Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1909-10-29
GOODS MUST TAKE
REGULAR EXERCISE
WOMEN STUDENTS AT U. OF W.
ARE NOT EXCUSED FROM
PHYSICAL TRAINING.
BADGER GIRLS THE HEALTHlESf.
Appointment of DR.. Helen Dobson as
Medical Examiner Means Fewer
Feminine NERVES"
GYMNASIUM WORK AIDS BRAIN.

MADISON, Wis, Oct 23.-Over
1000 women have entered the Universe
ty of Wisconsin this year, and none viii
be excused from physical training. SO
the big gymnasium, the swimming pool
and the game rooms of the new women's
building. Lathrop hall, will be fully util-
lied.
heretofore physical training has been
compulsory for the freshmen and sophie
more alone, who numbered something
like 800 last year. This year the new
medical examiner for women, DR.. } Hell
en- Dobson, is making a special physical
examination of every woman enrolled IN
university work, and no one is excepted
in the rule that physical training OF
some sort must be taken, regardless OF
former training or of illness or other
seeming disability.
No One Excused from Training.
mo woman is too i'll or incapacitated
to take care of her health, SAID Df:
Dobson, discussing the plans for physical
training for the year. I'VE expect TO
take every woman in the university,
whether she has ever done any physical
work or not, and suit her exercises to
her needs. These first weeks have de-
voted to the examination OF hearts ana
lungs chiefly, and l have found but one
girl of them all who will not be able TO
take gymnastic work in some form. Inc
exercise of climbing the hill to classes IS
all that she can do in the way OF physlcal
effort but even she must conform TO III
structons | have given her. to increase
her health and strength.
To Do Much Corrective Work.
Every woman in the institution IS
thus to be held responsible for her phys
ical condition, and will be assisted III
taking proper care OF her health. we
have special apparatus for corrective
work which will be installed in a room
on the fourth floor of Lathrop hall, when
the suite of three rooms set aside Tor
the purpose is completed.
One room will be given TO the exam
nation of eyes, ears, noses ana thfOats@
since many of the difficulties of students
can be traced directly to Deficiencies OF
those organs, many of the headaches and
backaches being purely matters OF eye
strain. A third room will be fitted with
cots as a rest room Tor those VINO
have been taking the special exercises,
and will have a bath connected with 1t.
I'VE do not get the gross deformities
here that need plaster jackets and the
more strenuous treatments. The class OF
women who enter the university in Wis
c0nsin are far stronger and III better
health, Oh the average, than those III
the colleges of large cities with more con-
gested districts, such as Philadelphia.
The Wisconsin women have strong
hearts, their lungs are fuller and better
and they are more used to deep breath
ing, which, of course, has its effect upol
their general health.
Need Exercise for Balance.
Some of the young women who come
to us think that, because they are not
sick, and have. always had fairly good
health, they do not need gymnasium
work, and that they will be wasting val
liable time that might be put on their
books. Many parents, too, seem to think
that the aim of the gymnasium work is
to make herculean women, to build mus
Gle merely. The fact really is that we
are working to give the student the eX-
ercise physically that she needs to bal
ance her mental work, to help her to re-
tain the health she brings with her,
which would quickly be lost if she con-
fined herself to her studies entirely.
Many of the girls who come here,
too though they may be strong and we'll,
an immense amount of energy and
strength on little things unnecessarily,
and have no reserve for emergencies.
The woman who can not run for a car
without getting all out Of breath has not
the physical control she needs, nor has
the woman who gets a side ache from
walking fast, or the one who is tired out
from climbing short hill. We lay far
more emphasis on physical control than
on physical development.
THE gymnasium is to be finely
equipped, with all of the regular APP
paratus for physical training and de-
vel0pment, q good running track above
and sufficient shower baths, lockers and
dressing rooms to accommodate all the
women who will use the gymnasium and
swimming pool. In addition there have
just been completed four new tennis
courts and a wonen's hockey field, in
addition to the three courts west Of
Lathrop hall and the outdoor basket
ball court south Of Chadbourne han.
Thus the work of training both in
gymnasium activities and in the sports,
indoor and outdoor is we'll provided
for"
Experience in Training Women.
In appointing DR.. Dobson to the newly
created post of medical examiners OF
women, the regents of the university
| added very materially to the strength
Of the department of physical training.
Hitherto it has been impossible to give
the girls of the student body the close
supervision and constant opportunity for
medical advice and assistance, which in
many eases, was necessary. Now, how
ever. every girl in the university is
given such attention by graduate
physician of large experience in both
hospital and gymnasium work.
| DR.. Dobson graduated from the Sar-
gent School Of Physical Education at
Springfield, Mass, in 1900, and from the
! Woman's Medical college in Philadel-
phia in 1905 where for four years she
had been director of the gymnasium
For the past year she has been resident
physician in the hospital Of that insti-
tuition, and has also been connected re-
Gently with the central dispensary and
/ emergency hOsnital AT Washington d.
c.. and with the National Florence Crit
tenden home there. For four years she
was at the head of the physical training
| department for the young women in