The bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1920-04-02

/ tinction and ut least half dozen others
have been second and third choices
and honorable mention, and the indi-
cation is that this number will con-
stantiy increase.
Then there is basket ball which also
has strong appeal for our people. AS
| yet there is no recognized authority
rating Colored basket ball players each
year, as in football and track. So we
are not justified in comparing the rela-
tive merits of the Colored basketball
players with those Of the white. How
ever, we have had many representatives
Of the college and university teams OF
the country who have been recognized
as stars on their respective teams. In
addition to this, we are represented
by entire teams both in our southern
schools and by athletic clubs around
New York, Atlantic City, Philadelphia,
Washington, Pittsburg, Kansas City
and Des Moines, Iowa.
Another sport of which we do not
hear so much but in which many of
our people are finding much pleasure
and enjoyment, is tennis. This year
for the first time, Colored tennis players
of the country have been officially
rates. Washington, d. G. seems to lead
inthe number of people engaged in this
sport and in the amount of enthusiasm
shown, however, there are other cities
having tennis clubs ranking very high,
among which are Los Angeles, Kansas
City, st. Louis, Chicago, Boston, Spring
field, Mass, and in New Haven, Conn.
AS for baseball, since it is a profess
,sional SPORT, and our reputation as
baseball players is so well 4ccogn1zed,
the writer feels that it is superfious
to dwell at length on this subject. One
of the outstanding features is, that
beginning next year we will have an
organized Colored league. The circuit
as yet has not been definitely decided,
but st. Louis, Detroit Kansas City and
Philadelphia. So much for professional
baseball AS for amateur baseball
there arc but few towns that do not
boast of a team. All of the southern
colleges are represented by excellent
teams, and as members of teams repre-,
senting the Northern colleges and uni
versities, the Negro has been very
important factor
The aforementioned sports are those
which have the largest following and
in which the largest number Of our
athletes have competed. However, in
association football, rugby, La Crosse.
hockey, intercollegiate wrestling and
boxing, we have had representatives
and very often champions.
In fact there is 10 athletic sport OF
| which / have knowledge, in which the
Negro has not proven himself highly
! proficient, unless it is golf, and it is
possible that we will have National
representatives in this sport in the
| future.
As the reader will see, we do not at
tempt to do more than give resume
| of Negro athletics as a whole. We do
| not claim to cover the field in its abso-
lutte entirety. IT is the purpose of the
writer, in future articles, to bring to
our readers knowledge of individual
athletes and their records, also the
work Of the Southern colleges and ath-
letic clubs throughout the country. We
shall also make mention of some of
our peple who have been prominent
in the fostering and development Of
Negro athletics and Of the very liberal
encouragement given by the amateur
athletic union of the United States
Charles P. Howard, Des Moines, Iowa.