New-York tribune., 1908-02-04
ZONES OF ANBIlION.

The action lust taken by the president and
trustees of Williams College limiting the sphere
of activity within which the strong young men
of that institution may display their proWess
is q happy compromise between the tdiSSeS
faire policy Of many colleges and the anti-ath-
letic exceSSes Of q few auStere institutions. The
compromise provides that after January 1. 1909.
no athletic contest shall be permitted with any
college more than two hundred miles from
WiIliamstown and that. except in case Of a tie.
there shall be no more than two contests in any
one sport with any other one institution.
Obviously this enactment has been prompted
by no narrow minded hostility toward sports
1t is a thoroughly sane attempt 10 protect clean
athletics against the eXceSSes OF It's lmnatufe
friends BOundleSs ambition. the parent OF pro-
fesSionaliSm, is the greatest vice or college
spUrtsmen AS their enthusiasm for out-of-door
games knows no limit, so they always crave new
schools to conquer. The love of travel nat
uralIy heightens this passion. and if older heads
were not sometimes able TO manage the purse
strings we might see brawny delegations headed
for the antipodes during the Christmas recess
AS il is plans are already maturing TO send
college baseball team on tour through South
America next summer. That there is nothing
exceptional In such extravagances appears from
the report of the Williams athletic committee:
The tendencies thus agitating the educators
of New England have developed at Williams
College during the last eight years as follows:
Four hundred and fifty-SiX intercollegiate con-
tests nave been waged yearly average OF 81.
or more than for each week of the college
wear. of which not more than ofe-haH were con-
Quoted in WilliamstoWn. OF 221 contests out
side OF WiliamstoWn, les Were elsewhere IN
Massachusetts, 5S elsewhere in New Eng
land AZ in New York State and II in other
states including the West and South. From
1898 to 1907 the total expenditures exceeded
$94, 900, provided out = Of receipts exceeding
s1O5O00 or about $4,000 a year. The average
annual distribution of contests % in base
ball, IS in basketball II In football. and 8 in
track athletics; and in the eight classes 1900
'07 the average annual number of contestants
was twenty three, including fourteen Wearers of
the w The number OF contestants has been
insignificant in comparison with the number of
students in attendance 10 witness the contests
and cheer their champions; and much
time and attention have been given to prepara-
tcn and review as to the several events
Most of the larger colleges, especially those
in the Middle West, can show far striking
statistics. iu guise whatsoever can the de-
fence be made that contests with distant rivals
make for the physical moral webeing Of
either the participants oil the "rooters" who
devotedly trail their teams all over the CONT
Dent. 1t is notorious that to the unreasonable
time and expense which such adventures in
vove there is added neral danger for gam,
bling and other improprieties are most freely
INDUCED in at distant points. The plea that
spectacular junkets advertise the college has