The Pleasantville press., 1912-11-27

the first week of practice it
Is the rule of the players to put
On from eight to ten pounds
apiece; then as the training becomes
more severe they drop back to normal
and remain there throughout the rest
Of the season.
A chart of the weights is kept by
the trainer and by means of it he is
greatly aided in determining the pecu-
liarities of training that he needs to
bring the player to the height of physi-
cal condition and to keep him there
until his last football duty is over. It
Is as important to keep player in
this state as it is to get him into it.
A player who becomes "stale" is as
useless almost on the football field as
the novice.
The weighing in process over, the
players who have sprains and bruises
get over hot or cold water jets, accord
ing to the trainers instructions, and
later on, like their more fortunate fell
lows, stand under hot water shower
baths for two minutes, finish off with
dashes Of cold water, dry themselves
briskly with rough towels, and then go
to the rubbing tables.
Here the men are rubbed thorough
ly, Systematically, strenuously, and
with all the muscular power possible
by the trainer and his assistants. The
massage that one gets in Turkish
bath is merely fy's touch compared
with the torturous kneading that the
player undergoes. Small wonder,
then, at this time sprains and even
bruises on the bones are made to
vanish completely.
Every trainer makes a great mys-
terry of the rubbing material that he
employs Not for a million dollars
would he let its ingredients become
public property, for, be it known,
these ingredients are the only ones
that, mixed, will make bruises disap-
pear as if by magic and cause even
a sadly battered player to rise up from
the rubbing table feeling like a freshly
groomed god. 1t has frequently been
whispered by the cynical that this Sc
cret compound is nearly always moth
ing more than mixture of such COM
mon stuffs as alcohol and witch hazel.
The reply of self-respecting trainer
to such innuendo is to throw more
mystery than ever about the prepara-
tion.
And yet the players have their diver.
sions; thattraineris is unknown who does
not insist on diversions, and sees to
it that they are indulged in, simply
and moderately, OF course.
A great deal Of the amusement is OF
an informal character. With design
aforethought the trainer has a piano
put into the house with the coming
back of the old varsity men and the
best of the scrubs" two weeks before
the opening of college, and he encour-
ages the men to gather about it and
sing their college songs. He also
craftily leads them up to the pool ia.
BILE In an adjoining room, and If he
discovers that some one is an expert
on the mandolin or guitar he diplo-
matically induces it's owner to enter.
tain his mate with their favorite
melodies.
The trainer leads in the joke max
ing; he laughs heartily and long at the
slightest provocations-l Laughter is
contagious. Withal he endeavors to
make every one a good fellow with all
the others. A team of friends can &c
through a line of college beef thai
would stand like stone wall against
the onslaughts of team with mem
bers not on warm terms with one an
other.
Two or three times during the
course of the season the teams are
taken by the trainer to the theater
/ Saturdays game over, those players
the trainer can trust implicitly ani
who live near by are permitted to &c
home for over Sunday, and they usual
ly are accompanied by equally trusted
team mates whose parents live at 9
distance from the college.
Copyright. 1912, by Universal Press Syn
dicate.)