New-York tribune., 1911-02-16
PROFESSOR EcWARo HITCHCOCK

PROFESSOR EENAhD nl'tf7SOSN'
an,herst. Mas. FeN -. AMHERST Coz
lege lost the o,cCst non7,er of her facflty
both in ynars'ani Iens.h o. service When
Dr. Edward Hitchcock professor Of ny
C.eno and rhySi, a. education f-r ffty years,
Giod a, his home in this fowr carly to-
dsv. aged cightr-;h-ec yeas.
The most tho AVERAGE pioneer can sx-
l.Act 20 sec is ;-e very earliest growth of
his work but pr Edward Hitchcock. OF
Amherst College. had the happy privilege
Of lrouing that TO-DAY the fut Of his
fifty years work and patience Is helping
humanity all over the country. Few men
can hope fer more than this few deserve
IL more than Or. Hitchcock did
Living in Amherst. and running Mid on
2 DeerHeld farm. where he vas horn in
1925 he grew into vigorous boyhood under
the kindly physical culture of nature.
When he vas graduated. n isi1 from Am
Lerst College he was fred b. the recent
archaeological discoveries Of his fathe-.
President Hitchcock OF Amherst. AND went
to Harvard and abroad in order ia oecom"
a comparative anatorist Returning IN
1888 he tnught physiology for ten years In
Wiliston Academy. Al this time he also
assisted his father in getting out Hitch.
cocks Physiology" once a popular text
book
In 1854 President Stearns OF Amherst Col
lege, assisted by Or. Nathan Allen OF
Lowell. planned a system whereby the stu
dents could have a certain amount OF reg
ular exercise. They built Barrett Gym
nasium at Amherst. a 10 by 70 foot stone
building. and the first actual gymnasium
ever built 10 the United States. This build
ing and the development OF their idea they
placed in the hands Of Or. Hitchcock His
first effort was in the direction Of a daily
required exercise for all the students II
vas the first step In the development OF
physical culture. The air was quivering
with the drumbeat OF the Civil War. and
the boys took hold OF his marching exer-
cises With enthusiasm. From this light
| gymnastic exercise the growth OF the hand
ring and Indian club work vas easy and
rapid and at length Hltchcock's system
| Of compulsory gymnastic exercise was a
reality, and the fame Of Barrett Gym
nasium at Amherst went forth over the
! country.
simultaneously with the beginning Of re-
| auired gymnsstic work DR.. Hitchcock be-
| gan his measurements. which have since
resulted In his famous system OF anthro-
| pometrics. This Is the system now used In
| all the larger schools and colleges where
! measurements Of the students arc taken
/ with the men stripped. the height from the
/ sole OF the foot 70 the top OF the head
being taken as the unit.
| II must not be supposed that Or. Hitch
cock had to do less chopping IN the forest
| Of public prejudice than his fellow plo-
neers. His early efforts toward regular exer-
else we're subject Of jest in the papers and
| "Hjtchcocks gymnastics" were Hitch
| cocks bobby" When he instituted his an
thropometric system shocked protest
against measurements IN the altogether
went up all over ito country. and he was
severely criticised by the prudish spirit Of
the time. In the early seventies he brought
! out in taoulated form his collected statis-
| tics and measurements The result was a
| triumph for both Or. Hitchcock and his
system Of physical culture. Without ques-
| ton his figures showed great gain. both In
/ height and general health. Of all Amherst
! students uho had been under him. He
| hirnself SAYS: Up 10 this time II had
! been an experiment: now the experiment
was successfully finished" The institutions
| interested in Dr. Hitchcock's work gath
cred their representatives together I'm ISL
| and formed the American Association for
the Advancement OF Physical Education
and made the doctor president Because
| the physical culture movement became
pop,IIar 50 rapidly Dr Hitchcock wrote
! little. but he delivered lectures all over the
! country. .,
/ For many Years Dr. Hitchcock had beer
! the nainspring of Amherst College attn
| letics and Il Is through his influence that
| the college possesses a splendid gymnasium IN
| and hospital and one of the finest athleuc
! deIds in the country-all the generous giltS
of F. y. Pratt and e. NJ. Pratt OF Brooh-
! lyn. , IL, -. his
work: -. 49,. .o,,oo.s
! NJ the country are Indebted for demon
| e,ration ot the proper mode Of orea nlZlng
| The DEPARTMENT Of physical culture.