Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-12-12
SOCCER IS DAWN|NG
IN AMERICAN SPORTS
Less Dangerous and More
Open Foot Ball Becoming
More Popular.


There is every evidence that soccer is
shortly to come into its own at three
big universities at least. The Yale
eleven has already played greater
number Of games this fall than has ever
been the case before. Princeton. al
though not in the Intercollegiate Soccer
League, is developing considerable en-
thusiasm for this sport. And it became
known yesterday that the Harvard attn
letic authorities intend to raise soccer
to the plane of major sports, including
it in the category with foot ball. row
ing. base ball and track. The army VIII
also join the procession at an early
date. So that before very long there -
every reason to believe that this open
foot BAH will be played on all college
campuses.
The Harvard soccer team has already
had a very considerable amount of prac-
tice and is getting more daily on Sol
dier's Field which has usually been L
sort of deserted village at this time
of the year. All that has been changed.
Now there are usually four or five and
sometimes more soccer elevenS kick
ing and drbbling the ball. Instead of
waiting for the spring, WHeh the reg u
lar series of Intercollegiate soccer
games is scheduled, to develop one
team Harvard may be said to have al
the present moment several eleVenS all
highly proficient in this game. And the
Crimson is making no secret of it's In
tcntion and desire to carry off Tie
championship this coming year.
Good for Training.
Not only is soccer being played by the
members of the large squed now can
didates for the soccer H but the
Harvard hockey men have been using it
whereby to get into condition. Many
candidates for the track and gym
teams have also been out in the past
fortnight for the same purpose This
state of affairs will continue until Ia
Christmas holidays. when the game will
probably be allowed to lapse until fair
ly we'll along into the spring, when the
ground will again be in such condition
as to permit further play.
Several leading colleges Will be met
early in the season. and Harvard has
every hope OF defeating them all. Par
ticularly is she DESTROYS of doing now
that it is the intention to further soccer
as a major sport. But there is another
impulse which has had a very consider
able influence on the Crimsons recent de-
cision to put this game on par with all
others.
1t is felt in neutrality-suspicious. by
the students of the undergraduate schools
that the present game of college foot
ball is not for them. nor can 1t he made
so regardless of any changes which may
be made in the rules. They feel. accord
ing to a Harvard senior, that the gravest
defect of modern college athletics is that
they are not playable by properly rep
resentative portion of the university. Ac-
cord.ng to him, what is needed in every
in tIItin a
require very little equipment-thereby
permitting the man of slender means, and
who is not member of varsity squad
to play it-and yet shall develop initiative,
courage. agility and speed. 1t is to soc
Ger. therefore, that the Harvard under
graduates are now looking for this pur-
pose.
Must Be Big.
Take foot ball as it is played today"
said this Harvard man. land what chance
have l got in it?' tThe speaker was
slender man, weighing some l45 pounds
and standing about five feet seven.
They'd get my scalp so quickly in that
game that Id never even know I'd been
the leading figure In the massacre. Yet
| love outdoor sport. SO that by virtue
of my deficiency in weight and size I'm
kept from doing any real athletic work
coils X situated like myself
what We need, then. is a safe and sane
sport that every one of us can play and
enjoy We do not want any elaborate
coaching system or training table. we
Just want to feel that. once we've got our
muscles hardened up by running around,
we can get out and play a hard fast
game without fear of serious injury-and
do this regardless of the weight of the
men against whom We play In game
like soccer a big man has nothing on
his smaller opponent. Speed and courage
are far more in demand than mere brute
strength So that if you are trying to
find a game that every college man or
preparatory schoolboy can play safely
and with profit you've simply got to ad-
nit soccer s claims.
That's why the faculty at Harvard has
given a practically unanimous consent TO
make soccer a major sport. Now that
we've gained their permission We'll be
able to work toward the end we all want
To reach. athletic training in game for
every student regardless of size, weight
and strength of his body or purse. Soccer
I'm glad that Harvard has taken the lead
and initiative in this movement
For General Sport.
DR.. Cecil Herbert Of the Yale University
faculty recently said that the day of SOC
Ger was dawning in America. particularly
for men who were under thirty-five or
forty years of age and wanted some sport
a little more violent than golf. He point
ed out that, provided a mans heart was
in good shape so that he could withstand
the strain of running, there was no rea-
son in the world why a man Of so-called
middle age should not play soccer.
Il believe 1t will be generally admit
ted he said, that team sport is bet
ter than a merely individual one In
any good team game man is developed
to his highest point of individual useful
ness, but with an eye to his taking an
allotted and carefully planned place in
Il machine His initiative is developed
not to the point of selfishness, but to
the better plane of self-denial and eff
facement for a common cause.
"One of the greatest defects of ath-
letics in Notwithstanding only base
balls that far too many people of all
ages are content to be mere spectators
AMI not participants. What they should
seek. instead of watching. is playing the
game. some good. healthy game. Golf
and tennis are all well enough for the
that like base ball. can be almost uni
versally played and at almost all times
of the year. Soccer is the nearest thing
to an all-year-round game that l know
off,
STRIKES AND SPARES. !
The knickerbockers took two games