New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-11-23
AUTO POLO SOME GAME
peion of Horse Now Threatened
in Another Field.
THRILLS ENOUGH FOR ALL
you Snort Receives an Official
Trial in Hot Contest on
the Hilltop.

..,.-o,s = new game in town. They call
ITO polo. and it's some thriller, as all
80 attended a private exhibition at
.-;oan League Park yesterday after
A.'.'' IAN testify. The game will be seri-
| W. ,n,roduced TO New Workers at Madi-
SQUARE Garden on December . and
.i,h matinee and evening performances.
iii also be seen there from December
& TO g, inclusive.
,n,o nolo. as the name implies, is polo
- automobiles instead Of horses. Only
r,acbines are used-one on each side
"a the number is quite sufficient
g.. ears would be in the way. Cars
- manned by two persons each-one to
10, and the other to WELD the mallet
- ears are Of the runabout type,
..,,,,ed down TO the chassis, with a run
,,rs hoard on the side and hoop-like
.or.r,vance Immediately back Of the seat
~, boop Is quite necessary, and II plays
a. mar, when tie car turns over. II IT
EN-, for the hoop there wouldn't be any
.n,o rolo: players would be put out OF
-.r,r,ission faster than they could be
engaged.
The man who does the playing STANDS
a, the running board. or, when the OPP
,o-,unity affords. takes his seat along
- the driver. Little time is found for
citing The mallet used is shorter than
The regulation polo mallet and weighs a
rife more than two pounds. When the
game begins, the opposing automooiles
start from Immediately between their
sosI posts. and at a given signal dash
sor the centre Of the field, where the ball
has been placed by the referee. This bal
"a made Of leather and is "a tTitte smaller
Than the usual basket ball
The game is portioned Off. 80 I'VE ten
minute periods, and as time IS taken out
,or accidents the spectators are insured
fifty minutes OF actual playing, and that
means fifty minutes of excitement. Points.
ar goals are scored when the ball Is
driven between the goal posts. The game
Yesterday. because Of the lateness in get
ting started. was limited TO three periods,
and II hadn't been under way but a few
seconds before the spectators were in an
uproar. With the signal the cars jumped
forward Ike things Of life and went
laundering toward each other head or.
During the few brief seconds taken Tor
the cars TO cover the intervening space
every one held his breath in anticipation
Of the crash that seemed inevitable. The
cars reached the objective point almost
simultaneously and the drivers sWerved
lust enough TO clear and give the players
chance 10 WELD their mallets. The
way il Aras done excited the admiration of
all AoSterling drove one car. with Jack
Jackson handling the mallet, while the
opposltion crew consisted Of Ross King
and CLYDE Ferreter, the last named doing
the playing. "
The maneuvring in rushing, blocking
and dribbling calls for skill. In fact, par
ticipation in the game, as one who tried
Il later in the day declared, demanded
skin to escape the thousand and enc dan
gerous situations. though the latter were
forgotten In the excitement Of the con-
fict. while the general sensation Of dart
ing hither and thither-now forward, now
backward-and then swerving round on
two wheels, was delightfully."- thrilling.
The real excitement came toward the
end Of the first period, when Kings car,
in attempting too sharp a turn, rolled
over on its side. In some seemingly MI
raculous fashion the men escaped unin-
jured, and in a trice had their car upright
and of again full of fight. When about
10 start the last period an accident oc-
cured to a tire on Sterling's machine. He
was at the far end Of the field at the
time, but it required only four and half
TO replace the old shoe with
new one. When it was all over sterlings
team had won by goals TO 7.
The game was first introduced In the
West short time ago, and at once be-
came popular in such places as Kansas
City, Des Moines, Wichita, St. Joseph,
Lincoln and Detroit IL was at the latter
city that William Poth, connected with
the Garden Athletic Club, first saw auto
polo. In fact, he made a special trip from
New York there to see for himself. He
at once became enthusiastic. and 1t was
a. his suggestion that r. F. Marine and
r. A. Hankanson. the originators Of auto
polo. we're induced TO come East. They
ray that the game will be at least 80 per
cent faster in the Garden than II was on
the grass yesterday. for the reason that
the cars will start and turn quicker. be-
SIDES giving the contestants a chance to
play the ball of the side walls at all
sorts of angles