Evening star., 1926-11-27
Bright Sun Helps Mitigate
Wintry Blasts Sweeping
in From Lake.
GRIDIR0N DRY AND FAST
UNDER STRAW BLANKET
Vice President, Three Cabinet
Members and Other Officials At
tend Annual Service Contest.
RY the Associated Press


low freezing. but with bright sun
breaking up the morning haze. greet
ed the annual Army Navy foot ball
game today.
The cold, aided by Lake Michigan s
chilly breezes, followed rain and snow
yesterday, but only traces OF snow
and a few icy spots were left in the
municipal stadium.
The sunshine promised 70 mitigate
goose-fiesh somewhat as approximate
ly 10000 Americans from nearly
every State prepared for the game.
Many of the early patrons of com.
muting and other transit lines, eVi
IDENTIFY pOssessors of tickets, carried
heavy blankets and extra coats. For
several days department stores had
been featuring blanket sales, ap
parently with profitable result.
The approaches to the stadium
were a, bit slippery after a below
freezing night. but not enough to
the line of march of the parading
West Pointers and Middies led the
way for the hundred thousand fans.
MascOts First to Enter.
Mascots of the two teams were the
None but the Navy goat and the
Army mule got past the ushers be
fore II o'clock, while 200 huskies
cleared off the gridiron.
Rolling up the canvas and raking
off the hay showed the turf to be Ill
magnificent condition, fairly soft and
springy, unfrozen and almost dry.
Overhead a wintry sun did It's best
to add to the perfect setting, beam
ing down through a slight haze, with
quite a little warmth for the end or
November.
The legion and civilian ushers, OF
hand early, were augmented by
Culver Military Academy troop, the
first martial note of the pageant.
\ Location of the southern goal post,
about $50 feee from the arch of the
stadium's horseshoe end, and the
northern goal hardly rdore than half
way down the huge expanse left the
northern end of the stadium nearly
a hundred yards from the actual field.
Frost and snow ringed the grassy
expanse which had been carefully
blanketed for distance of 10 yards
out from each side line.
At II o'clock a column Of 100 police
marched up each side Of the gridiron
to form a Gordon about the field.
JackleS Arr1Vc OH scene.
A hundred .jackies from Great
Lakes Naval Station were the next
official delegation. arriving at 11:15 to
act as guards and ushers, but still no
ticket holders had appeared. BY this
time ushers had been scattered over
the huge structure at their posts
and but three of the eight huge can
vas spreads were yet to he removed.
A thin blanket of hay was spread
around the fringe of the gridiron and
the surplus hauled away.
Don w. Bailey and A. l.. Bush, buck
privates from Fort Sheridan, were the
escorts Of the Army mule.
II. r. Paige and w. G.. Specht,
middies, chaperoned the Navy goat.
First Fans.
The fur-coated feminine advance
guard, four in number. arrived at
11:30, the first unofficial spectators,
so far as discernible among the hun
dreds Of ushers to arrive. A thing
trickle Of fans followed them into the
west stand. the Navy rooters' section.
The thermometer stood just little
below freezing and the early Corners
merely had to kick their toes a bit
to keep comfortable.
The last canvas was peeled off at
Officials Attend Game.
Washington was deserted by the ad.
ministrative heads Of the two military
establishments Of the Government
and by another cabinet officer and
scores Of other officials today as foot
ball warriors OF West Point and An
napolis took the field at Chicago for
their annual pigskin classic.
Secretary of War Dwight f. Davis
and Secretary of the Navy Curtis ID.
| Wilbur headed delegations from the
War and Navy Departments which
! left Washington yesterday afternoon
and are occupying boxes in opposing
cheering sections in the big bowl on
the lake front of Chicago this after
noon. Secretary Of Labor James J.
| Davis, who was in Mooseheart, Ill. on
| Thanksgiving day, occupied q box
with friends.
Vice President Dawes Present.
| In the party accompanying Secre-
| tary of War Davis were Assistant
Secretaries Hanford MacNider and +.
! Trubee Dawson. The party of Secre-
I tary of Navy Wilbur was larger. II
| included Assistant Secretaries Theo-
dore D. Robinson and E. 2. Warner,
Rear Admiral William A. MOffett,
| chief of Navy aeronautics; Rear Ad-
miral w. r. Shoemaker, chief of Bu-
reau Of Navigation, and Capt. Emory
Land. assistant chief Of aeronautics,
| and other officials.
| Assistant Secretary Charles =.
J Dewey of the Treasury and Assistant
] Secretary r. w. Dunlap or Agricul-
/ ture also attended the game.
| Vice President Dawes. himself q
resident of Chicago, sat in a flag
draped box at Soldiers Field. He dedi.
Gated the stadium yesterday.