The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-27
HOCKEY IS FAST COMING ID FRONT
 AS WINTER SPORT Sharing HOnOrs With Skat- ing as Premier Winter SpOrt-COlleges Started
 Movement

New York, December 26.-Riding on the crest of the present skating boom, hockey appears destined to become the premier winter sport throughout the coun- try where either natural artificial ice is available for the game The install lation of artificial rinks in the leading eastern and southern cities has greatly increased interest in the game in these sections while in the north and north west, where low temperatures can be counted upon to provide ice several months each year, hockey is more pop ular than ever before.
 This is due in part to the prominence given the sport by the colleges during the past few seasons. Hockey is now con- sidered the major sport of the winter months at a number of the leading east ern and western universities The sched- ules of the teams are constantly increas- ing at length and importance of games and the players as they are graduated from college continue to play for clubs either amateur or professional. lnterna- tional contests between the leading teams of United States and Canadian colleges or clubs no longer excite special comment, although the interest in the result is keener than ever.
 Sectional, city and intercity leagues are common and there is talk of reviving the famous international professional league, which was in existence for sev- eral years and was finally abandoned because of the long jumps between cities. According to the present plan there will +o he 1oao proposed to group Calumet, Houghton Michigan, Soo, St. Paul and Minneapolis m the western section; Detroit and Cleve- land as the neuclus of the central di- vision, while teams may be placed in Pittsburg, Boston, Providence, New Hav- en and New York, forming an eastern sec ton. It has been suggested that the winning team in each section play round robin tournament at the end of the sea- son for the championship of the United State, the ultimate victor to meet the pest Canadian combination for the cham pionship of the continent.
 The baseball team of Waseda university of Japan will make tour of the United States during the coming summer, play ,ng the leading varsity hines of the Pa cific coast, middle west and the east. Re ports from the land of Nippon are to the effect that the Japanese diamond combn aton will be the strongest that has ever represented the Orient in the baseball field.
 7 Although Mrs. May Sutton Bundy was not ranked among the women tennis play of the country for the season of l915 owing to insufficient data, there is nc question regarding her ability to wield d racquet in championship form. The Ay,,A Ax.tn iv,ta vol holder has just completed a remarkable exhibition of her power to come back after several seasons of court inactivity, by defeating Miss Molla Bjurstedt in series of three matches in little les sthan a month
 Miss Bjurstedt, the Norwegian holder of the American championship for the past season, was ranked first in the list of American women tennis players. In com pleting her tour of the country she faced Mrs. Bundy three times on Pacific coast courts losing two matches out of three; four sets out of seven and B games out of 67. The record of the meeting of these two remarkable women tennis players which speaks for itself, is as follows: November 14 Miss Bjurstedt defeated Mrs. Sutton 10-S, 6-2; November a Mrs. Bundy defeated Miss Bjurstedt 6-1, 6-4: Decem- Der Il Mrs. Bundy defeated Miss Blur stedt 6-3, 1-6, 6-2. The total score of the tiiree matcneS FOLLOWS: MfS. Bundy, matches ?, sets 4, games 30; Miss Blur stedt, matches l, sets ?, games 32
 The long projected national association of professional golfers promises to be- come a reality in the near future. A meeting for the formation of the organ ization will be called shortly after the holidays. at which time committee of three prominent golfers will be appoint ed to draft constitution and rules and to act as in an advisory capacity