The Washington times., 1905-01-08
YA[E'S PRESIDENT
ON COLLEGE SPORTS
DR.. Hadley Discusses Pres
ent Tendency of Athletics.
VICTORY ALL IMPORTANT
Great Temptations to Sacrifice Every
thing in Order to Win Victories.
Net Influence Is Good.


Net Influence Is Good.
In a highly interesting letter to the
editor of the illustrated Sporting
News President Hadley, of Yale, dis
cusses present-day college athletics
In view of the fact that President
Hadley mas followed athletics closely
since his Inauguration, his opinion is
especially valuable. The letter fol-
lows:
THE idea that victory is the essential
thing, Independent of the means by
which it Is obtained. is one Of the great
est dangers which menaces the United
States at the present day. Whatever you
can do to combat that idea in athletics
or anywhere else renders an Invaluable
public service.
Victory Means Too Much.
1.-The greater the prize In any contest.
the greater will be the temptation to
sacrifice other things to victory. The
widespread interest in college athletics
makes it harder than it otherwise would
be to insist that the students shall have
higher standards In their dealings with
one another in their play than the grad
yates and the outside public have in
their dealings with one another in their
business Nevertheless. 1 am inclined
to think that the net influence of inter-
collegiate athletics is good We make
a great mistake if we assume that in
tercollegiate contests create the evils
of which we complain. They simply
hold them up to public view. If the
in
rebuked and unremedied, the indirect
effect of this publicity is bad. If they
are condemned by that part of the pub
lie for whose opinion the average col
lege student most cares, the effect Of
the publicity and the ensuing conden.-
nation Is good Here is where .the
work of a paper like yours can be very
effective
L confess / have no great faith in
most of the specific projects or rules
which are proposed to remedy the evils
They are like attempts to cure disease
by repressing its symptoms. They sell
dom do real good; they often do positive
harm. Take, for instance, the sugges-
tion that we should prohibit professional
trainers II my boy wants 10 run in the
quarter mile I want to have him as
much as possible under the eye OF a
man who understands the operation and
effect of quarter-mile running more fully
thar his family physician naturally can
do. If ysu give him the alternative OF
risking damage to himself or keeping
out of the competition with his fellows
merely because the public will take too
much interest in his adviser in case he
should be fortunate enough to engage in
an intercollegiate contest. it seems to
hot yre2aT deal
for the sake of accomplishing very little.
1t is all very well to talk OF having only
graduate coaches; but the only uniyer-
sites that can be sure of commanding
1he services of unpaid graduate coaches
for different branches of athletics are
those which are situated IN large cities.
This places a discrimination against the
country colleges which I, for one, should
be quite unwilling to see established.
Should Net Write.
'II wish very much that / felt able to
comply with your request to write an
article on the subject. l do not see now
I can do it-partly because / do not feel
clear enough in my own mind as to
many details. but still more because ]
believe that il is a mistake for college
presidents to write articles about ath-
meant. seems to me to countenance the
idea that athletics occupy a larger place
in the American university horizon than
is the case at Yale, and than I believe
10 be the case at Harvard. By eoun-
tenancing this false view they increase
the very evils which they are trying tc
reduce While / Go not agree with many
Of the theories Of the Christian Scien-
lists, l think that there is great deal
Of practical truth in their idea that the
best way to diminish certain diseases is
10 remove the mental attention to some
other point. and I honestly believe that
the greatest service which college presi-
dents and faculties can render to ath-
letics is 10 encourage the students. the
graduates, and The public to think as
much as possible about other things
I appreciate so fully the OBJECTS you
haye in View and the ways in which ycI
are getting at them that want to give
You all help in my power; and il it viii
be of any service TO. you to print any OF
the things which I have said. as quota
tions from personal letter I should be
quite ready TO trust your discretion in
this matter