Norwich bulletin., 1918-08-09

made up in others. Indeed, one may say without fear of contradiction that there are many more Americans en- joylnS sport today than at any time in our sport history. What the war has caused us to lose in amateur and professional athletics we have found anew and ten fold in army and navy sport. And as this war continues we will more and more have to look to this new and fertile field for our sport and recreation.
 One need not worry about the decis- ion relative to professional sport being 8 - useless or useful occupation if he looks at sport in a big way. Sport has gained tremendous impetus from the war. More men are playing than ever before and what is vital, men are learning to play who never before knew what sport stood for. The re- suit will be that after this war is over the soldiers and sailors returning will spread the gospel of sport to every nook and corner of the states. This war will lead to a nation that will be physically fit.
 Those who can recall history know that war and athletics have ever gone hand in hand. The Olympic games of the ancient Greeks were carried on for the purpose of fitting the youth of the land for war. Our own Civil War was the father of sport in this country, | especially of baseball. What game, if any, this war will bring to the fore is question.
 To my mind it seems that boxing will be benefited more than any other. Now I do not mean prize ring boxing, but systematic adoption of and wide i spread interest in the scientific side of
 7r Mi raising nas been taught the funda- | mentals of boxing. It has gone more heavily into boxing as recreation and amusement than it has gone into any
 otl4er sport and it has learned that the ] sport is a clean, sport. Fact is, there
 is no more beneficial exercise I put 1 my money on amateur boxing as the l big boom sport of after the war days | Some fifteen years ago our national 1 sports, both amateur and professional
 entered the building period. Stadiums and sport structures of various kinds
 arose on all hands that were built to
 accommodate vast multitudes of peo-
 pie. The effort of every new builder
 we came to the Yale Bowl, erected to
 accommodate some sixty odd thousand
 spectators
 As sport nov goes In our civil life | these large structures are not now al- 1 ways accommodating the crowds they were built for. But other structures are arising in our army camps, built i upon far more economic plans and ot far less pretentious dimensions. The army athletic field is built for use an6 not for spectators. But the spectator is being cared for in proportion to the needs. The army game is to get more
 fold in Sfo dG Hence, small stands, and large athletic fields are the rule The civilian game is apt to get more men in the stands than play the game. There's the diff
 crence in civilian and army sport Int former is commercialized, the latter is of the purest amateur kind We have
 known in America for many years.
 We are actually having an Olympiat renaissance in sport in this country Boys formerly willing to fight only
 when the prize was a purse, and ia
 one at that, are now going through
 series of battles for a camp boxinI f championship, the reward for whicl
 is of no more material value than tn, olive wreath of the ancient Greeks Take it from me, amateur sport ii going to boom and blossom out all owe Yankee land when the boys com
 marching home.
 To return to- the army athletic field Down at San Antonio they are build
 ing one at Kelly Field which look
 good to all of us. It's an example o
 what we are all striving to do in tn camps. They call it a stadium prob
 ably because the Greeks used tha name for their athletic fields, but i l las nothing about it suggesting tn !. stadium as we know it. There is l quarter mile track. two baseball dia