The New York herald., 1921-11-27

the season. Not that there was any In
territorial or malicious misuse of hands
and feet. But Jack Dempsey probably
would have resigned after the first three
minutes.
And the crowd, the scene. the color
they suffered just a wee bit from the
rain, but they were a most enthusiastic
and hardy lot. those 10000 VINO praved
the wretched conditions to be in at the
climax of a brilliant football season.
There was no Gen. Nivelle as there was
the year before to give the event most
welcome splotch of foreign prismatic
splendor. There was no Foch as there
had been at the Yale-Princeton game
only fortnight before. But there was
color aplenty, and International repre-
sentation just the same.
Many Disdain to BE Dry.
The open stands resembled fairy fields
of gigantic toadstools as men and women
huddled under umbrellas Most of the
onlookers who were in the wet aisdained
protection. Being In the wet they re-
mained in the wet. Costly. furs, coats
or seal and coats Of every other peltry
known to fashionable femininity this
year. perhaps were we'll nigh ruined.
Feminine millinery dropped bravely in
the wet. but the warmth of it's colors re-
fused to compromise with the drab sur
roundings. Hats of red and hats of blue,
popnets of green and headpieces of
henna--they simply would not surrender
to the gloom which which seeped from
the heavens and saturated everything
except the enthusiasm of the 10000. It
was a highly partisan, vociferous crowd
--colorful in spite of it's raincoats and
rainy weather clothes and umbrellas
and those skies Of battleship gray.
The President and Mrs. Harding mad
wanted to be present. and New York
had wanted them, but because of the
press of business in the armament con-
ference at Washington the Commander
in-Chief Of the Army and Navy could
not make the trip. The Vice-President
and Mrs. Coolidge saw the game-a
gracious couple, pleasant and smiling In
spite of the weather's doing Its worst
Coolidges Use NO Umbrellas.
The vice-President and Mrs. Coolidge
occupied decorated box on the Army
side-the east side of the field--in the
first half. For the second half they
went into the Navy stand. The rain
came down hard, then harder still,
but they declined to use umbrellas.
Perhaps they feared that they would
interfere with the view of those behind
them. So they sat soaked, like the rest
of the soaked populace. and like Mr..
and Mrs. Jones Of Four Corners, who
had son on one OF the elevens and
We're too engrossed In his doings to
bother with the rain.
There was one bright, dazzling feature
of the days doingS which the wet
weather could not sully. tarnish or dis
courage. This feature had thousands
of component features-the smiling rose
faces OF the genus Football Girl. Here
was an event to put to a severe test
the genuineness of her enthusiasm.
This genuineness had been doubted by
some ever-doubting, misguided males.
She came out OF the test with color
proved fast and spirits unfiagging
Beauty Pick OF Species.
Only the cadets and the midshipmen
and the football intelligenzia which sat
at the side lines with eye most critical
went to the Polo Grounds unadorned
with female companions. Naturally. the
football girls were the pick of their spe-
cies. They had to be. for tickets had
been scarce and the stadium seats no
$4,000 like the Yale bowl.
So the best of the beauty battalion
not alone from New York but from
WASHINGTON and Baltimore and Boston
and way stations across to San Fran
cisco and Los Angeles and even beyond,
from Honolulu-waved their banners,
flashed their smiles and wore their
chrysanthemums gaily-shrillng their
plaudits to the battIers in the mud Be-
fore so enticing. so colorful gathering
no man could but give his very best.
And Army-Navy football teams hardly
need any incentive to give their best.
The need for some measure OF protec-
tion against the wet, and the absence OF
sun to send flashing rays up and down
the stands put bit of a darnper on the
gold braid feature of the spectacle. But
there was enough OF 1t around to make
man realize that 1t was Army against
Navy. There were long blue coats and
braided hats aplenty; long olive drab
coats and the unadorned simplicity OF
the army officers cap.
These hardy onlookers, OF course, were
nearly all Americans, but there were
many from the encourages at the confer
ence at the capital There were wonder
ing Japanese, Britons, Freuchmen and
ltalians--many military attaches. Won
dering and amazed that the game was
not postponed until fair weather and that
men could fight in the mud the way the
service men were fighting. when only at
play.
Crowd on COogan's Bluf.
Not all the onlookers were the 10000
inside. On Coogans Bluff. men and
boys stood In defiance OF the rain, In |
tent on the meagre movements which |
they could discern through their
hampered vision. They relied more on
their ears than their eyes. and when |
the fog toward the close began to blur |
the scene they still were taking IL In.
Lest we forget, not all the onlookers
we're men and matrons, flappers and
and boys. Two animals
attracted perhaps more attention than
ony other spectators. The one animal
was the skittsh Army mule, the other
the highly energetic Navy goat
Botn were caparisoned befittingiy.
both seemed TO realize that they had
a definite mission on the Held. ana
they pranccd and cavorted until they
wore down ono relay of keepers n,t"-
another. Eu. when, just before II"
game, the p'tir we're asked TO pose fci
the photographers they did so with oil
the solempity or couple or sefato
on armament.
The Navy contingent was flrst on
tho field. marching In about twenty
minutes before game timc-at 1:40 Pr
NJ. Four abreast. spick and span In |
their long blue coats and white gloves.
they entered to q martial air provided |
by their band They paraded around |
Continued on rage Two.