The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-07-29
ny Ccorge b. MeyIan, M. D..

By George L. MeyIan, M. D.
 Medical Director of the Gymnasium,
 Columbia University.
 By courtesy of New York Times.
 The subject of athletics in schools and colleges is now prominently before the public, Some writers depict the evils of athletics so vividly that one is tempted to regard the practice of athletics as menace to modern ed- of athletics gives a wrong impression unIess the other side of the question fs given some consideration.
 After reading President Eiliotts crit
 icisrn of football and Mir. Neidham's exposition of commercialism in athlet- ics. it may be interesting to read some thing on the other side of the aues- ton. The relation of athletics to ed ucators is not yet determined, but the question Is attracting Che attention or educators, and we may expect solu- ton iurinr the next five or ten years,
 From the time of the first Yale-Har- ward boat race, in 1852, until 1ss0, ath- ietics received so little attention in our colleges that they served for littln more than a means of exercise and rec reation for c small proportion of ths student body. But during the last IT ' teen years the developinent of athlet- les has been so rapid that the adJnst- nnent Of this phase of college life has been exceedingly difiicult. That ath- letlc sports in themselves have many Advantages is recognized by all obser- yers who have studied the problem .
 A careful study made in 1902 of the ef- fects of rowing on the members of Harvard University crews from 1852 10 1899 revealed the facts that the ex x-athletics lived longer, enjoyed bet ter health. and were more successful m after life than other men,
 ated over fifty years ago says: The tore of morals and the character of the habits of the students at the present time ss far above--in real elements Of excellence---far above the quality of the time of fifty years ago. There Is less drinking, less carousing. less hazing, and less of all other feras Of abomina- tfons now than in my day. and be- licve that a great deal or that is que not to any increase of piety in the pro- fessors, out largely to the practice of the bah games of the present time especially football; that 1t enables the boys to throw off an amount of steam ana force and excitabfiity in legiti- mate way. which in my day was ex- pended In illegitimate and unmanfy ways, and ways of bad moral innu- ence.s Man educators Wtth thifty years or more of experience have ex- pressed the same sentiments
 It win probably take some time be- fore athletics is accepted as an en- trance qualification to our colleges and universities. but there are evidences on all sides that the tendency is In that direction. There are already q number of leading institutions where athletic training Is not only required ol | all students. but credit is given for proficiency in this branch on the same basis as for history. Aanguage, or math- ematics. Every freshman In Amherst College Is required t0 follow regular course in athletics during the first stz weeks in college as a part of the worh | in physical education, and credit is given for this work toward the Bach elor,s degree. At Cornell University all students are required to take three
 hours week of physical training dur