The Washington herald., 1917-07-13
BASEBALL LEADS IN
ATHLETICFATALITIES
2S4 Lives Are Sacrificed in Contest
for Period of Ten Years.

talities in athletic games and deaths
in athletic sports appeared in a re-
cent issue of the New York Medical
Journal. II was written by Robert z.
coughIin, NJ. D., who stated that Si5
lives were sacrificed on the nelds or
athletic sports for q period OF ten
years ending with but not including
the year 1916.
Baseball heads the list with - fa-
talities: football is second with 10;
auto racing third with l2s; boxing
fourth with lB. Seventy-five cyclers
and 81 Jockeys lost their lives: 10
wrestlers perished on the mat: II per-
sons lost their lives playing golf;
were killed at bowling and one died
while playing lawn tennis, Total
deaths collected during 1906 were lest
1910. 2Os: 1915. l5O
There were IS fatalities directly due
TO games and contests during 1906: l2s
during 1910; IS during 1915. During
1905, 1910 and 1915. respectively. there
were the following number OF fatali-
ties in football; D. SS. q. prevailing
injuries being fracture Of the skull.
dislocstion OF the vertebrae broken
neck. internal injury: in baseball. L.
"a, IL; boxing. 5, q 3. prevailing in
juries being overexertion. fracture OF
base OF skull. heart blow.
Deaths by disease during 1896. 1910
and 1915. respectively. were as follows:
Heart disease, s, S. 3; typhoid fever.
4. 6. 2; pneumonia. :. ,. 4: Bright's
disease, S. ?. .; appendicitis. {. l, &;
apoplexy. !, 1, 1; suicide with mental
disease. 2. q, =: meningitis. 9. Q. /;
deaths by disease, but not classified,
Il, g, IS.
49, T,s------ -..AE-a --..--s z-..L.
during 1906 were: Suppurative tonsi-
litis. splenic anemIa. senility: in 1870.
peritonitis, goitre. tabes. hemorrhsEe,
empyema. cancer. insanity. operation,
arteriosclerosis. paralysis. complica-
tions, liver disease. septic wound: in
1915. erysipelas, indigestion, complica-
tions.
In 1915 q athletes at the front lost
their lives in action: Rugby players.
4; all around. 5: football Tlaycrs. .:
golfer. ]: pugilist. /; polo player. 1;
lawn tennis player. l: Crickcter, /:
bicyclist /: various. Is.
Other causes of death not mon
TONED in 1906 were: Gymnastic feats,
}; auto driving, >; hammer throwinC,
bike coasting. handban. polo play
ing. wrestling; in 1910. basketball. 4:
dancing. >; polo playing. =; weight
lifting. 2; tIwn tennis. wrestlAg.
swimming. high kicking. sviators,
.; in 1915. gymnastic stunts. bas-
ketball. lons-distance running. sprint
ing. golf, polo, pole vsulting. motor
cycling, dancing. wrestling
In 1916 there were fifteen deaths
directly due to football In most
cases the victims were members OF
high school. semiprofessionaI and
Iii IL
college player. Two OF the players
suffered broken necks. but a major
iyt died of internal injuries In 1915
four players were Is years or under.
one being only II years old. -Four
were Il years old. while others
ranged to q years. In 1910 nine
were physically Mt college men. ten
were high school and grammar
school boys, while eight Ver occa-
sionsl players Of the game
In 1895 seventeen were high school
players, all immature boys OF Is ~
und1r. Three were physically "a
college men, while the Others were
occasional players.
No brief is necessary in con-
sideratiCn of the subject. as figures
very often speak for themselves"
writes DR. CouEhlin. Accidents will
always happen. but Providence is
always on the side of the physically
Mt. This should he our watchword
in our present crisis more than ever
before. The survival OF the fittast
comes TO the fore again with added
sucEestiveness
Let US have games. athletics.
athletes. baseball. puCiism, goIf,
polo, rowing. swimming. tennis.
cricket. running. sprintinE basket
ball cycling. weight lifting. Vrest-
ling. dancing. skating syiatt-l
stunts. walking jumping. bowling.
all-around performances. even foot
ball, but every means should be used
10 make our young men physically
nj TO survive athletic contests With
out suffering injury 20 their consti-
tutions. In this way we NAV hope
10 make them the ideal soldiers OF
the future.