New-York tribune., 1899-06-12
THE COLLEGE, RACES.
SON-SEASON NEARING AN END
THE YALE -PRINCETON CAME

sON-sEASON NEARING AN END
THE YALE PRINCETON GAME.
The season of college athletics Is rapidly drawing
to close and within three weeks the last lusty
"Rah! Rah Rah" echony over campus and river
Will have died away. This year interest in the
college athletes Will be kept up for few weeks
longer, owing to the games to be held In London
between the representatives Of the Oxford-Cam-
bridge and Harvard-Yale teams
But the big college boat races which are usually
considered as the most prominent student contests
OF the year. will all be rowed and won and lost
within the space OF the next three weeks The
week OF June 26 will be regatta week. and II will
be crowded full. The Poughkeepsle races Will be
held on the Tuesday and the New-London struggles
on the Thursday. 1t is not late enough
to make intelligent forecast OF the victors for
the reason that the crews generally change marvel
lously in form and finish in the six days preceding
the races. With their minds freed by that time
from thought OF studies and EXAMINATIONS with
constant practice over the smooth waters OF the
Thames or the Hudson. and spurred by the ex-
element Of coming battles and perhaps brilliant
gories. the oarsmen naturally make vast strides
in their work
II the crews were to row this afternoon It might
not be so difficult to name the winners beforehand.
Coach Courtney. of Cornell for instance. sees no
reason to doubt that his will bear away the
palm at the Poughkeepsie races. The Cornell boat
misses sadly some OF its OF last year. yet
the present aggregation is strong and fast one.
Robbins at stroke is man in the Varsity
shell. but he is by no means a greenhorn for last
year he missed the Varsity by rather narrow
margin. He has this year developed excellent
stroke qualities, and is rowing that. with
the men, good and true. behind him. carries
the boat forward on even keel and with all the
old-tme Cornell smoothness and speed. The chief
point to criticse in the Cornell crew is that the
catch does not fast and aggressive as It
should be. The men row the stroke through TO
finish better than do either the Harvard or Yale
crews at present
COLUMBIAS IMPROVEMENT
Cornell men, however expect to have walk
this year. The reports that come from the
Hudson between the towering highlands that
the Columbia crew is doing exceptionally good
work. DR.. Walter B. Peet the head coach has
made scientific study Of what proper stroke
should be- and the adherents Of the Blue and White
this year believe that DR.. Peet has worked out his
ideas that every ounce OF muscle is brought into
play by the oarsmen. The Columbia rowers last
week had hard luck in having hole punched in
the bow of their best practice shell The shell
in which the Will be rowed is expected TO ar
rive in day or two 1t is OF paper and was built
by Waters. OF Troy.
Little has been heard Of the Pennsylvania oars
this year. beyond their easy victory over the
Cadets at Annapolis and It may be taken for
granted that the Quakers have no marvel this
year. Yet Coach Wards pets always have a way
OF humping themselves" and getting their boat
through the water at lively clip. They al
ways formidable antagonists. and last year they
proved victors well.
OLD LANDMARKS GONE.
The Harvard varsity crew will start for New
London to-day and II ali goes we'll. will take It's
first practice spin on the Thames early this even
ing. The will be quartered further up the
river than usual. and within hang distance Of the
Yale quarters at Gales Ferry. The primitiveness
that marked the banks and coves of the Thames
above New-London for many long year has grad
ually been disappearing, and this season has van
lshed utterly. Red Top. picturesque and homeke,
which sheltered the Harvard oarsmen for almost
two decades, has been appropriated by the recently
built branch Of the New Haven Railroad while the
little old burying ground to the north OF Red Top.
where old fsher-folk and seafarers Of old New
London lay at rest beneath gray and llchened
gravestones has also had to give way The quiet
country road winding along the east side Of the
ceeded by line OF railroad tracks. while the griz
zed ferryman. who would pull one across the river
1erky stroke that made the craft leap has lost his
The men from Cambridge will reach Newton
don IN rstrate trim and eonfdent OF making maxi az
brethren who have won greater renown at oars
manship The Harvard crew as whole shows
science and the Harvard men appear to have
the knaok Despite the frequent changes the
strong The hitch on the catch has been largely
eliminated and there is real life in the boat. The
experiments with the rigging were fairly success
full. but no radical change has yet been made with
the oarlocks
Yale has had one or two time rows in the last
week on the the Thames and W. would 10 be & interesting
sluggishness that has at times been perceptble in
the boat has disappeared Is not believed. but the
has shown marked improvement. There has
been a suggestion that the Yale eight were chosen
too early for the good Of the men Themselves. and
that the early selection OF the crew tended toward
relaxation OF effort on the part Of the several
oarsmen. But there seems little ground for this
criticism With such a hardy set OF veterans on
hand. II would have been strange II the Yale
spent the rest of the time in shaking the men
together and developing the finer points.
RESULTS on THE DIAMOND.
After Princeton's victory in baseball on Saturday
Yale man was heard to remark that the Yale
managers had been wise In instructing Pitcher Rob-
ertson to make little effort and to himself for
the next game. which would be an easy victory for
the blue A Princeton was heard to say that
the Tiger batsmen had at last fathomed Robert
sons curves and would have him completely at
their mercy in the next game Everything depends
on the point Of view Which right, the
Yale or Princeton will appear next Saturday. when
the final game Of the series Is played in this city
The Harvard nine pulled Itself together in encour
aging shape on Saturday and in the second game
OF the series with Pennsylvania changed an appar,
ent defeat into a timely victory Fltz pitched
much 10 the purpose, the crimson batsmen all had
their ewes on the ball The game was tied at the /
of the ninth inning and the winning run
was earned by Harvard. The deciding game in the /
series Will be played at Boston tomorrow.
FITZSIMMONS FEARED THE WORST.