The Waterbury Democrat., 1931-11-21
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER Fl. 1881
Football Shows To End

It will be hard to explain the exploitation of college football in the last ten years. but it certainly goes hand in hand with the times Naturally in this day of depression move towards the other direction is appreciated. We rather imagine the action of Yale Uni- vefsity in removing athletic control from graduate advisory council to actual officers of the institution will be hailed far and wide as step in the right direction. There IS no qainsaying the fact that athletics have come to play an important part the scope or every school and university today - too much a one many of us contend.
 Perhaps the public is unaware of the fact that existence of hundreds of small colleges in the nation is seriously threatened today. Unaided by endowments and not fathered oy some kindly alumnus whose money might have provided high-salaried athletic coaches playing fields. equipment, and last, but not least, a competent publicity agent of these schools. the backbone of our higher eduea- tionaI system, are slowly but surely seeing tbeir attendance lists dwindle. Even in the case of some of hallowed memories and revered names this same lack of response from the school-going public is apparent
 Naturally we don't blame all this on football or other major sports participated in bv colleges. That would be too ridiculous. Any liberal arts college today must bear pretty fair reputation to compete with us biSger brothers and sisters We don't be- lieve the day of the liberal arts college IS passing. It is just suffering decline. It will return stronger than ever. Speelaliza- tion is the cry of the student boy or girl brought up in an age of specialization. Don't blame the youth of the nation for this trend. Blame their fathers and mothers and older brothers and sisters who have simply shown them the example that to achieve material success today you must be specialist in your own line.
 Yale University now proposes reduction h the present intercollegiate programs m which she engages. More emphasis will be placed on intra-mural sports. lime was when these held their place with intereolle- < qiate sports. We are glad to be able to say that New England colleges have gone In for intra- mural sports on large scale in the last few years Yale with its new house plan about ready can certainly lead the way in intra-mural sports on scale that few institutions will rival. But such rivalry isn't necessary for their success. It all oe- bends upon the individual school. Reports indicate that the sports thus engaged in are attracting more than 50 per cent ot the student population. If we want our stu. dents to secure exercise of the body as well as mind we certainly should recognize the fact that the college or university where half the students participate in sports IS superior to the one where the squad numbers fifty or sixty. .,
 We like to see football game as well as anybody. but we don't propose that football teams of our prominent colleges shall become the weeks best attractions at bargain { prices. Colleges aren't intended for such purposes as the spectacles of recent years indicate. They have a more serious pur- pose than to instil ''get-rich-quiek' and in- flation ideas into immature minds. College years are formative years for the boy ana girl. Characters are moulded. Ideas oe- come fixed. Ideals are discovered. Men sana in eorpore sano can be achieved today without aping the triumphal march Of the qladiators around the arena.