The Washington times., 1905-12-09
ATHLETICS NEED
FACULTY CONTROL
President James, of Illinois,
on College Contests.
HAVE HELPED DISCIPLINE
Among 1000 Students at Urbana Not
One Was Hauled Up Last
Year.

DR. Edward James James, president of
the University of Illinois. who has been
at the George Washington University
Hospital for the past three weeks. suf-
fering from an attack OF neuritis, left
today for his home at Urbana. Illinois.
Mr. James while bitterly opposed TO
the commercial spirit that has crept
into college sports with SUCH disastrous
results, is till a firm believer in ath-
letics when properly conducted. do not
get the idea l would have them abol-
ished." he declared with emphasis to
a Times reporter before leaving for his
home.
Have Done Great Good.
''I am a great friend of athletics. and
know what an enormous good they have
done to make our men saner. brighter
and healthier. Years ago you know the
main duty of a college president was to
keep order. TO mete out punishment. and
all that sore of thing Last year not
single case requiring discipline was
brought before me. although we have
1000 students 1 attribute TINS 10 ath
letics. which allow the young men a
means for spending the energy stored
up in them from day to day. However.
the present condition of commercialism
is an intolerable disgrace
Yes, better abolish athletics alto
gether than suffer il. But there is no
need in my opinion TO suffer it. II may
be entirely eliminated, l think, by TAX
ing the responsibility of control of the
sports from the boys and throwing It
on the general university administration
An erroneous impression has been Gre
ated by the press of the country that it
is the university officials who are back
ing these commercially played games
for bill poster advertising purposes. This
Is entirely wrong. Does Harvard. Yale
OF Princeton need advertising?
Don't Help Enrolment.
Moreover. have you not noticed that
while Yale is the most distinguished
athletic university of the land. Harvard
is far ahead of her in attendance? 1
really think that these games detract
rather than attract class attendance.
Columbia University. at the bottom of
the athletic ladder. is way up near the
top of universities for mental training.
The spirit OF commercialism crept
into the game because the boys found
that they could not have the expenses
of these sports paid for out Of the uni
versfty's fund. They found that by
playing up the spectacular side. the
public grew interested. and was will
ing. yea. anxious. to pay admission fees.
Then the boys also found that the bet
ter the playing the higher the receipts,
and the commercial spirit at once gain
ed hold.
THUS the gate receipts paid their
bills. and the game fiourished. But
neither the gate receipts nor the noto-
riety brings TIE university more
students. In our own university. which
had only AIS students ten years ago.
and which now numbers 4.OO0 athletics
haven't brought US any students worth
having.
Evil 0verestimated.
81 believe. however. the evil effect Of
athleticism on the entire student body
has been overestmated. / think since
the introduction Of athletics there has
been less work for the disciplinarian.
However. l want to see the contests so
diversified that all the students will
take part in them. l would limit the
number of years a man might play foot
ball and would require before admis-
sion 70 the team that he had a full
years residence at the college. with a
orb ssrl IL