The enterprise. [volume] (Harlem, Mont.) 1899-1926, 1912-12-05

siona1ly with col '"'f~SS
lege athletes not only in football but in wrestling
rowing, boxing any other sport.
So to further this specially there is in the
navy regularly organized feet athletic commit
tee composed of five officers. Lieut. S. G. Hooper
of the flagship Connecticut is at the head of it.
This committee exercises a general oversight
over all sports and arTanges dates for regattas
and sporting events Outside the daily participa
ton in sports there four distinct seasons
when Jack is put his mettle so far as athletics
CO. They are when the games are pulled off at
Guantanamo, Newport Bar Harbor and Boston,
when the fleet is together At such times interest
ashore is quite great aboard ship.
If rooters for college games think themselves
the Of infectious enthusiasm it is because
they haven't seen q navy contest. 1t takes a
bunch of jackies, effervescng with the excite
ment of an intership contest to give the former
cards and spades in emotional pyrotechnics, for
the games always vigorously contested the
various ships being represented on the
side lines, bowling encouragement in their own
peculiar fashion.
AS a rule competition in the events is elimina-
tive, the ships first contrasting by divisions in
championships playing each other for fleet cham
pionship.
For the last two years the Connecticut team has
won the football trophy-a wooden football,
gilded.
1t is when the fleet is in southern waters for
aerial target practice that baseball is particularly
enjoyed.
"Then" says Lieutenant Hooper, baseball par
ties are landed each day and the games are as
holly contested those of the major leagues.
The men rabid fans those ashore and
keep as sharp tabs on the official scores as any
landsman. Each evening about o'clock the
scores of the various games in the National and
American leagues are sent from the flagship by
radio.
when it comes to the boat races" says the
chief athletic officer, "the sailor is naturally in
his element and the highly spectacular.
The course is usually between the line of ships
and as the boats skim the waters all tho
men man the rails and cheer their favorite team
to the echo'
For this competition the regular twelve-oared
service cutter of the navy is used that u.s. unless,
sometimes happens, the men of a special ship
get together and buy one of their own. Such
craft is generally termed tailor made" boat
because of it's superior style and finish The
Battenberg cup, presented b. Prince Louis for
the crew races is most desired and all efforts
are bent at winning It. A large number of other
cups have at various times been put up for COM
petition, among them one by August Belmont
Money prizes sometimes offered too, and
ship will sometimes win as much as $4,000 in
purses. One year the Indiana won that sum, and
the Maine $4,000 in special event. three-mi
race, which was pulled off in &c minutes On
the same occasion the marines on the Indiana
purse of So, 900 besides the Dutch challenge
cup.
In Guantanamo also occurs the final bouts to
determine the fleet championships, in boxing
For this the men train industriously as though
they really the white hopes" of the pro-
fessonal GLASS; and in spite Of the fact that their