Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-05-28
WAIST LINE
PRESENTSHAND|CAP
IN 1922 BAT RACE
Generous Girth Is Liability to
Any Man, Says Walter
Camp.
BY CAMP

W u IL N@"S
Copyright. 1922. By The Great Falls Tribune.
New York, May 27.-Babe Ruth,
with a wonderful opportunity of en-
HANGING his fame as a home run hitter,
has fallen down at times when the
bases were filled. Those who have
studied the technique of baseball main
tain that the pitchers are feeding out
low balls at his waist line to such an
extent as to render him unable to make
his mighty sweep at a knee high de-
livery.
Well, there is a sermon to be preach
ed on waist lines. A waist line is a
liability. not an asset. This applies
not only to ball players but to box
ers. to any athlete and. indeed, to any
man who wishes to keep fit.
Over weight is regarded as haz-
ardous by the insurance companies and
there is the big risk that Ruth is liable
to find it hazardous financially. An
English surgeon ono said:
THE picture of the human animal is
something like this: The important
internal organs of the body may be
supposed to be contained in a semi
elastic bag. two or three inches bigger
around the top than around the bot
tom. These proportions are permitted
to alter So that the upper part be
comes two or three inches smaller and
lower circumference several inches
larger. What must happen to the con-
tents?"
Forgets His Feet
Although not at all scientific, this
outline is certainly graphic. 1t is a
we'll known fact that quite speedily
fl. z- -It e Ltr fnnt
he fails to find much further use for
them. 1t is a vicious circle he travels
after that. The less he exercises the
fatter he grows and the fatter he grows
the more it exhausts him to exercise.
Therefore. he exercises little.
One may be naturally of rounded
contour and il would be foolish for a
man of the sort to turn himself into a
skeleton. Another nan may be wlry
and nervous. This man might. to his
advantage, put on some pounds IN
weight as a sort of buffer. but gross
ness and girth grow upon the slothful
oad indolent and it has been found since
the time immemorial that exercise and
efficiency go hand in hand. as do flab-
biness and failure. Youth is young.
That is a great asset in any attempt
to COM back. For youth can stand
mas the reSlilencs duu. III tue
case of this particular hero he is nat
urally and specifically equipped for the
special job in which he is a shining
light.
Depends on His Girth
Whether so many thousands will turn
ont to see Babe Ruth in the future
depends upon how well he keeps his
spirits up and his girth down. He
has the capability and may. with a bit
of good luck-especially if he deyotes
his time and attention to training down
to his old pinnacle.
So far AS training down is concerned.
it would be silly for a man of Ruth's
mighty build to go to the extreme of
reduction. Often obese persons do this
to the detriment of their health. In
other words. Ruth has a delicate task
before him. He must not lose Vitality.
as fat persons often do in reducing;
he must have a morale that will carry
him through a period of hard work and
enable him to survive failure speedily
to resume his championship smuggling.