The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1922-03-28

earnest typewritorial consultation on
What is the matter with football
II anything?" In the meantime a
commission appointed by the presi-
dents of Princeton, Yale and Harvard
is considering means of readjusting
college athletics, especially intercolle-
giate football. The university edito-
rial writer's agree that there is some
thing intangible the matter with in
tercollegiate sport, and that some
which is the average conclusion of the
editorial writer about everything.
| To gray-haired gentleman who has
| studied athletics at these three univer-
stiles for a number of years there seems
to be no violent disturbance in college
athletics as far as these three ancient
seats of learning are concerned. There
! Is no harm In the students of these
three universities getting together in
| this fashion and asking, Are we on
the level with ourselves and with one
another? Are we playing the game
fairly and in the open?" But there is
no necessity of the college papers psy-
brious fashion. That develops hypo-
chondria.
Yesterday each Of the university pa
pers discovered distinct and different
evil"
The PrincetoniGn declares that a
change in the alumni attitude is neces-
sary to the health of athletics. / read
this and want to say, II told you So"
for it has been contention of mine that
the old grad Is something of a pest
around a college He arrives with a
synthetic souse at reunion time and says
that the dear old college has gone to pot
OF late and suggests that they go grab
a few good line men from the docks.
Tramp Athlete n Mercenary.
The Yale Daily Neios declares that the
great evil of college athletics is the
tramp athlete" This evil must be CO.
related with the evil discovered by the
Princetonian. The tramp athlete /
gather, is a mercenary, and who would
hire mercenary for the college eleven
or nine? The old grad. of course.
The Harvard Crimson advances the
theory that publicity is the greatest
menace to college athletics. This
strikes me as particularly paradoxical,
coming from one Of the college journals
which are calling for what somebody
or other called pitiless publicity and
unlimited discussion to clean up the
college athletic situation-if 1t needed
cleaning up. ! am wondering IL it
should not strike the editor of the
Harvard Crimson that in the event of
about $4,000 people gathering in the
Yale Bowl to watch football game or
a pinochle tournament there should be
a little piece in the papers about it,
Perhaps ] am getting just about as
highly exercised over the condition of
the college newspapers as the news
papers are over the condition of college
athletics. All editorial writer's quiet
down finally after inquiring. whittier
are we drifting?" and predicting that
the ship of state Is about to be dashed
against the rocks.
I am quite convinced that the con-
illusions eventually reached by the uni
versity dailies and the commission APP
pointed by the Princeon, Yale and Har-
ward presidents will result in some
good.
The Princetonian to-day will say. in
part:
1.-THE change in alumni attitude that
We believe necessary to the health Of
athletics means the adjustment by
common consent of every special con-
sideration made to men for their ath-
letic ability alone.
Metropolitan Dailies Blamed.
ut does not mean that athletics should
be reserved for the rich. but that COM
merce should be kept from the world of
sport. Once alumni opinion unqualifiedly
backs this new attitude our committee
meetings will be pure routine.
1.-THE only way of cutting down on the
publicity (given to fooball) Is to make
football of less Importance. The tre-
mendous amount of space given in met
ropolitan dailies to the sport now Is the
result primarily. OF the stress which
colleges lay upon the game"
The Yale Daily Neics says: "Restric-
tons are advocated which will eliminate
the professional tramp athlete. 1t is
agreed by every one that this gentle
man, SO called, is a character with whom
college athletics can conveniently dis
pense. Although he Is not such a per-
sistent problem at Yale, Harvard and
Princeton, we can do the most toward
dislodging the mote In others by first
Kidding ourselves Of our own occasional
BEAM"
The Harvard Crimson, evidently GRIM
soning even more deeply at the evil Of
publicity. says:
''As a remedy for a situation which is
not such a great evil anyway Mr.. Rey-
ral suggests that publicity be limited
To do this arbitrarily is an impossi-
biity: few years ago the sport writer's
OF Boston papers were offered $10Q
apiece to refrain from mentioning the
Yale game until the week Immediately
preceding II: they refused. claiming, In
effect. THAI the Importance of the Yale
game was largely due to them. Nor
would any benefit result from restricting
the information given out daily after
practice: the only result would be that
the papers would print a large amount
of football news regardless OF its au-
thenticity.
las for restricting the sport writer's
point out thar II would also require that
they be restricted from the stadium as
well? This would not be easy: 1t would
require that every one except under
graduates and alumni be excluded. And
even then the practically OF such a
measure Is to be questioned seriously.
No. the only way OF cutting down on
publicity Is to make football of less inn
portance tho tremendous amount OF
space given In metropolitan dailies to
the sport now Is the result. primarily, of
the stress which colleges lay on the
game"
II Is going TO be rather hard. fear.
TO ask newspapers not TO mention the
fact that $4,000 people say Princeton
and Yale In TO tie In the bowl
when that event happens. A few editors
and few subscribers hardly would be
satisfied with a communique such as
Princeton and Yale tied at the bowl