The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1925-01-03

4
stadiums now erected, or in cours
inadequate to provide for those WI
porarily to inhabit them for speci
But this "burning. desire" will
Of the game, and this fact invests
with an Importance that it is aim
A day or two ago Knute Rockne
shed some of his thoughts on this
subject. They are well worth quot
ing. He is opposing the ideas OF
those who would attempt to cut
down the open game. This Is what
he says:
If they win glance back through
! the pages they will find that IN
1906 the forward pass saved the
game, and now they are trying to
put 1t out. Until the overhead
game was brought into play every
body was holIering about the game
being too brutal. and it was.
''Then the forward pass came.
It cut down the flying wedge and
al the man killing style Of
play. II brought football back
and pushed &c TO front rank I'm
the sporting world, and now they
are talking shout rObbing the
game Of the style Of play that
has made football what Il is"
There % the clearest possible
statement of one Of the great foot
ban coaches that it took hand-ball
20 save American football!
Twist and strain ii any way you
will; you cannot dodge that: and
there must have been something
very wrong with football
Now, taste in any matter, be it
wine. woman or the weed, aye, or
even oysters, is merely matter OF
comparative standards.
One could not expect Japanese
gentleman, who had never been
out of sight Of Fujiyama. and had
not mixed much with American
tourists, to accept. as his standard
Of beauty, a modern American
Aapper-or an up-to-date English
sports girl.
So any one who has not tasted
Australian or European wines,
might be quite pleased with Cali
fornian.
So also with the bi-vaIvular ty.
phoid carriers: unless one has
assimfIated the oysters Of Europe
and New Zealand as well as the
American, how can one have q
standard Of taste in this important
matter?
Now, Is It Il with wine, tObaGeo.
women and oysters. 50 It b with
football. One must have stand
ards Of comparison, and the wHTI-
derful thing shout American
football il that It has attained
its amazing popularity i'm spite OF
and not on account II the way
Il Is played.
When Americans play football,
proportionately, as they play other
games, many OF the spectators will
have to be content 20 watch the
game through field glasses.
In nearly every game or sport
that the American has taken UP he
has introduced mere mental and
physical speed and made il essier
TO look at. This is notably. 50 IN
tennis and IN all general athletics.
Football, alone, of ell games, ne
has slowed down. He has made IL
much more tedious and less s.'cctac-
ular than its parent, Rugby foot
ball, and there is. no reason why
this should be so.
The part of Rugby football that
q always considered Row by the
onlookers is the pack" or ~scrim-
mage" They are always waiting
for the ball to come out" AMI get
into the hands Of the packs so that
they may see the more interesting
parts OF the game, kicking, running.
passing and tackling, and the con-
slant. trend Of the game is to use
the serum merely to get the ball
Tor the backs
In American football . totally
diSprOpOrti0nate part OF the time
e spent by the players i'm wrig-
Cling around in the mud. This Is
Derpetuated and encouraged In
the American game and It Is the
one outstanding feature Of foot
ball that the EngliShman, who
can endure that three-day tedious
orgy called q cricket match, does
his best to eliminate.
There is not the slightest doubt
that American football can be Inn
mensely improved and speeded up,
and 1t is equally as certain that the
improvement will be very popular
with both players and public. Here
are two illustrations:
Nearly ten years ago was
watching an Army-Navy game in
New York. Next to me sat a civil
engineer from Chicago. 1 did not
get his name. but If he sees this
he will remember the incident.
I was bored to tears with the
interminable mounds Of squirming,
muddy, indistinguishable figures,
piled in the swamp. and plainly
told my companion what / thought
Of it, as compared with British and
New Zealand football.
Suddenly a player cut loose with
the ball and dashed down the field.
] am almost sure his name was
Baker. / remember him with graft
tude as the one bright spot in that
afternoon.
PandemOnium reigned, ear-split-
ting yells rent the air, and my
neighbours face was purple with
Vociferation
When he had partially regainod
normality l asked: Why all the
noise?"
He looked at me with a scorch-
Ing gaze and spluttered: Baker!
Baker! Why he ran eighty yards!'
To which / answered, 1 am
afraid with exaSperating calm:
"Oh. is that all? Why. at rugby,