Waterbury evening Democrat., 1908-04-04
ANNUAL DINNER
Given By Physical Department
 of the Y. W. (. A.


 Mems Christian association was held last evening in the association hall and was the most successful gather ing of its kind that the Y. M. c. A. has as yet given. It was in the na- ture of a reunion, for three of the old physical directors, Thomas D. Knowles of Thomaston, Dr Arthur Shoemaker of Columbia university and Dr C.. D. Clapp of Utica, N. Y., were present. The only absent physical director was A. A. Black man, who sent letter of regret be- cause he was unable to oe on hand. There were no set speeches during the evening, but the speakers were mighty interesting in their personal "reminiscences, and the stories which they related of the days when the Y. M. c. A. was having difficult task to keep alive were much en- joyed.
 At o'clock the guests sat down to dinner, which was served by a corps of comedy young women under the supervision of Mrs Harriet B. Thorpe, who catered.
 | Walter w. Holmes was introduced as toastmaster. In his opening re- marks he made mention Of the fact | that now 1t is the custom to hold a 1 dinner yearly at the end of the in l door athletic season. Some of his remarks concerning doings on the | gymnasium floor, especially during | basketball games, were humorous. ! He declared that the spirit of play was a part of animal nature and ! that it was nothing surprising that | children and adults should seek | athletics. He commented upon the fact that boys in the cities have | very little chance of developing their | physiques unless it be at such insti- tutions as the Y. M. c. A., and re- ferred to the advantages d boy work ing on a farm has over | youth la boring in factory.
 Robert s. Ross, secretary of the Y. M. c. A., the man who during his 10 years service has been instru- mental in placing it where it stands to-day and to whom can be attrib- l uted much of the credit for having the Y. M. c. A. building free from debt to-day, was then introduced. Mr Ross, after giving everyone a cor dial welcome, caused many laughs at the expense of the physical direc- tors. He remembered dis ,inctly the time when two ministers, half a dozen professional men and about an equal number of business men were in a condition for the hospital because of attempting "stunts" in the gym taught them by Knowles Knowles in his opinion was a won der in doing fancy work on the gym floor and MT Ross never remembered seeing his equal anywhere except at a circus,
 The toastmaster next introduced Thomas D. Knowles, the first physi- cal director the association had. Mir Knowles was the successor to A. A. Blackman, who was volunteer worker and who simply directed be- cause he had love for it, and more over he had the time and money to devo to 1t. Mir Knowles is now in Thomaston, where he is as popu- lar as he was while in this city.
 
 time when the association had its rooms on Bank street some 20 odd years ago. The rooms were on the third and fourth floors. The former | floor was used for about every con- ceivable purpose while the apology for a. gym was on the latter. He re- ferred to the first football game, the Y. NJ. c. A. boys played-it was against the Hartford high. The score was about 100 to 0 in favor of Hartford. In concluding the speaker said that Y. NJ. c. A. work depended not on one man but upon the many men.
 Dr Clapp confined himself chiefly 10 incidents in connection with the old basketball days.
 Physical Director Goodyear in his review of the seasons work said that the basketball league was a success, the student league also aroused en- thusiasm, but the senior bowling league was a decided failure. AL though the work on the whole was good, it did not reach he standard he would like to have had 1t.
 Dr A. A. Crane spoke on "Phy- sical Culture as a Menace to the Medical Profession" In several ways 1t was a menace to the NJ. D.s. For instance it's physical directors are paid SO well that two out of the last three that were here made so much money they knew not what to do with 1t. so they decided 10 study medicine and compete with us. Mir Ross says 1t knocks a few ministers out occasionally. Well they receive weeks and weeks of treatment from us and run up a large bill-gOOd, yes if they paid: but they don't, they are all dead heads"
 The last speaker of the evening was Arthur Reed Kimball. whose subject was Looking Backward" Mir Kimball severely criticised those men in town who threw cold water on the Y. NJ. C. 4. when it was in its infancy and endeayored to ham, per its grow h. ''I only wish they were here this evening to gaze on these clean cut young men, to be- hold such a gathering. and to heaI what the association has done for the past few years" In closing Mir Kimball paid a glowing tribute to Secretary Ross.
 The committee Of arrangements follows: l.. F. Fitzsimons. F. ]. Erbe. R. r.. Platt. Levi Wilcox. c. M Warner H Curtfz P . Ross