The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1911-12-26

door DaSeDaH and basketball were dD-
solutely unknown. except, of course,
by persons who had seen them in the
United States.
And how did these games take. do
you ask? It is too early to know
definitely, of course, but I believe l
can say that basketball is here to
stay for all time. We have been play
ing only few weeks, and there has
been nobody to coach and arouse en-
thusiasm but your humble servant,
but In spite of that we have three or
four teams that could hold their own
with P. H. S. I have never seen boys
at home learn basketball as readily as
these chaps have learned, and I have
never seen our boys play with greater
gusto than that shown by Peruvian
boys. With baseball It is a little diff
ferent. This game is so unlike any
other that they have ever played. so
much more complicated, has so many
more fine points. that the learning is
a bit slower. Nevertheless, belive
the game will become rooted and
thrive In this soil.
THE GAMES ARE SIMILAR.
Basketball is. I believe, really
founded on American football. and for
that reason Is easily understood by
the boys here, who are all now more
or less familiar with Soccer. The
girls also are learning basketball. I
have translated, or rather adapted,
the rules for these two games to the
conditions here, and have published
them in a little pamphlet together
with some suggestions with regard to
learning to play. But it sounds queer
20 say something else when you really
mean fair hit or strike three and
out" 1t will be necessary, I think. to
learn English in order to appreciate
baseball to the full The use Of Span
ish expressions for basketball doesn't
seem to mutilate quite so much the
real idea.
Our school year is just coming to a
close. and in order to round out the
athletic activities we are going into
boy win try to beat a standard, and in
which the average records will form
the basis for determining which is the
school that has gotten the best results
from these exercises. There will be
three classes. First, boys under 20
pounds; second, boys between 70 and
g. pounds. and, third, boys above 90
pounds. Each boy in each class will
do three stunts and the stunts and the
stanra-ds set for each are as follows:
Ginning: Boys of the first class,
times. Of the second class times. and
Of the third class times. Standing
broad jump: 1.5o, 10 and 100
meters, respectively. Sprinting: so
meters in 2-5 seconds, so meters in
II 3-5 seconds for each class, respec=
tf7'ely. I propose that ypu change
these measures to feet and yards in
order to test your knowledge of
arithmetic and in order to make com
Parsons the more readily with your
own records. / am quite sure that
home boys could clean up the Peruv-
IT, - 4,
have had very little training along
this liIe. They have never had such
strong motives for preparation as you
have had on the occasions of your
tract. meets with P. c. S. out in
Ilurfrian's park.
TIME TO ATHLETICS.
You will probably say after all this
talk about athletics, We'll, if an
American Inspector in Peru isn't al
ways astrioe q mule seeing the coun-
try, why then he is occupied in pro-
noting athletics, and that is just as
agreeable" But you would be mis-
taken again. It is very true that I
have given a good deal of time to
athletics this year but it would not
be exactly correct to say that this IS
all fun nor that there have been no
other p;atters to occupy my atten-
ton. Yes, / have had other things to
do and other affairs to occupy my at
tention, some of which were interest
ing enough. others Indifferent, and
others positively disagreeable, just as
could be the case anywhere else in the
world. But am not going to talk
any longer about what l have done
nor W hat I am going to do, for want
to say i'll conclusion just a word about
what you ought to do, what some OF
you at least will undoubtedly do in
the future.
The CANAL OPENING.
It is this: You have certainly heard
a great deal about the new life that is
to come with the opening of the
the dreams of all the dreamers will
come true. for they are very many
and some of them are very wild. But
/ think we can safely say that not
only Pensacola and Mobile and New
Orleans are going to be affected by
the canal. but the whole gulf country,
Central America and the whole west
coast of the two Americas. And the
influence will not stop there. The
whole American nation will be affect
ed and is already being affected
tremendously in every way. 1t isn't
putting 1t too strong. l think, to say
that the whole world will be ap-
probably influenced by the Panama
canal. New trade waters will be
RESOURCES OtN6lOp-
ed, closer economic, social and
political relations brought about,
especially between the United States
and Latin America.
What are you going to do about it?
You who are still in school are not
going to do very much toward putting
Pensacola on one of the great
thoroughfares that will cross at
Panama. You will leave that for your
elders. But there is something that
you can do. You can keep your eyes
open, you can watch the march of
events, and above all you can prepare
yourselves, you can be ready for the
opportunities that will surely come
with the opening of the canal.
MORE INTIMATE RELATIONS.
The more intimate relations between
the United States and Latin America
Will demand host of young people
who know the Spanish language for
Office work, for statesmen, etc. These
young people will be the ones who
will possess this field in the years to
come. If there were to be establish
ed IN Pensacola today a commercial
house whose business was to be prin-
cipaliy with the South American re-
publics, where would the employees