Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-22
AWAITED WITH
GREAT INTEREST
Coming Meeting Of the Inter-
collegiate Athletic Associa-
tion-LegisIation on Foot
BaII-NeW Alliances.
By Edward r. Bushnell.

COlleSldte WOTlu VIII CSClueQ at Tie
meeting on Friday of this week of the in
tercollegiate Athletic Association of the
United States in New York. 1t will settle
among other things whether or not this
new organization has been able to cocure
the membership of Yale, Princeton, Har-
ward or Cornell. the four big universities
of the east which have to date declined
to cast their lot with this new body.
Likewise it will determine whether or not
there shall pc an amalgGma ION the
two foot ball rules committees on the
same basis as last year and the year be-
fore.
Both of these are important matters and
have been the subject of considerable dis
cussion since the last annual meeting.
Undoubtedly the greater interest is CEN
tered in the effort to get all the big uni
versities of the east into this body. At
present the University of Pennsylvania is
the only big eastern institution which has
joined, while in the west Chicago is the
principal representative. At the last an
nual meeting a committee was appointed
to sound the other big eastern schools
and if possible to secure their member
ship. This committee has been laboring
hard and the success it has achieved Will
not be known until the meeting this week.
1t is said that both Yale and Cornell are
friendly to the new body and are ready to
Join If membership does not entail the loss
of too much Of their prestige.
OF the other colleges mentioned Prince
ton has not shown any public disposition
one way or the other. Harvard, however,
showed that the Crimson is friendlily dis
posed by a most peculiar action year
ago. Just before the separate meetings OIL
the two foot ball rules committees last
year Harvard, acting upon orders from
her athletic committee, instructed her rep
resentatve w. T. Reed, jr., to withdraw
from the old committee and seek represen-
tation in the new rules committee. This
privilege was granted to Harvard and
when the two committees were amalga-
mated the Crimson delegate went in as
member of the new instead of the oid
body. Another peculiar feature OIL the
consolidation Of the two committees was
the fact that Pennsylvania, although
member of the new body, retained her
membership in the old committee, which
counterbalanced Harvard's action In
having a representative on the new rules
committee without being member of the
body.
Foot Ball Legislation.
No definite news can be expected re-
garding the legislation on the forward
pass or other features Of the new rules
until month hence. The old rules COM
mittee will organize at about the same
time that the 1. C. A. A. U. S. meets and
after amalgamating will set another date
at which the joint committee will get to
work and decide what shall be done in the
matter of foot ball legislation. II two or
more of the four colleges mentioned above
join the new body there will be no fur
Their need of consolidating the two foot
ball committees because the new body
would then have such preponderating in
fiuence that any institution which refused
to join the new body would find 1t pretty
tough shedding to shift by itself.
When the combined foot ball rules COM
mittee finally gets at the forward pass
this new play is certain to be very much
restricted in 1905. In fact, this particular
play met with as much criticism this year
as with praise year ago. This year the
play was worked to death and instead of
being used with moderation. became an
unscientific piece Of play, resembling bas-
ket ball more than foot ball. A year ago
the forward pass was used almost entirely
as a trick play, and whenever it was
called into operation accuracy in making
the throw and the catch was the chief
aim. This year teams went to the other
extreme and, led by the Carlisle Indians,
endeavored to see how far the ball could
be thrown. The rules committee must
take much Of the blame for this helter-
SHELTER indiscriminate throwing about of
the ball because 1t removed the severe
penalties from the incompleted forward
pass.
The result has been to make the for
ward pass the resort of the weaker team
and in so doing almost paralyZed the
progress of scientific foot ball. No critic
can say that the season of 1907 developed
anything new in the matter of foot ball
science. The game was rather a contest
to see which team could throw the ball
the farthest and which could have the
greater luck in recovering it. With the
close Of the season there has been an al
most unanimous demand that the forward
pass at least be very greatly restricted.
Even Walter Camp, who takes crediUfor
introducing this play can see the evil 1t
has wrought and Is ready to have it re-
formed great variety of suggestions
have been made to reform the play, but
the one which seems to have met with
the most favor is advanced by DR.. Carl
Williams of the University of Pennsylva
mia, who suggests that the play be legal
only from running formation and that it
be not permitted from the kicking forma-
ton. If this were done the forward pass
and we would see no more of the ball
being thrown Unfortunately over the
gridiron.
The Triple Alliance.
Within the last three weeks there has
been not a little agitation over the per-
ennial report that Harvard. Yale anc
Princeton are about to effect their tri-
angular offensive and defensive alliance
III dil Tile HldJOT SpOItS anu let Tie otHSA
eastern colleges exist as best they can.
Although little definite information can
be secured, 1t is evident that these three
institutions. frightened by the permanent
strength of Cornell and Pennsylvania, to
say nothing of such minor colleges as
Dartmouth. Brown and Swarthmore, see
the humiliation of much of their prestige
if they do not take some such measures
to protect themselves.
Some persons may think this statement
a little farfetched in view of the great
records these colleges have made in the
past but an investigation of the present
status of intercollegiate athletics dis
closes the fact that the pre-eminence OF
these three institutions has been success
fully assailed in many quarters. The
University of Pennsylvania holds the
championship in track athletics. Will
Cornell is first in rowing and cross-coun-
try running and divides honors with
Princeton in base ball. In fact, Yale Is
the only one of the three which can lay
claim to an intercollegiate title among
the major sports, the Ellis being supreme
only in foot ball. and even here they I'M
doubtedly owe much of their prestige to
the fact that they persistently refuse to
meet such powerful elevens as Cornell,
PENNSYLVANIA and the IndianS.g
There are some tremendous obstacles to
be overcome if Princeton Is to be taken
into this alliance. Primarily, If Princeton
and Harvard are to meet both of these
teams must drop one of their present
,,st a