The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-03-01
COLLEGE ATHLETES NOT INJURED
BY TRAINING and COMPETITION
George v Lyons Eastern Coege Man and Crack Athlete Takes
sue With Bncor Gicrist of Iowa University Who Boldly
ted That Boys Were Wrought Harm by Indulgence
Sent College Sports.

stern one in the sense the Doctor would
have the reader of this article believe
| ton of smoking. drinking or keeping late
| hours. But training for an athletic team
| is not entirely hardship; there is some
element of pleasure in the process A man
| in training eats just what he pleaseS, and
| as much rs he pleases; there is no for
midabe list constantly before his eyes of
| things he must not eat: nor must his meat
| necessarily be cooked just SO much and no
| more, etc, etc.
monsters of iniquity in the eyes of this
/ professor, but the girls must also come
| in for their. share of abuse. Doctor Gil
! christ would have believe that in
| educational colleges, where this athletic
| plague exists. the girls acquire a careless
dress. slangy and vulgar speech and coarse
| ness OF manners" Doctor Giichrist seems
| 10 have lost all sense of gallantry. L
| know that such state of affairs does not
/ exist in any of the Eastern universities,
and am quite certain it does not in the
Western universities. not even in the Uni
versity of Iowa.
As an example of the stress and danger
TO which the participant in athletics is
subjected, Doctor Gilchrist takes a cross
country run held at the University of Iowa
last fall. Late in the afternoon of an
autumn day. chilly at the start and mo-
mentarily becoming more so. as the sun de-
clined, a crowd of young men in scanty
| dress. bareheaded, and many of them bare
armed came running by my house, Only half
Il dozen blocks from the starting point.
Many Of them dropped out at this point and
lay painting in the grass in dripping perspir-
alton. There was something over mile
further to run, and doubtless the road was
Literally lined with those who dropped out
After 9 time stream OF walkers came
back. in the same half-clad condition, eX-
hausted and breathless. Later the surviv-
ors of the run appea;ed, the best of them
nearly done up with an expression on their
faces. it was not good TO see" What
ever truth there may be in the fore
at the University Of Iowa. A cross-coun-
try run properly directed is one of the
finest and most beneficial forms of outdoor
exercise one can indulge in. y run of this
nature. when such trainer as Mr.. Murphy
OF Yale, or Mr.. Sweeney of the Hill School,
OF any man who is Jealous of his reputa-
ton as careful trainer. is far from being
the Wild break-neck performance which
Doctor Gilchrist would have us believe he
witnessed at the Iowa University last fall.
\ competent trainer will make the runs in
the beginning OF the season very short,
lengthening the distance gradually. The
pacemakers will be the slow-going ones.
man is warned not to pass the pace MAX
err at any stage of the run. BY this means
every body finishes fresh and whatever stiff
ness the first run of the season naturally
brings on, soon passes away to give place
to a spring and elasticity of step, which
they only can appreciate and realize who
have gone through the happy experience.
But even here there appears. in the article,
a manifest exaggeration. Doctor Gilchrist
would have us believe that after having
gone but half dozen blocks many Of the
runners dropped Out and lay painting on the
grass IN dripping perspiTatlon. Such a
state of affairs after having gone such u
short distance is beyond credence.
Now for the remedies. as suggested by
Doctor Gilchrist in his article. First. a
gymnasium properly fitted uD. ! have no
doubt that his ideas on n properly fitted
up gymnasium will be eagerly devoured by
physical directors throughout the country.
Secondly. the doctor advises "a thoroughly
competent medical director. with a med
ical training along physiological lines. es
pecially who should enjoy the rank of pro-
fessor or head of department. etc This is
precisely what Is being done in the large
universities. and schools throughout the
country; and this has been the system in
vogue for a good MANY years past.
In the peroration of this immensely anus
ing article we are told that games of all
kinds. football. baseball tennis cricket and
some kinds Of track performances. rowing.
swimming, fencing, can be made perfectly
satisfactory if the present spirit of competi-
ton be kept ont of it." How utterly absurd
and ridiculousi What an interesting lot OF
foreign friends would marvel at this new !
fossil age that had dawned on the American
people!
Often in the breast of the oldtimer far
removed though he may be from the SCENE
of his early college day triunphs there
comes back again and again a yearning Tor
those old days-to bear. oh. SO willingly
the little trials of training-the race--the
victory-the record-the appause-the treas
ured little golden souvenir-all these
come back again. and in their coming bring
back with them that quiet joy and pardon-
able dissatisfaction which would fill even !
your own heart. Doctor Gflchrist had YOU |
but been college athlete in the old DAYS
GEORGE " LYONS