South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1919-03-02
SPORTS

The sport world. in the passing of
Theodore Roosevelt. has lost an en-
.thusiastic. endorsing and promoting
friend. He was an advocate OF
clean, manly sports. especially did
this apply to the open. An active
partici pant in outdoor athletics of
an kinds, he was supremacy happy
when occupying a ringside seat or
when engaged in a friendly bout,
demonstrating the art of self-de-
Tense. With him it was a give and
take proposition, accepting and
handing out the best he had in the
box The most skilled boxer was
the one usually selected as his ad-
versary; he was disposed TO over
match himself IL was In a social
boxing bout with Mike Donovan, a
noted boxing instructor, that he lost
the sight Of one eye. From his youth
he of necessity espoused athletic
sports in almost every line. thus
building up into a robust specIman
OF manhood. from the frail structure
OF childhood. by attention 10 out
door athletics.
Lawn tennis was one sport upon
which he specialized. When presi-
dent his lawn TERMS cabinet" at
the White house became famous
Two of his leading lights were Maj
Gems j. Franklin Bell and Leonard
Wood, the game was always agrees
sive from the first call OF play"
He was a football fan. never missing
game il was possible for him to
attend. West Point-Annapolis, Har-
ward Yale. were always on his date
book. His preference and wishes
We're at all times controlled by his
alma mater affiliations. At one
period football was drifting into dis
repute. principally due TO rough
tactics. A meeting OF the football
/ lights of accredited colleges was
called at the White house i'm the fall
Of 1905. Requests and suggestions
then offered were not adopted and
/ football was threatened with being
tossed into the discard 1t was res
cued by DR.. MacCracken, chancellor
of the New York university the fol-
/ lowing year. Col. Roosevelt was
classed by those who know as an all
around athlete, an acknowledged ex-
pert in football, tennis, wrestling.
/ boxing. hunting, shooting and rid
\ ing EIe was not an artistic strad-
| der OF broncOs, but was there with
the seat and acquired a ranch repu-
tation as first class wrangler and
pony buster. Many a pinto has
gone up into midair. under the cow
/ boy president, alighting stiff legged.
expecting the saddle occupant TO sail
into space like a flying squirrel, the
\ aforesaid pony to be awakened upon
/ lighting by a cowboy whoop. a
Tightening Of the reins, setting OF
I the rOwels. followed by a caressing
of the TANKS with the coloneTs tan
IcOlored Stetson. As expressed to me
\ by one of his "sour-dough" ac-
quaintances. "He was not a purity
rider, but a hell of a good rider"
\ At an early age he acquired a single
barrel gun and essayed the roll of
I hunter. HIS boy friends could To-
cate game which the colonel could
I not see, thus missing many oppOr-
tunities to bag. 1t was discovered
that there was q defective vision and
/ glasses adjusted, which were always
/ a necessity. We were discussing
trap and large game shooting at one
time in Washington. The president
then told me his glasses had on
many occasions been his alibi for
Rum shots made, due to the fact
causing what is known as cross fire.