Evening star., 1914-01-26
SCHOOL LEAGUE
SHOULD PROSPER.
The Basket Ball Organization
Seems to Be in for Its Most
Successful Season.
TWO LOCAL BOYS MAY
MAKE G. u. RELAY TEAM
Young and Jones Stand Excellent
Chance to Be Members of Blue
and Gray Four.
BY H. c. BYRD.

BY H. C. BYRD.
Some mighty good competition wili be
seen in the Scholastic Basket Ball
League this season. il the games pla yed
so far are to be taken as a criterion.
At least three OF the teams appear to
be stronger than ordinary. and the two
others are capable enough to make the
running close in any OF the contests.
Business. Cathedral and Army and
Navy Prep schools seem 10 possess the
strongest quints. with Eastern and
Western coming in the order named.
OF course. it is too early 10 predict
championship winner. hut il will be
very surprising if Business. Cathedral
or tn" y. and y. Prep does not get the
honor. These three teams seem to be
somewhat above the average of the
others, though Eastern and Western
have been developing rapidly. and may
come in for large share of the hon
orS. The strength of the PREP. has
been recognized for the last two sea-
sons. and it was fef they would place
STRONG combination on the floor.
Western is now stronger by the acaui-
sition of two of the best players of last
years quint. and it compelled Business to
go a its best last Friday to win. Eastern
has proved itself of sufficient strength to
OF its games.
These factors seem to Indicate that
the league will have its most prosperous
season. With two teams which are
strong enough to give the others hard
game at any time, and which may spr ng
surprises. and three other well miatcned
and capable aggregations. some fine COM
petition should he the result, which ought
to keep up and stimulate local and gem
eral interest.
There seems to be little doubt that it is
only question Of time before the col
iese base ball players Will be allowed to
play summer ball There is a growing
tendency among the larger insttut ons to
pass rule abrogating that which now
exists relative to the ban on men re-
ceiving money for their services during
the vacation Just as soon as the big
universities pass such 4 ruling, all the
bans which have ever been placed on the
colleglans taking part in the sport IN the
summer time will be lifted. AS a matter
OF fact. there are few of the smaller col
leges which refuse their students the
privilege OF making little money by be-
coming members of semi-pro teams
whenever they have the opportunity, and
IN many OF the colleges where rules
against such participation exist they are
almost completely ignored
So strong are the leading authorities
IN some of the universities coming out
Tor the doing away with the ban on
the practice that there will be little
opposition left after while. Those
high in the base ball affairs of Penn
sylvania, Princeton, Harvard and Yale
have come out tlatfooted with state
ments that they can see no harm in a
man making little money in the sum
mer out of his ability to play ball. if
he can lind "A way. Rhodes. captain of
the Princeton team, strikes the nail on
the head with the following:
Il am heartily in favor of permitting
a man TO play ball in the summer if
he wants to. If a man is trying to
get through college and has ability as
a ball player | fail to see any reason
why he should not turn that ability to
good account. | cannot see why a man
whose talent runs TO base ball should
not help himself through college by
using that talent just as well as a man
whose abilities are more scholastic
and who earns money by tutoring.
i realize. of course. that the system
may be Very easily abused. But
don't think if man is a bona fide
member OF 4 university and plays sum-
ner ball with the cognizance and con-
sent of that university. it would tend
To debasc college ball in any way. At
least it would be fair and open. which
is more than can be said Of the pres
ent system.
There are likely 10 be two local boys
on the Georgetown relay team this year
Brent Young and Edmund Jones. The
former has been member of local attn
letic club teams for years. while the
latter WAS the star of the Western High
squad last winter and spring. Both are
Very capable. Young ran III the individ-
ual events for Georgetown last season.
not being abole To make :. place on the
relay quartet in competition with such
men as those who composed the Blue and
Gray four 1T that time. Jones was good
enough last season ls 4 men.Der Of a
scholastic four for any college lSgrega-
Gon in this section and this winter
should develop into an even more capable
performer. These two seem fairly certain
of their places on the team. though they
viii have t" win them in the trial next
SUNDAY. StebbinS is sure to get his place
there being no faster quarter-miler in the
south than he. With three places almost
certain il is very questionable as to who
McNulty is favored. Mclaughlin and
Nelser ale two prominent candidates,
though. and either Of them may make
good.
There Will be a great deal more interest
in GeorgetnMn's relay four if Jones and
Young max. good than has been the case
in Il long while. Local boys have not fea-
tured very prominently on the Blue and
Gray uCartets III recent years. and that
there are likely to be TWO such members
This season viii siv. added interest in its
accom- ,,iishmentS
Georgetown is going 10 have a fast
q quartet the boards tnlS winter, nut
IL Will hardly come up to the standard
of that which was turned out year
ago. The four who wore the Blue and
Gray last winter We're exceptionally
fast three Of the men being better
than any other quarter-mile performer
in this section. Jones viii be able to
take the place OF one of these bus il
will be a very difficult matter to de-
velop a man to lake the position left
vacant by the retirement of liorter. who
was undoubtedly the best lead-off man
in the country in an indoor mile race.
Jones is sprinter primarily. and he
may fill the bill TO . certain degree but
1t is questionable if even he will be
as capable as was the man mentioned
Virginia and Washington and Lee
are coming in for honors in basket
ball this winter. These two teams
though il must be remembered that
the majority of their playing has been
done on their own floors. which gives
them big advantage and really ena-
bles them to show exceedingly well.
1t seems to be the consensus of opin
ion that Virginia has one of the
strongest quints in its history. while
the Washington and Lee five is also
going at great gait If these two
teams get together the game would
be worth seeing. as they are made up
of big. powerful fellows who play the
game for all there is in it. 1t was
thought at the start of the season that
Georgetown would be i'm the running
for the title. but it has failed to come