The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-11-08
a FOOT BALL CONTROVERSY

To the Editor Of the Press:
As Hebron is ever ready to answer any
| and all charges which are detrimental to
the good name of the school, wish, in
behalf of the boys, to answer the state
ments made by the Biddeford Journal
and copied into the Argus in regard to
our football team not being eligible to
com pete for the school championship Of the
State. In the first place Thornton makes
the statement that our team is composed
Of ssringsrs." and they say they can prove
it. Now we challenge them to back up
their assertion, and 1T is no more than
fair to US for them to produce the facts,
If they have any, which will justify them
in making the statement.
Now We claim that our team is strictly
straight" school team. 1t doesn't fol-
low that because school puts strong
team into the field that they mu st be
ssringers," and Thornton's inability to
prove their statements will react upon
| themselves, and strengthen Hebron's rep
utation of playing straight teams. Ihere
are but two men upon our team. tna5
aver wore q football suit before coming to
Hebron.
Bishop played upon Bridgton one year
before entering Hebron, and Morton
PLAYED one year at South Paris, but both
were entirely unknown as football play :
ers previous to coming here. All the rest
of the men have learned all their football
here, and have never played anywhere
else bat here. There isn't a man on the
team but what entered school O year ago
this fall or prior to that time. There Ism t
| a man in school that receives one cent In
| consideration for his ability to play foot
| ball, and there isn't man playing pu6
WHIST takes three studies and reoites three
| times daily. We ask anyone who doubts
| these statements to Investigate as thor
ouohIy as possible and see il Hebron can
| stand the test.
| THORNTON claims that we offered Boyk-
| err Inducements to come to Hebron, ana
again we ask them to prove it, l have
been intimate with the football arrange
ments at Hebron for the past four years,
and never have / heard Hebron man
express q desire to have Boyker here, ana
| for the reason that in Oldham and Whit.
man we have two ends who are head ana
shoulders above him in regard to playing
| their position.
| Again, Thornton says that they received
! a letter from Hebron the other day asking
| what open dates they had, and they give
| one the impression that it is the flrst let
| ter received from US. The facts OF the case
| are entirely different from what thornton
| desires the people to understands them 20
| be. The first letter which HEBRON SEM
| to Thornton was sent the latter part OF
| last summer term, az tne same tlin9 VIC
wrote to Portland High and kent's Hill.
| Thornton did not reply to our letter at
ali. and on returning to school this fall
we again wrote to them, and we were
Obliged to write three letters before we
received any reply. When they did de1gn
| to reply to our letters they ignored our
an0eayors to arrange a game With them
the Inuniiicent sum of half our expenses
1 TO pley them in Saeo. And this is all
| the terms we have been able to make with
/ them.
Now we have met them three times on
their own grounds; they say they had a
complete walk-oyer each time. The facGs
| are good enong for us, so we will quote
! the scores of the thres games. The trst
game was HERON q, Thornton !. Ine
| second was Thornton H. Hebron 0. Inc
third was Hebron 0, Thornton 0.
1t is useless for us to say nythlng IN
regard to the treatment we received ~
Saco, because everybody in tho State VINO
follows football knows the reputation
Thornton has acquired by unspofts'
manlike treatment of whiting teams.
We could arrange no game with t1enl
last year because Shey would not meeo W
out of Saoo Now we are anxious TO liieoo
them this yenr, and are willing. TO make
any fair ami square terms to play them
| either III Portland, Lewiston or Heorou,
but under no circumstances will we 60 ~
! Saco this year. 1t is no more than la,I
that they meet us outside OF Saco once
| in return for the three years we nave o
played at that place. We write EMS ~.
/ the benefit of the public so that tsey can L,
see we are ready to meet with facts, any
and all malicious statements. All we
ask is fair field and no favor.
LEON Nj. SMALL,