Greenbrier independent. [volume] (Lewisburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1980, 1919-12-26
IS ANCIENT CAME
Football One of Oldest Sports
Known to Man.
Az Played Today It Is Said to Be 4
Mild and Tame Exercise Com
pared With the Strenuous
Original Form.

Original Form.
Football is considered q strenuous
game. but the style OF play in this
generation is mild and tame exercise
as compared to the original forms Of
the sport. according to a bulletin from
the National Geographic society.
Ihe history OF the autumn classic
Is described by J. r. Hildebrand in
communication to the society, which
follows:
Running. throwing. hitting and
kicking are the fundamental muscu-
lar operations Of Americas charac-
teristic sports, baseball. football. ten.
MS and golf. The peoples of antiquity
manifested NIL those instincts in cruder
form.
"Iuzon hillmcn. the Polynesians
and the Eskimo and Sumatra islanders
had games played by kicking ball.
Greeks played it. and the Roman
game. harpastum. derived its name
from the Greek 4 seize which is evil
dence that carrying the ball was prac-
ticcd by them. With shoes of hide, the
medieval Italians played game which
seems the direct ancestor of the Anglo.
StHon college sport. Gaelic scholars
point to Il football game In Ireland De-
fore the time of Christ. and until COM
pnratively recent times Shrove Tues
day was rs diStlnctively an octaSiOn
for football as is our Thanksgiving to-
dry.
I'm old England football was even
rorgher than most sports OF those
harry times. James thought 1t was
'mee,cr for lameing than making able
theuscrs thereof" Henry VIII and
Elizabeth ruled against It. Edward
II frowned upon it for Its interfer-
ence with archery and also because
OF the commotion 1t caused. In
those times it was played In the city
streets. A writer OF the sixteenth
century called it 'devilish pastime'
and charged it with melting envy
and sometimes brawling, murthcr and
homicide
Nevertheless. by the time Of
Charles II football had become fairly
established at Cambridge. 1t was
ever held in high esteem in Ireland.
There, when all other sports were
prohibited for archery's sake, 'onely
the great footballc' was exempt.
Women Joined with the men in play
Ing 1t on Shrove Tuesdays. SO many
that few knew the
whei eabouts Of the ball. An expedi-
cnt which not so long ago aroused
a furorc in the American sporting
world was adopted by player who
shook out the shayings with which
the balls OF those days were stuffed
end carried II under his shirt to the
goal.
abandoned rs general pastime
because OF Its r0ughneSs, 1t WAS re-
tatned in colleges until, within the
past half century, it sprang into re-
ncwcd popularity in greatly modified
form.
The British carried football into
Jerusalem. when they recovered the
sacred city. Missionaries have taught
II to heather tribes.
'Ti'e reason why it has become
popular among college men Of Amer
lea was summarized by Howard s
Bliss. writing about the Syrian Protest
ant college at Beirut, Of which he
was president in an article for the
National Geographic Magazine.
".You will find the son OF prince
playing football under the captaincy
Of II peasant or the son Of q cook.
We believe in football there and we
have IT or Is different football teams
in college. The game develops the
ability tn receive a hard blow
without showing the white feather or
drawing Il dagger. This means that
when the men get out Of college they
will stand upon their feet rs men,"