The herald., 1897-07-12

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The Los Angeles Athletic club will
soon give one of it's enjoyable smokers >
These affairs always bring out a large
attendance, and do much good in pro-
noting good fellowship among the men,
bers.
Many local sportsmen are going over
to Catalina for try at the big fish.
The fishing this season is said to be the
best in years.
Some time ago the Felix Brothers OF
Commercial street, the handlball players,
issued a challenge to any members OF
the Los Angeles Athletic club to play
series. The challenge has been ac-
|cepted, and the selection of team will
soon be made. There are in the club
some of the best handball players in
Southern California, and the match
should be hot one.
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The gold medal for the croquet cham
pionship Of California. put up by Major
Russell, is to be played for at Ontario
today. The best players Of this section
will compete, and several are expected
from Tulare and other northern places
Following are those entered: r. Hux-
table, I. C. Wood, H., L. Powell. all o1
Ontario; S. S. Strong and C. B. .Dennisor
Of Pomona. National association rules
are to govern. Mr.. Huxtable won at the
Southern California tournament held
at Santa Ana last month.
Turner's all over the state are already
beginning preparations for the annual
Turner convention, which meets at Sar
Diego September 18th. A fine program
has been arranged, including a rifle tour
nament in which teams from almost
every town south of Tehachepi will take
part. Los Angeles will send large
delegation.
Guy c. Vachell, one of the best English
authorities on fishing. has purchased a
fishing outfit for the purpose Of testing
the game qualities of the fish at Cata-
lima island. Mr.. VachelD came here es-
pecially to write upon the fish of the
Pacific coast, and particularly to tell OF
the tuna. He will remain probably dur
ing the entire season, fishing about the
island.
Eastern sporting papers are devotin &
much space to the great intercollegiate
boat race, which was SO easily won by
Cornell. AS emphasizing the fallacy of
expert judgment, the Spirit of the Times
says:
Advance opinion as to the outcome of
the Cornell Yale-Harvard boat race was
curiously erroneous. Not only the gen
eral public, but 95 per cent of the re-
porters, the undergraduate rank-and-
file of Yale and Harvard and even the
coachers and trainers and advisers Of
these crews agreed privately and pub
licly that Cornell was out -classed, that
the real race would be between Yale and
Harvard, and that this contest would
be close, hard-fought and undecided I'M
til the finish. 1t would have been diff
cult to guess worse than this In the
actual race Cornell won with ridiculous
ease, while Harvard had no chance to
beat Yale after the first mile, and broke
down completely before reaching the
finish line. About one hundred alleged
rowing experts spent the two weeks
next preceding the race at Poughkeep-
sic, watching the crews in their daily
practice, and that 95 of these 100 should
have thought Harvard and Yale of prac-
tically equal ability, and Cornell out
classed by either of them, proves once
more that predicting the results of col
legiate boat races Is by no means an
exact science.
In its review of the race the same pa
per says:
| The result of the Cornell -Har-
ward boat race at Poughkeepsie, June rs
was surprise to the large majority OF
| the American public, who had been
! taught to believe that the contest was
| really between Yale ard Harvard only
and that the Cornell crew were out
classed. The race does not admit of
any '1fs and ands," it was rowed
| through without fouling or accident OF
| interference by outside boats, and the
| distances between the three boats at the
| finish must be considered a fair test OF
their comparative merits over such a
course. On the morning Of the race the
| managers of the Yale and Harvard crews
publicly stated that their men were in
good condition; were rowing we'll and
would have no excuse to offer If they
were beaten. It must therefore be ad-
mitted that Cornell had the faster crew,
and this is still more remarkable tbe-
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