The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1933-10-10
The Old Army Game
By BEN FIELD

FORT HAMILTON overlooks the
Narrows. Behind the fortifica-
lions bristling with cannons stretches
a pleasant" green field thanked with
aspen trees where polo matches are
played of a Sunday afternoon.
At the entrance to the playing field
soldiers in their best khaki with pip
ings that look like small hoses. A
quarter admits you to the field, but
you've got to stand. We get score
cards, Though the public is requested
to keep off the polo field, we tramr
across. We squat down on the grass
in front of the ropes and white fences
The polo players on the home team
the First Division, are already out or
the field. They whip their mailets
around. They are "brave sight
in their green jerseys and white caps
The horses have a peculiar jog. They
trot about stiff-legged. 1t is more
like a dance that they do. Their
front legs from the hook almost ur
to their knees are in anklets. Their
hooks are clean-shaven. They are
not handsome horses. Some of them
are ewe-necked. Their tails are braid
ed twisted and look like rattails
But they can fly like swallows.
AS for the polo players, all we
know is that they are officers, ma
jors, lieutenants, lieutenant col
oneIs. That stout playboy of the
World Telegram, Haywood Broun,
/ may poke fun at Newhouse for at
tempting to classangle sports. But
his pope's nose is in the way of his
hens eyes. OF all sports here is
the classiest of class sports.
One of the boys who has come down
to the game is a Univei 7ity of Arizona
graduate. Now a book le eper and a
truckdriver in a large butcher shop
At the university the only boys on
the polo team were the rich fellows.
"It'S hard on fellows OF moderate
means. It's harder on the horses"
AND here on the grounds the COM
n mon soldiers sell the tickets. The
orderlies trot the horses. They cover
them with blankets. They help keep
the flies off. Back to the ropes
back to the ropes" they cry. They
get top sergeant to help them. We
squat in row, however, like group
of solemn owls just Matched, and
blink in the sun. 1t will take the
whole army to dislodge us.
1t is almost four o'clock before the
game starts. The band crashes into
music. The two teams, Governors
Island and First Division, trot up
and salute the big shots in the re-
served section. The umpire on a
black horse throws out the ball, Sal
ter, AL, made in England. Governors
Island is given a handicap of two
points. 1t doesn't take long before
Cullins of the same team scores. The
soldier at the goal post waves a red
flag. A light buds red next to the
name of Cullins on the score board
When the ball is hit out, the soldier
waves the flag low as if he were only
busting it. The umpire stands on the
other side Of the sideboards, the
teams pivot around like basketball
players. A horse gets the ball in the
rurnp. Kiefer. the high scorer of the
game, bends over the horse and takes
beautiful crack at the ball. The
ball flies under a horse belly. Now
they are all after it. The end OF
the first chukker, the visitors and
the home team 0.
AFTER each chukker, horses are
n changed. Sweat makes them look
as if they were soaped. And the men
in the band play. First, it is "In
the Valley of the Moon" Then be-
tween halves they cross the field over
the horsedroppings, recross, the drum
major with his shake like bunch
Of cotton wadding, the big drum
banging, the blaring Of brass tubas
the small drum like SPOOL They
halt before the bandstand. They play
Happy Days Are Here Again" We
don't take their word for it. They
themselves don't. Haven't the wages
of all enlisted men been SlaShed tc