Chicago
A. ]. Turner, second vice. president,
Portage, Wis.,; w. T. Myron, sec.