The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-09-14
WORK AT THE Y. NJ. C. A.
Glasses Will All Resume Business Next
Monday.

The classes of the Central Young
Mems Christian association gymnas-
ium resume active operations Monday,
September 10th. The annual house
cleaning took place in August, and on
September End, the gymnasium was
opened for general exercise. The reg
istrations and numerous inquiries show
that the classes will be unusually large
this season. The registration for the
department last season almost reached
the 500 mark, and no doubt will pass
that the coming season. The boys
classes were somewhat overcrowded
so that the question of opening wait
ing list was considered. However. by
dividing them into four classes and
each class into grades according to
age and ability. it was possible to
avoid refusing to take memberships.
Boys and young men do not have to
be urged to indulge in physical exer-
else when they are normally consti-
tuted, but the average business man of
from 4 5 to 20 smiles when it is sug
gested he join a gymnasium and yet
classes for just these men are con-
Quoted and many men are beginning
to see that some light recreative exer-
else is as necessary and exhilarating
to them is the heavy apparatus
work and competition to the young
man DR.. Geo. S. Meylan, who occu-
pies the chair of physical training al
Columbia university and is president
of the American Physical Education
association, says: THE fathers and
grandfatEers of most. men now living
in American cities were born and
brought up in the country They de-
veloped healthy and vigorous bodies
by an active outdoor life, involving
all the varied muscular activities of
the former. These conditions are
changed. The men of this generation
live in cities, their work is indoors,
and most of it is done with the brain
the muscles remain idle. This mode
of life tends to decrease vitality and
deteriorate the organism.
The life of an organism depends
upon two things: 1. A favorable en-
vironment. 2. Activity. The human
body is an organism and is, therefore.
subject to this fundamental law of BIZ
ology. BY activity is meant the use or
function of all the organs which to-
gether make up the human body The
various organs of the body are inter-
dependent in the same way that the
various wheels and spring of a watch
are interdependent. If a spring breaks
or a wheel binds, the whole watch
movement is affected. In the same
wav a discrdered stomach, a weak
ened heart, or t1abby muscles, is suffi-
cient cause to interfere with the pro-
per functions of the body.
The muscles constitute one of the
most important organs of the body. In
size they represent nearly one-half of
the body weight; measured by the
waste produced they do more work
than all the other organs put to-
gether.
Inactivity leads. to decay is an
other fundamental law. We are all
familiar with the shriveled and pow
erless muscles of a leg which has been
kept in splint for a few weeks. Ply
sicians know that the stomach of an
underfed individual actually decreased
in size.
If inactivity of the muscles had no
other effect but to decrease their size
and strength, men engaged in seden-
tarv occupations would not care much
because their work is done almost en-
tirelv with their brains and they could
we'll dispense with large strong mus
c1es But muscular inactivity leads to
deterioration of the whole body. The
most important effects of insufficient
muscular exercise are lowered vital
ity: disturbance of the heat-regulating
leading to colds, inf1am-
nation. ETC.: weakened heart and con-
seouent poor circulation; shallow
with increased liability to
lung affections; disordered conditions |
of tn : digestive organs; sluggish elm |
nation of waste matters, leading to
sleeplessness, etc
A very good illustration of the dan