Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-12-03
Seaman Gunners Win at Fort
Myer.
PLAYED IN A FOG
GREAT INTEREST SHOWN IN THE
PRINCETON GAME.
Lack of Team Work Shown by the
Eleven from the Post-Beaten by
Safety Touchdown.

The Army was less fortunate at Fort
Myer yesterday afternoon than Il was at
Princeton. Instead of getting a tie with the
Navy foot ball team, the troopers OF the
fort were defeated by the seaman gunners'
team from the navy yard by the tantalizing
score OF to 8. II came near being worse
than that. II Franz had kicked a goal for
the Army close TO the end OF the last half
the score would have been to Z. But he
missed it. and there is serious talk among
the enlisted men at the post OF having him
tarred and feathered or court-martialed,
feathers for choice.
1t was not a very high society event. Be
side the sailors team and their substitutes,
who unfortunately, as they thought, were
not needed, there were just seven men from
the navy yard to cheer their colleagues
victory. There were a hundred OF so enlist
ed men of the post. half dozen officers
and two ladies to watch the game on behalf
of the army. All the officers who could get
tickets and could get away had gone to
Princeton. Those who had to stay and
wa tch the homemade substitute kept a limo
OF enlisted men, like a bucket brigade at a
fire, running from the field to the telephone
to find out how the other game was going,
SO that when a man on the field declared
that the Army was one touchdown ahead.
you hardly knew whether he was talking
about the enlisted mems game or the West
Pointers.
Played in the Fog.
II was not a cheering afternoon The fog
settled down on the field In a dense gray
| lump. SO that 1t took pair of night glasses
| to make out the figures on the opposite
side of the field. There were no ropes on
| the side lines. so that the spectators and
! the two teams got tnextricably mixed at
| times. and there was small white poodle
| who seemed to belong to nobody In partcu
l 1n hints xvfrnra a IN fyat mt N
| the scrimmages, and was only dsssuaded by
| persistent ''shooing' on the part OF the
coaches.
| The game was a sad exhibition of the way
| the best companies will go astray IL they
are deserted by their officers. Any how.
any one at the post Will tell you that the
artillery has a better team than the post
eleven. They are so mean that they keep
| their star players to wailop the troopers
| with, and the post team has to meet out
| sfders with worse men than they ought TO
have. Then. too. the officers have not taken
| fatherly interest IN foot ball this fall; or.
at least, the officers and men have not
taken an interest In II at the same time.
| When the team was there to coach. SO the
| enlisted men say, there was no officer who
| wanted to bother with IT, and when some
of the officers got out to coach the team
| they found all OF the team who could get
on had gone to watch foot ball game
| somewhere else. So the officers said that
| the team could go where 1t was too warm
for foot ball, and the troopers were left to
| meet the sailors with lot of willingness
| and inexperience to help them
So much for the moral aspect of the case
| which ought to, but will not furnish the
| general stan with material for sermon
| The two teams were made up OF husky
| looking youths who trotted on TO the field
almost disreputable looking as the future
| generals and admirals who battled at
Princeton
Lacking in Team Work.
| II can hardly be said that the teams trot-
| ted out on the field either. They pried the
| fog to one side and stepped out Then the
4 lack OF Army team work wecame apparent.
The sailors walked around them like a
| cooper around cask and hammered them
| at Will. The soldiers were willing enough,
but when 1t came to put the ball In play
| the sailors would get away with It and be
yards down the field before some body tele-
phoned the troopers to go after It. The
| held was wet, and the ball was wetter,
| Fumbles were more or less usual occur
| renee, and the vigor with which the sailors
| butted through the line was equalled only
| by the hearty good will with which the
| soldiers would throw them down and bump
| their heads in the mud whenever they could
| get hold of them.
| 1t was not long before the sailors got the
ball down to the troopers 5-yard line. Then
| there was a stand for a minute and then the
| soldiers were forced to safety, scoring
| two against them.
Then the ball went back to the center
and the Navy repeated the performance
| Of working it down the field with some
trifling Interruptions till 1t stopped on the
soldiers two-yard line again. 1t looked for
one down as though the troopers might
| hold their heavy-weather opponents. For
| single down they took brace and stood
| like stone wall Then the sailors worked
| their left half over. and, amid a Joyous
| mixture OF spectators, players and referee
| and umpire. the touchdown was scored by
Stratton, but Cannon failed on the goal.
Troopers Score Touchdown.
1t looked as though the sailors were going
to repeat their triumphal progress In the
second half. but toward the end Of the per-
| Torrance, when the ball had gone d0wn TO
the soldiers 15-yard line, the troopers took
| another reef in their belts and worked It
| down the field to the sailors goal posts.
| Here there was a scrimmage. providential
| tumble by somebody and Anderson dropped
| on the ball in the enemy's territory, with
half of both teams sitting on him to mako
| sure he did not get either forward or back
| There was urgent need for the goal. bUt
the leather was wet and soggy and did MOI
| respond to the kick. 30 the game closed with
| a score OF Z to o.
l s;,xo