The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-11-27
UNFAIR TACTICS
BY WINNING TEAM
Democrat Says Des Moines Fouled
and Knocked Out Some of Fort
Madison's Best Men at
the Start.
BIG NEGRO DID BUSINESS
Fort Madison Had No Good Substi-
tutes to Replace Disabled Men
White Men Played
BIG NEGRO DID BUSINESS

Fort Madison Democrat: Fort
Madison's chances for high school
state football championship were
effectually sluelched at Athletic field
Saturday, but it was whole lot bet
ter game than the score indicated.
In the last quarter the team was
50 weakened that forty-two scores
were piled up by Des Moines simply
finding the ball time after time right
in their hands through a tumble by
the worn out, weakened subs who
were "all in
Des Moines won through a success
sion of the most unlucky fumbles
ever seen. The North Des Moines
players themselves admitted this.
Fort Madison. SO close to a touch.
down in the first quarter that the
tumble which lost the ball really
hurt, seemed to lose nerve, and why
Our team can take a licking grace
fully, but 1t is true that the Des
Moines players used unfair tactics
and managed to put the five best
players out Of commission during the
first half. This was possible through
the efforts of big negro player who
looked som ething larger and more
powerful than Jack johnson and
came down the field like a British
tank. This colored man himself,
voluntarily confessed to unfair play
ing at the reception Saturday even
ing and apologized to the local team,
saying that he had never played such
| football before and never would
again.
Des Mofnes would have won, in all
probability, as they had at least three
men who were extremely fast on
their feet-too fast for anyone on
the Fort Madison team unless pos
sibIy Young. and he was knocked out
along with all other stars who were
carefully selected for slaughter.
Des Moines could not for a minute
hold Fort Madison when it came to
plunges through the line, and Fort
Madison could not hold Des Moines
when it came to open field running.
Everything being fair, Fort Madison
should have scored at least twice, in
spite of the rottenest luck the team
has ever run up against in the mat
ter of forward passes or open play.
The white members of the Des
Mofnes team were fair, square play
ers and their captain as fair as the
captain of the Fort Madison team.
which is as high a compliment as a
player could wish.
The score should have been close,
played according to rules, but Fort
Madison is grateful to Des Moines
for the opportunity and will endeavor
next year to make good the defeat
in a fair and square manner.
We take the Des Moines players
statement for the unfair tactics and
remarkable luck which they had in
the game and their coach's statement
that II the game were played over
again the score would have been
much closer.
Fort Madison had no chance after
the big colored player with some as
sistance systematically laid out our
best players and we had no reserve
to draw upon as had Des Moines.
They were able to put in an equally
good player every time a man was
tired or collapsed.
But take the team as a. whole they
were fine boys and we believe they
were as superior to our boys on foot
work as our boys were to them on
going through the line. They were
heavier and faster and we cannot
claim that this years team would
have defeated them even with luck