Evening star., 1922-02-23

Chairman Mendell also advocated
stringent rules against the transfer
of tramp athletes from one college
to another.
president Lowell has been very
widely quoted of late on athletic mat
ters. and President Meiklejohn al
most as extensively" said Chairman
made by both of these men lies the
firm conviction that too much i'm
pcrtance is attached throughout the
country to the big foot ball games.
When President Lowell referred 10
foot ball in his annual report he WAS
simply repeating. what he has con-
slStently believed and said for many
years. In an address here at Yale
more than: ten years ago he pointed
out with eloquent irony the tenden-
cies in sport which have since so
largely developed.
Praises GridirOn Game.
1.-THE question, however, is not
whether foot ball is to be abolished
as an intercollegiate sport. Foot ball
is great and valuable game, too fine
a sport to be lost. The problem is 10
protect it against abuses which
threaten its existence. OF these the
most 1nsistent is the professionally
ing of the game. BY this | mean not
merely the transfer into college of
men whose sole object is to play foot
game from the undergraduate to the
coach.
AT this point. however l take issue
with President Meiklejohn. l would
not get rid of coaches. would in
sure the playing OF the entire game
by the Undergraduates after they
mad been trained just as we'll as pus-
Slble by the best coaches available
In scholarship we try to give the un-
dergraduate the very best that we
have. In foot ball We should give the
beneht of the best possible training
TO all the men who can be brought
out to play one of the finest games
ever invented. But let them play the
game themselves.
'As a practical step, it seems to me
wise further to restrict the handling
or the team during the game. Tad
Jones already his spoken forcibly
on his subject. | should go further
and be in favor of putting aii the
c2acnes IN: the srandstand while the
game is being. played.
with regard to the second phase
OF professionalism, namely. the un-
deslrabilit3 of the so-calied tramp
ago an agreement by which no man
who had represented one college
should be allowed thereafter to rep
resent another. Some injustice might
alton is one which calls for drastic
action.
Urges Best of Methods.
Il hope that the day will not be
far distant when Harvard, Princeon
and Yale can agree upon some such
practical regulation as a safeguard
Tor true SpOrtSmanShip. l am not
sure that i understand what President
Meiklejchn intends by his suggestion
o. aholiShing all boards of control as
we'll as all coaches. The department
OF athletics faS become too important
q fG. in 1nc-f in nlp1~r nl
to make it Wise or even possible to
return to haDhaZara methods of man
agement. Competitive sport is real
and valuable part of a college edu-
cation.
TT is not difficult to point out the
ideal in view of the existing evils.
The more important problem at pre-
sent is to find means to safeguard the
ideal against the evils. Toward the
discovery and application of these
means we must all bend our heartiest
efforts not Only for the good of the
sport itself. but for the preservation
Of the spirit of sportemanship in our
college"
Demands Clean Sport.
PRINCETON. y. j.. February 2S.-
pr John Gti"r -Hibben. president OK
Princeton told Several hundred gradu-
&tas :Lt the alumni luncheon yester-
day that, the most serious blight on
college athletics is the attitude of
forms of protest. onalism."
f"The press, he declared, has been
questioning whether college athletics
gre on as high a plane as they nat
Orally ought to be. 1 feel if we are
70 do anything to lift that cloud of
doubt it can be done only through
Joint action of the universities in
Various parts of the country
f"There- are two things that every
University can do and ought to do
3n order to create a high tone in
athletics. Every university must make
absolutely sure that it's representa-
tives stand for clean sport on every
athletic field. and every university
must take upon itself to review the
aituation and to act if necessary.
l.'There should not be any subsidiz-
ing of athletes, and all the universi-
ties of our country should see to it
that we have clean sport and only
amateurs engaged in our sport-men
above even the suspicion of receiving
any assistance not open on the same
terms to every one of their class
VpateST