Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1911-03-05
OPPOSITION TO ATHLETICS
University of Chicago Gives Its Rea-
son for Being Against Them.
HYSTERIA REACHES EXTREln
Too Much Specializing I'm Athletics
and Too little Time Given over
10 study by Members of
the Team.

CHICAGO, March A--Our Opposition TO
Athletics is the title OF an article in the
college daily OF Chicago university, which
has some Of the best performers in all
lines Of sport in the country, thus tending
to make the objections all the more re-
markable. In a desire to make its posi-
ton clear on the proposition, the Daily
Maroon states that II is opposed to inter
collegiate athletics as they are conducted
at present on the same grounds that II
is opposed to an entire system Of student
activities that has made the academic side
OF college education a mere incident.
The wild hysteria OF over-organization
in student activities" says The Daily Ma
room, has reached its widest extreme in
athletics. And conditions have come 70 the
point where college students must once
more be reminded that colleges exist pri-
marily for the purpose OF training tbs
mind and that other activities are OF bene-
fit only insofar as they further that pur-
pose. Otherwise hundreds Of thousands
OF parents are annually squandering
their money and thousands Of educators
are wasting their time. The issue must
be faced. Nowhere Is remedy more neces-
sary than In athletics.
Not even the most enthusiastic sup
porter Of intercollegiate athletics can as
sert that 1t Is genuinely a student activ-
ity. II consists IN ensnaring into college
by spectacular methods students who have
already established records In preparatory
schools Little attempt Is made to conceal
the fact that these students enter the
university largely because OF the oppOr-
tunity OF exercising their athletic proves.
"One per cent OF the student body spe-
eializes in athletics, supposedly represent
ing the student body. while the other 80
per cent sits on the bleachers and gives
vent TO primitive shrieks
Can anybody maintain that athletes
can even make a pretense az studying
when they are kept out on the athletic
field from o'clock to and 5 o'clock At
night2
No Time TO stady.
"Can a student. rising from a hastily
eaten meal at $50 in the evening. be ex-
| peeted 70 put forth any serious intellectual
efforts when he has been battered around
on a foot BAH field for four or five hours?
In addition. too much athletic special
/ ization for eight ysars-from the first year
in high school to the last year in the
university-must and does necessarily re-
I act unfavorsbly on a mans physique. II
l aLAAeuca were participated IN 30 beueA't-ll4
| by the student body that no small body
/ OF men would have to work from OetobeI
to June. we could say that We have sane
athletics. but not until then And never
viii that happen until the insane desire
for victory and championship is eliminated
And never viii that come until We do
away with intercollegiate athletics and
adopt something similar TO the English
system.
Athletics is today too much OF a bust
ness. It's only object Is victory. Tn,
student cheers his team as long a. Il Il
J victorious. Captain Stsffsn's champion
ship team fought not BIT harder thres
/ years ago than did Captain CraWley-s team
last year. But last year there happened 70
be another team that was better than
Chicag0's. while three years ago there va
none Was Crawley given q gold watch:
Were the members OF the team glorifiedl
Why not2 Had they not fought so gal
lantIy for Chicago3 Did they ever quit
1t was simply beeauss they did MOI
win. because they did not come back
with the spoils- Such an attitude cannot
but react upon the entire student body
and such an attitude can only result N
intoxicating IN the minds o. young people
/ In the formative stage q philosophy thai
giorifies material returns a. an end. ir.
respective OF the means-that means gel
the gOodA'