The Pioche weekly record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1877-1900, 1897-03-04
DANGER In FOOTBALL.
Friends of the Game stand Up in
It's Defense
sport without Danger 10 BE found
Only In such Games as CrOquet
or squat rag-eompara-
tive Cases.

The annual protest against the rough 4
ness and brutality of football as played /
in American colleges and schools was 50 /
vigorous at the close of this years
season that the friends of the game are
coming forward with facts to show that
it is no more dangerous than any other
vigorous exercise or game, and they
cite bicycle accidents. shooting aeei-
dents and drowning while sailing or
skating 10 show that the record OF foot
ball is not open 10 serious criticism as
AN exceptionally ronghgame. ina late
issue OF Harper's Weekly Caspar Whit
rey mentions his ten years exclusive
study of amateur sport and its depelop-
ment, and his extensive acquaintance
with football players, adding:
In all this time | have never had "a
friend nor even an acquaintance who
was killed or permanently injured by
toutbali. On the other hand, have an
acquaintance who lost his eye, and one
damaged for life playing polo; four
friends have been drowned by the up
4 tting of a lboat, two drowned by the
oyerturning OF a racing shell, three
drowned while swimming, two while
skating. two killed in hunting, one by an
an infuriated giizzly bear, the other by
q defective rife; one killed by the care
less handling OF a shotgun. and one
Killed by one of those didn't-l<now-it-
Was-loaded fools who was lingering a
revolver Several friends and as many
acquaintance have been killed and sew
cral badly crippled while riding or
driving horses"
MIR. Whitney says that in 20 years he
has been able TO trace only six deaths di-
rcctly TO foot ball, two of which oc-
Cured this year. One of these deaths
was that OF Bert Serf, of the Doanc col
lrge Football team in Kansas. He died
from mi iuries received while playing the
nisersity of Kansas team at Lawrence,
ili that state, on November II lasF. a
| Now York representative Of the new
| journalism declares that Sert was killed
| ia a mass play, and was picked up un'
| conscious after Il scrimmage. Chan
ccllor Snow, of the University Of Kan
sas, has written letter giving the facts
about the death OF young Serf, who was
only Is years old Chancellor Snow
says
speak of the kansas eleven, the
| l;ghtest man ia the team, weighing
| about $50 pounds had the ball and wai
| making an end run for a touch down
lie had a clear field for the goal, wheI
Srrf who was playing full back, ran Il
tackle him, and as the result OF a to-
high tackle was thrown. striking thi
ground with his head, just as Speal
carried the ball over the line for
touch down The real cause of Serf'
death was his being out of condition
He had been injured in a previou
game, at which time he had been car
riedotf the field unconscious on accoun
of an injury to his head He was lai'
out during the first half of the gam
with Kansas, and the referee and Others
members of the Kansas team, proteste
against his being allowed to continu
in the game He should not have bee
allowed to play at all
Chancellor Snow then makes an in
portant suggestion He suggests the
an additional official, TO rank with tn
referee and umpire, medical advise
be appointed, with full power to remov
from the game any man Of either elcve
who Is clearly not in condition to col
tinue the game
) The chancellor also notes that It
three men of the Kansas team who wei
reported dangerously injured" we
not more than slightly injured I
! adds
II have no doubt that an investigate
of the entire list of those reported da
gerously and seriously injured won
: show general exaggeration of the a
tual condition of the players me
toned"
Mr.. Whitney supplements this by d
I, deelartion that in all the games tn
Harvard, Yale, Princeton and Penns.
= yania have played there has never be
= a death These games have been t
!, hardest played in the entire countI
He also declares that there is no reco
? of a permanent injury in any of the
II games, and that the most serious ac
dent in any of them was that of
broken breast bone. The man who n
$ with the accident is strong and well
/ day Mr.. Whitney says that ii we wi
: to have sport without danger we mi
e confine ourselves to croquet or SOU
IT tag, or pleasure of that grade N.
sun