The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1924-09-15
AMERICAN FOUR.
PLAY A GREAT
CAME
Stevenson Accident M ars
Gaiety-EngIish Team Has
Odd Polo Tactics
BY CAROLINE APPLETON.

grave injury to Mr.. Malcolm
Stevenson during the last chukker
OF the international polo games
at Meadowbrook has overshadowed
the event with a profound and
impressive significance. 1t must
be clearly understood that, what
ever the reports, any injury to
Mr.. Stevenson is necessarily seri'
GUS. His, fall brought the already
breathless thousands to their feet
with a single Mortified exclamation
followed by complete silence. He
lay quite still. His pony. Aguila,
floundered up and away at a
canter and the first hail was from
the field where the players, in
stantly dismounted, called for
doctor. Then all about us. in the
dumb, CONSERVATION of the boxes
there eddyied small comments.
there she isg' here she is-"
Hes all right-look he's n1ovedr'
"No--he couldn't"
Two ladies followed the doctor,
running across the field and pres
entity blanket was brought and
Mr.. stevenson was carried off.
The announcement that young
StraWbridee would substitute-that
the game would proeeed--and in
the minds Of the hundreds who
know Mr.. Stevenson was the grim
thought that he was not "all
right" That he could not be all
right. But the game went on, as
polo has gone on before with a
brave man BANKED out into an
indeterminate background and the
white light OF excitement still play.
Ing searchingly upon the team.
That Is polo. The reports are
still that Mr.. Stevenson is all
right. II he is worse than that
the announcement must wait until
AFTER the games, since he would
Infinitely prefer to have it 90. NJ
stevenson fell on a field that was
In excellent condition. The rains
that had caused the repeated dis.
appointments of the week hung
over the scene in a gray mist, but
the field was dry.
And II II had been wet?
Objections Registered.
1t IL a serious betrayal to advo.
cate polo on a wet field, that a
crowd Of spectators may not be dis
appointed. Polo on a wet ground is
slaughter. The game has already
suffered enough from the stigma Of
social preferment. 1t is not neoes
sary to convert II into q bull fight
or a Roman holiday with perfumes
vaporized to sooth an outraged
sense. to prove democracy through
suicide. And, curiously enough, 1t
was not the newsboy shouting
Game Deferred who wore a look
Of disapproval in the matter, or the
office boy who had purju~ed his
soul to get a Saturday off last wee k
who bewailed his disappointment
cursed the idle rich, and protested
that polo was a game for snoLs
| alone. There were two or three
types Of objections assailing the
harassed ear Of the Polo Associa.
TONS officials. One, the legiti.
mate plea for refund from those
| who attended the game at some sac
rifice and were -unavoidably pre-.
vented from attending it at any
other time. And there were those
who keenly dreaded that the games
would be lacking Of a prince
Therefore, In Analysing objections
to a safe game safely postponed, let
us examine into the animatiug i'm.
pulse--is 1t polo, or is 1t prince?
But by these remarks / would in
| no wise take exception to those of
Lawrence Perry. Undoubtedly polo
is still a rich mans game
And yet the last train to West.
| bury was thronged with as catholic
a crowd as ever went to football,
a prizefight. baseball. or any ex.
plot Of track or crew.
| Game Is Slow.
In itself the game was DEPRESSING
except for the last period, when
the English team alrncst miraculous.
ly took up the matter from our own
angle. All through the gang the
seasoned experts with whom it was
my privilege to sit, explained with
heat that the two teams were play.
ing entirely different polo! That
unless some common ground ma.
terialized, a hopeless drubbing for
the English team would certainly
result-not because they played SC
badly, because they played so diff
T. rently. The single brilliant ex
ception was Mr.. Lacey. Therein
Is tho seed of prophecy of polo.
Mr.. Lacey's phenomenal skill. his
incredible adaptability to the loose
team work Of his own four and
his brilliant perception of the few
holes In the Americans game will
after today, set him apart a. 4
Kind Of super-international or, In the
truest sense, international, barr1os
the superlative. He combines the
driving, powerful combat of Aneri
can polo with the more delicate
Understanding, tapping Enellsl
game which has an art of its own
and the match would not be ever
logical, reasonable of play, without
his Intervention. His incapacit,
these last few weeks has deprived
his team of practice with him, O.
his personal Interpretation of tn,
Americans methods and American
polo psychology which few English
men can comprehend until they hav,
met 1t in personal encounter mar,
times.
Brilliant Rally.
BY the play Of the last perioC
when the English team. hope
lessly defeated, rallied doggedl,
with a brilliant showing of spirl
and determination, 1t became evi
dent that Mr.. Lacey's singl,
handed team work with himself ha,
by sheer force Of mind. will an,
astounding personal illustration
. demonstrated the value of tn,
theories which he has argued s,
patiently, out of the saddle, durin,
/. the past few days. The mex
game cannot be other than close
keen affair.
Lord WimbOrne Leaves.