Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-03-04
INTEREST IN SPORT
| IN SOUTH is SLIGHT
Lack of Support CompeIS
Canoeing of Games by
Many Schools.
BY III. C. BYRD.

)OLLEJE DaSe pail ScneduleS
4 not only will be shorter
~ this year, but probably for
several years to come, un-
less the present outlook changes.
Cancellations of one kind or
another, inability to arrange a
greater number of games and
financial curtailments have caused
many schools to tighten their dia-
mond loads for the next two
months, but, judged by opinions
freely expressed by many athletic
directors, there is not much hope
that any better conditions will
prevail next season.
Only two schools here are supporting
diamond teams, Georgetown and Mary
land, and these have respectively, only
Ia and Is games on their schedules for
this Spring. Several other games were
listed, but cancellation have cut them
Off
But it is not only Georgetown and
but many Of the other schools are doing
the same. Virginia, for instance, has
only Is listed and Virginia Polytechnic
Institute IL. Farther South the sched-
ules that formerly ran as high as 81 or
% games have been cut to anywhere
from Is to 10.
ONE far Southern School Just awhile
~ back constructed a base ball field,
the grandstand of which cost
$55, 0OO but, now it has cut its sched-
ule, there is real regret that so much
money was expended. On a visit last
week to the far South the writer was
taken out to see this expensive new
field. 1t is far better than the great
majority of minor league clubs have,
but, as the athletic director of that
school remarked as he looked over his
expensive plant, every time I come in
here and look around feel like kicking
myself"
The story in the far South IS COM
ing to be pretty much the same as it
Is here, although the problem down
there is just a little different. 1t seems
to be growing increasingly difficult to
attract students to watch base ball
game when, under almost ideal weather
conditions, they can be playing tennis
or golf or swimming or riding In an
automobile with their best girls. And
this last is not the least attractive OF
base ball competitors, either.
LYLE eliminated base ball because
wv there was not much interest in
Il, = says Wfiburg Smith, direc-
tor Of athletics at Tulane University.
This year we are playing three-game
series with louisiana State as climax
to a season of intramural base ball.
There is some demand for us to have
team from the players, but hardly
any interest generally"
st believe that we can bring back
base ball to some extent by shortening
up the schedules and having games at
less frequent intervals" says Gus
Tebell, coach at Virginia. "Too many
games in the past has been one Of the
things that have hurt base ball. If
we play along with a IA or Is game
I'VE just don't have the money to
carry on base ball as We have been
doing" said another athletic director.
Its too cold to play base ball, any
way, until the last of April, and don't
blame students not wanting to sit out
in cold, blustery weather to watch
mediocre play" said Dick Smith, coach
at Washington and Lee. by the time
the weather gets good enough for base
ball the college season is ended"
THESE opinions or sentiments just
l. about sum up the general thought
throughout the South about the
game, except that in the far South the
weather conditions are good and with
the further exception, as one athletic