The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-10-02

noble proportions and ideal location
best appreciated. Teeming with life as
it was yesterday with old and young
tOahu collegians streaming over the
field, the picturesque changes of color
ing as patches of green showed IN be-
tween blue and gold football uniforms
and the dainty white of a fiuttering
dress, the effect was heightened and
one could appreciate that this field is
just what it was intended to be-ideal.
/ dwelling the Plate.
| Long before the time set for the
opening ceremony the field was cover
ed with people chatting in groups and
discussing the athletic events that
were to be the main part of the after
noon s program. Shortly before half
past three the word was given by Mr..
Griffiths and the two schools lined up
below the plate. A large crowd of
! other spectators stood at the upper side
| of the gateway and watched with in
| terest as little Patty Waterhouse was
/ lifted onto the platform by the lower
gatepost, which was draped with a
| large American flag. The dainty little
creature pulled string and the flag
i fell away, disclosing the big brass
plate with its somber lettering. Every
body cheered, the schools gave rival
yells, and then everybody went down
to the big tent, standing near the dia-
mond, for the rest of the exercises.
The presentation of the field was
made by Mr.. Wallace NJ. Alexander
in a short but very well chosen and
touching speech. He spoke of his
father and his great love for athletics
of all kinds. He told how, when they
were living in California, his father
would get him up in the morning and
put him through a rigorous course of
fencing and boxing before breakfast.
90 Always he said, eSamuel Alexan-
der was a man who believed in
healthy mind in a healthy body, and
was one who carried out this precept
in himself Tt was not an elaborate
speech, but it was one that went
straight to the hearts of his hearers,
and when he had finished and had for
mally presented the deed of gift to
DR.. Alexander, one felt better for
hearing of this good man and realized
how genuinely appropriate it is that
his memory should be perpetuated by
the gift of this field, the means for
The acceptance by DR.. w. d. Alex |
ander was even shorter than the pres
entation, and was an appreciation of |
the gift and tribute to the memory
of the man after whom it is named.
Arthur G. Alexander, the man who |
designated the field and carried out |
the work of completing it, then made |
a deeply-interesting talk on the plan |
m 81 81 4In 81
A. G. Alexander's Speech.
"The idea," said he, s'of utilizing
the portion of the old lower pasture
lying between the Manoa road and
Rocky Hill for an athlete field dates
back some four or five years. 1t is
hard to say that anyone in particular
deserves the credit for suggesting it
first. The trustees of Oahu College
about that time, in laying out a general
building scheme, seem, by common con-
sent, to have reserved this space for the
future athletic field.
MY own connection with it dates
from the summer of 1906, when / was
requested by the trustees to draw up
plans for an athletic field and prepare
estimates of cost so that they might
have the project in concrete form for
submission to possible donors. The
plan as outlined to me was by excavat-
ng and grading to make a level field
set in sort of semiamphitheater. This
ield was to be encireled by running
track and to be sufficiently large so
hat there would be room enough for ,
Independent football and baseball fields,
nus obviating the cutting up of the sur i
face of the diamond by the football I
players in the fall. Provision was to | /
,e made for all forms of athletic sport, '
'ither on the field or on adjacent |
.round. :
=" A contour map was prepared and a /
areful study made of the ground. A I
rack having three and half laps to t
he mile was chosen as most nearly '
Meeting the required conditions. There !
re advantages in having an even num- {
er of laps to the mile, but it seemed t
lmost impossible to have such a track. | r
| quartermile track of four laps would F
OF enclose sufficiently large area, and c
ne of two laps to the mile would be v
90 large for the available space. As +
on can see, practically every bit of @
valuable space has been utilized and "
ne track could not have been made n
lrger except at great expense for ex- a
awaiting and filing. A
The axis of the track was placed at ;s
ght angles to the line of Punahou q,
rect, this being the most favorable II
'sition as regards cost of excavation "
I'd exposure, and it also makes the +
Id parallel to the main buildings on "a
e campus below. To get as much n,
ON as possible for the outfeld and to
dHce to a minimum the effect of the ~,
n, the axis of the baseball diamond sr
as swung around to make an angle of AZ
degrees with that of the track. This m.
opens TO make the line connecting NJ,
e home-plate with second base lie due Of
nth and south. By this arrangement wl
sort of natural open-air stand has been ga
divided for the baseball field. which u,
5 been further emphasized by exca-
ting in the slope for backstop. IT.
'om for a second baseball diamond IF
5 also been provided, overlapping the e.,
otball field, and far enough away so 50,
1t both diamonds can be used at the fo-
ne time The surface of the ground
somewhat rough for this afternoon g N.
me- but in a wear or two with fiIliuo ~