The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-11-08
MEN, WOMEN
AND THINGS


! Time was when the game played by
Nausicaa and her maiden told about in
Homers odyssey, was species of foot
ball, but like many traditions it fell
down in the face of modern scholarship,
being set down as mere dancing game
in which ball was tossed
Nevertheless the Greeks did indulge
| in an outdoor sport, called by them
| ''harpaston," which bore a close resem-
blance to the Rugby football of today.
1t was developed from three earlier games
of which the names alone have come
down to us, which shows that there is
gradual development in games.
The Romans having a more primitive
game of their own which they called
'follis," eagerly adopted the Greek i'm
provement. Amongst the Romans the
harpastum, derived from Greek word
signifying, 1 seize, evidences the fact
that carrying the ball was permissible
But to stay within the facts the har-
pastum was gym1tsstic game, and
probably played for the most part in
doors.
Now, if anyone thinks there is no pre-
cedent for the revision of football rules
he has another guess coming, for the
first revision of football rules on record
is that ordered by the Emperor Augustus
in % B. C. Now strange to say it was not
to soften the game, but to roughen it,
for Augustus complained that the game
then played was too mild to serve in the
training of the Roman warriors. If he
had lived to see the one which severed
relations between Alabama and Auburn
he would have been satisfied that it had
developed sufficient ferocity.
Empires rise and fan, republics are
born and die, but human nature goes
or forever, and there was a great out
cry because Augustus wanted to put more
pep into football, and a mighty contest
arose among the athletes of the Eternal
City over the new rules and the old,
just as centuries later there was to be
great agitation over R1gby and associa-
ton rules. The real Roman football was
played with the inflated follis, which was
kicked from side to side over bound
aries, and thus must have closely resem-
bied the modern association game.
There are at present several styles of
football The American and English
Rugby and the association games being
the most popular. The American Rubgy
game is played among the colleges,
schools and athletic clubs of the United
States, and takes II players The game
has been greatly developed by our Amer
lean colleges and uniform system of
| rules governs the play. The English
game differs from the American In that
Is men instead of II form a team.
| At the risk of wearying some football
enthusiasts I am going to give a short
outline of the game for find that many
who attend are absolutely innocent of any
knowledge whatsoever about its fine
points, and look upon the whole affair as
a kind of enlarged street fight without
any point or rules save to knock the
opposing team out and that weight and
bulldog courage always win. Nearly
every true American is in a position to
appreciate the fine points of the national
game, but it is only the elect who get
joy out of football
Inc game is played on field 800 feet
long and 16o feet wide, the boundaries
being marked off with chalk lines. with
lines at every five yards, running across
the field. The goal posts are placed IS
feet and inches apart in the middle
of each end line. These posts are 20
from the ground. The ball has an oval
shaped leather covering containing an
inflated bladder. The same is com
menced by one team placing the ball in
the center of the field and kicking it into
| the opposite territory.
This gives the teams a chance to get
into action, for it pits IL men against II
others. A football team consists of the
center, two guards, two tackles, two half
backs, two ends, the quarterback and
the fullback. Now on the kickoff one
OF the opponents catches it. and runs for
ward towards his goal until tackled and
thrown down by one of the other team.
The ball is then put down for scrimmage.
Then begins the heavy work and one be-
gins to hear all kinds of confusing num-
bers cried aloud. They differ, however,
from the expression of craps shooters
for instead of making known the thing
most desired they are intended to con-
fuse antagonists while giving inside tips
as to what to do.
The ball is put into play after it has
been put down for scr1mmage by the
center of the team passing it back be-
tween his legs to the quarterback, who
III turn passes it to some man who bucks
the line or runs around ends or throws
it to another. The opposing side try
and stop any forward advance. and when
a runner is stopped he calls ':down"
three downs. in which it must either adj
vance the ball five yards or lose 20 yards,
or surrender the bali to the other side.
The game continues until one team
forces the ball over it's opponents goal
line. This is called a touchdown, and
scores points The ball is then taken
out about Is yards from the goal line,
in line parallel to the side lines. from
the point where the bail was downed
A member of the team then tres to kick
the ballsover and between the opponents
goal posts, and if it is not obstructed
and goes between it counts l point. The
failure to kick goal lost the game for
Auburn in the recent Vanderbilt contest.
Both sizes had made a touchdown, but
''Vandy' kicked goal