THE SUNDAY OKEGOMAX. TORTLANP. MARCH 17, 1913.
CONFIDENCE
OF YOUNG STARS
Billy Evans Says Many Not
Sure of Selves Fail to
Stay in Majors.
ABILITY NOT EVERYTHING
rcot Ita-chall Judge Says U Is
Plai or A hie to Perform l"ndrr
.mil Slr-- That Rig
League Want.
rtv I'll.LT EVANS.
Lark of mnf Idcnc rxpUlm the fatl
urt of tn:ny a promising youngster to
fsr In the big Irauri.
Vear aft.-r year the minors send their
crop or choice players to the big show,
only to hive a majority of them re
turned with the labrt. "Not quite ripe."
Sut'h action corn as a big surprise
to the admirers of these player In the
bush leagues, to the scouts who lia?
watched them during the reason, to the
mnaKrr who had perused their phe.
nomctial records with much glee, and
Irly to the club owner who paid a
fancy price, believing he had picked
up a star.
Now la the time of the year that the
fans are reirale.t with atorles relative
to the wonderful form that Is pein-r
shown by the recruits of the variuui
major league trams. If the fan could
but believe all that he reads about the
work of tho new players. It would b
a cinch for him to bet his bank roll
that his favorite club would win the
pennant In a walk. But unfortunately
many of the flowers that bloom In the
Spring fade under the heat of the Sum
mer. Many of the choice players soon
develop Into the worst kind of hot
house plants
Yaaaastera OterliKfr.
It Is not to be wondered that so
many glittering tales are told In the
Snrlng about the propects f the
young players. bounding Into form
much more quickly than the veterans,
they show to advantage In the Spring
prartlre because of their flashy work.
The veteran, as a rule. Is not worried
about his lob. while the youngster real
ties he must make an Impression on
hi nmi.T If he Is to retain his hold
In fist rornpany. Naturally, because
of this. ! h- new player is stirred to
greater effort. He shows his best
Iron! at all Itines. while the veteran
Is content to take things slowly, de
IHnilinic on his class to assert Itself
at the proper time, the opening of the
season.
It is oft'n a very difficult matter to
understand why some young players
fail to show in fast corn pan, on the
Spring training trip, and In the prac
tue games, recruits often display form
that Is up to the major league standard.
There is every reason to believe they
possesa the class to win a regular Job
In fast company. Scouts, critics, plav
ers and manager arc certain that tho
young man will do provided he has
the confidence in himself when playing
iu tiie regular games.
Trial After Trial Olvea.
There are in the minors today any
number of players who possess far
more ability than players who are
classed as major leagues try. it -s al
most impossible to understand why
(-mo of tiiese players can't make a go
of It In the majors. Some players have
come to the big show from the bushes
a half doxen times, only to be returned
with thanks each time. Scout who
svour the. country for baseball material
annually report that such and such a
pla)er is easily the class of the league.
Wry often that player Is the chap who
has been fie1 repeatedly and failed to
deliver. Another trial Is uraed and
c;vrn. but usually with the same result,
failure. Very ften players from the
same league, who do not look half so
ctMd. are clven a trial, and early dem
onstrate their rlRht to remain In fast
cornpm .
Natural ability la a wonderful asset,
but very often players who show big
l cue class in every movement fall
to nw-k in the majors. Every fan can
recall some pitcher who In warming up
1-oke.i like a ll.ooo.ooo beauty, terrific
speed, a fast breaking curv-r anil a g.Md
t hatici of i4-c. 5eelng the chap In ac
tion for the first time you would Im
mediately conclude that he is a won
derful pitcher. It is a different thing,
however, when you step on the rubber
In a real game from warming up In
front of an admiring grandstand, or
piti-htng to th players In batting prac
tice. The real test calls for a display of
something that Is not needed In prac
ticeconfidence. It Is the player with
the heart of oak. the player who Is con
fident he can do thlncs. that Is worth
ahile In base-ball. While they often
fail, the real stars of the game, the
men like Cobb, Warn.-. Lajmr,
Muhrwinn and the many other cel
ebrities. di their best when the strain
Is greatest. That Is the reason they
r classed as stars, they do things out
of the ordinary. Pitchers fear Cobb
or Lajole a great deal more when men
are on the bases than when the sacks
are empty. They know both meai are
stout of heart, men who do their best
ta the pinch. Hatters will tell you
that they find Christy Mathewson al
most unhittable when a single Is need
ed to send a couple of runs across tho
llste. With the bases empty they will
tell you there Is nothing hard to solve
about Matty. The reason Mathewson
Is a great pitcher, who does his best
when thlnas look darkest, who al
ways has something tn reserve to dish
or to the baiter.
t oaldeaee Oftea lasplred.
tne often hears the remark that the
player must Just naturally have con
fidence in himself, that confidence can
not be inspired. I never could agree
with any such belief. On the contrary,
I believe that con.ldence can be In
spire. 1 and Instilled, through proper
lian.llinK. In this one feature a man
ager can display his ureatness. The
is ise le.i.irs of the Connie Mack style
I. in. lie their men according to their
trmperamcni. Knugh treatment gets
the best results out of certain player,
l similar policy ruins other.
In many cases the confidence of
joung pithrs Is ruined through the
I. .In v ft taking them off the mound
j is? r.s soon s s trouble looms up. 1
kn..n- s former college stsr. now re -trre
from bn.Hctmll. who always Insist-.!
tii.u his failure to star In the
majors ws Hue to the too quick sys
tem of (Jerri, kins. I'nfortunately for
the player in question, he Joined a club
Cut had n chance for the pennant. Be
anse of bis great prowess as a col
lex. an he was siarted in several names.
(.:ilv it 1 taken out as soon as he
s..vr a rouble of bases on balls or al-
. ! a f hits. Naturally every time
i,r went to the r'lbber afterward he
was looking at the bench more than
tie plate, expecting to see the signal
vf distress handei Mm at any minute.
, few years aco Willie Mitchell, of
the Cleveland club, won ten straight
QUINTET OF NORTHWEST ATHLETES WHO WILL BID TOR WORLD'S HONORS AT OLYMPIC GAMES
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games at the close of the season, when
all the cluba were at their best. It was
predicted that Mitchell would be a star
the following year. Great things were
expected of hlra. 1'erhaps Mitchell al
lowed this fact to worry him. He got
away to a bad start, was yanked from
the box any time he showed aliens of
faltering and as a result lost his con
fidence. Willie Mitchell has far more
stuff than many southpaws regarded
as stars of tho game. All he needs Is
the old-time confidence. Jt Is sure to
return with the clever Harry Pavis In
charite. There Is no Miner player In
the bastnesa than Harry lavis. 1 know
from experience. He showed hla con
fidence by his work In the world's se
ries after being out of the game for
months. Willie Mitchell Is sure to
Improve under his direction.
The Toughest Decision I
Ever Made.
JY WILLIAM B1KRHALTKR,
I'mpire American Ao:lailon.
In some way I don't believe any um
pire has had a more peculiar ruling to
make than was put up to me In a gatno
at Indianapolis on September 11. 1908.
The Columbus ami Indianapolis teams
were fighting for first place. Indian
apolis had a half game lead before the
gam started, but at the close of the
contest was In second place, because
of the ruling I was forced to make.
For seven Innings the two teams
went neck and nock, the score at that
time being a tie. at 1 and 1. The first
man up for Columbus in the eighth
Inning hit a hard one down the third
base line. The third sacker made a
nice play on the ball and got It to first
a step In advance of the runner. I
realised the decision would be close
and. as the ball struck the first base
man's glove. I called the runner out
Very unfortunately for me and the
Indianapolis club, the first baseman
Juggled the kail momentarily, the run
ner in the meantime passing over the
bag. Naturally I was forced to change
my decision, and did so by holding
the prams of my hands toward the
ground as Is customary with umpires.
The first sacker having heard me call
the runner out. threw the ball over
to the shortstop for a little practice,
as players often do after a batter has
been retired. Tho shortstop. In throw
ing the ball back to the first baseman,
made a bad heave, the ball going Into
the stands. I'nder the rules there was
nothing for me to do except to allow
the man to score from first on the play.
That run proved to be the deciding one
of the game and Incidentally toppled
the Hooslers Into second place for the
time being. Indianapolis managed to
win the pennant that year, but only
by a narrow margin of a game. If
that ruling had lost the pennant I
would have always had a delightful
time when working that city. In their
Joy over winning the pennant the fans
forgot about the peculiar ruling.
llerkcloy Athletes Win.
US ANQKI.KS. March IS. The I'nl
verslty of California athletes won their
annual track and field contest against
the Cnlverslty of Southern California
today by the score of s 1-1 to 6a 3-1.
Only one record was broken Shattuck
of the vlsitma team throwing tho ham
mer 1 feet X inches.
SPORTING GOODS.
Owing to tlie rapid growth of the
sporting good department of the
Aicher Wiatlns Company, a new
n-an hss been added to tl.at end of the
husirrss. Mr. oito II Weichelt. for
merly with a large Chicago sporting
goods house, entered the employment
of the firm and will take charge of
the wholesale trade.
IN SWEDEN THIS SUMJH.LJA.
'a
' ' J
Li'-.
STIEGER IS COIR
New Beaver Pitcher Boyhood
Chum of Gene Krapp.
SOUTHPAW'S RECORD GOOD
Portland Uremics Itcccnt 'Work Not
I'p to Wonderful Standard of
1-Vw Years Ago, but He Kx
pects to Have Best Year.
DV nosroK kawcktt.
SANTA MAitlA. .Marc h IS. tSpei iaJ.)
Two years ago Ucno Krapp helped
win a Coast Leaguo pennant for Wal
ter McCredle. Krapp, now with Cleve
land. Is a Detroit boy, and the fact
that Harry "Lefty" Stleger. Portland's
new southpaw pitcher, halls from the
same city may have Influenced the
Duaver chieftain in his determination
to obtain "Heinle." as lie Is faniiliarly
known. from the St. Taul club, to whom
lie gave Tommy Murray In exchange.
lty an odd whirl of, the wheel of fate.
Stleger and Krapp were boyhood
chums, both flinging for rival teams on
the corner lots of the Michigan metrop
olis. When the lads were about 15
years old the two opposed each other
In a game for the city championship
played at the American League park
before an Immense audience, and Stle
ger. officiating for the Mohawks, won
over Krapp and his Banners, 13 to 10.
Both la Same Class.
Krapp and Stleger started their pro
fessional experiences together, too. Eu
gene going to Tecumseh In the Michi
gan Slate League, and Stleger to Jack
son. In the same circuit. That was In
107, when "Heinle" was only 19 years
old he Is ii now but his work was
such as to attract the attention of the
Detroit management, and Stleger got
a 12J0 diamond ring as his share of
the profits obtained by Owner A. S.
Murkhart from the sale.
Stleger was considered too young
even for a Spring trial with Detroit,
so was sent away to Springfield In the
Three-Kye league. Here he met with
wonderful success, winning more than
25 games. Ijtrry Doyle played third
for Springfield, while Otis Crandall was
with Cedar Kapiils and Iva Howard
with the same club. Dick Kgan was
with Peoria and many other ballplay
ers were In the circuit.
But It was the next season. 1909. that
St lexer created the pitching record that
la still the wonder of the Middle West
ern fans, winning li games lie says
ho really won 16 and losing but one.
Oae Vaae l,oC la Season.
"I had great luck that year." said
Stleger, when pressed for- information,
for he Is naturally a quiet, modest
sort of follow, a married man by -the
way. "The only game'l did lose was
brokem up by Thll Nadeau. now of
Portland, who won for Davenport 1-0
by a two-base hit driving a runner
over the pan."
The. Boston Americans drafted Stle
ger that Fall and sent him to St. Paul
for seasoning, and "Heinle" remained
the entire season of 1910 with tlie
Saints, doing little pitching but get
ting Into an occasional game In the
outfield and at first base. The Jack
of -all-trades occupation naturally af
9
r -1 t f , i
fected
pitching In
games
1-ant year he was with St. Paul until
August 15, winning two and losing
three, when Manager Kelley shipped
lilm to Sioux City, in the Western
Keiiguo. us he had doue with Marty
O'Toole. the year before.
At Sioux City, Sticgor won five and
lost five and startled the natives early
In the Kali by heaving a no-hit. no
run ganio against the Denver Grizzlies.
This whs nothing like O'Toola's re
markable record of 2.1 wins and four
losses with Sioux City, but Stleger says
that Kellev came very n.'nr releasing
O'Toole in the Spring of 1911 when tho
$22.50.0 spltball artist got off to a very
bad start.
"A great many Western Leaguors
think that "Buck'- O'Brien, the spitball
heaver bought by the Boston Ameri
can from Denver. Is better than
O'Toole. now with Pittsburg." said the.
new Portland portsidcr. "O'Toole told
me that he got i:00 from the $22,000
obtained by his sale by St. Paul and
that he and Chech, the pitcher Hold to
Iais Angele-s. had invested lit an apple
ranch somewhere near Portland."
titieger sayn it Is almost impossible
to curve, a ball at Denver, owing to
the rarity of the mountain air, and
that this accounts for tho high but
ting figures turned out annually by
the official scorer. The Western
League used the Goldsmith rubber
cored ball last season, and Stieger be
lieves it fully up to th standard of
the former official sphere. Tho new
ball has been adopted for a period of
five years by the. Coast League.
.Mlegcr Ileeeatly Married.
Harry married n Detroit girl about
10 months ago. and will bring his wife,
to the CoaM with him later on. He. Is
well acquainted with Fred Lamllne.
"Skin" Harris of the Portland North
western team and many other former
Michigan State and Three-Eye Leaguers
now on the Coast.
His measurements are: weight. 180
pounds, ajicl height. 5 feet 11 Inches.
His nickname signifies he is a Dutch
man, and as such qualifies in the wooden-booted
section with Artie Krueger.
Bill Ilapps. Dave Bancroft, Joe Matlies
and Vern Hlrsch.
"I think I'll make good," was his
only comment when asked If he had
anything to say before the passing of
Judgment.
LEFTY STEIGER.
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PACIFIC NORTHWEST
HAS MUCH TO OFFER
East Fears America May Be
Weak in Sprints but
West Says "No."
EVIDENCE IS CONVINCING
With Nelson, Edniundson, Bclliih,
Walsh, Thomassen, Hawkins and
Others This Port or Country
Should Be Able to' Show.
BT HERBERT J. CAMPBELL.
Fear Is being expressed among the
track and field authorities of the East
that the American track team will be
weak In the sprints at the Olympic
games at Sweden this Summer.
The announcement by Ralph Craig,
the Michigan flier, has left many with
the Impression that the chance of the
United States in the two shorter dashes,
the 100 and 200-meter events, is vir
tually gone, and this feeling of hope
lessness is carried further to the quarter-mile,
where the bright stars of for
mer days have gone out
It is Just probable that the East, In
Its usual manner, has forgotten that
there Is a West, and especially a Pacific
Northwest, a section which has been
grinding out athletes In a fashion
which haa made other parts of the
country look sorry recently.
Pacific Northwest to Be There.
In the sprints, and especially In the
three events named, the Pacific North
west hopes and expects to send men
who. will not only defeat all other
Americans, but who will carry the
starred shield to victory ahead of all
other contestants In the world.
In Jack Nelson, the wonderful Pull
man speed demon. Is a man who, even
though only now coming into his prime,
has already demonstrated his ability
against the best the land has produced.
At Pittsburg last Summer, running un
der the colors of the Seattle Athletic
Club, Nelson easily won his heats in
the 220-yard dash and In the final he
romped home ahead of a large field in
21 4-5 seconds. Earlier In the day in
the century dash Nelson tore through
two preliminary heats and won easily
in 10 seconds fiat, putting out men who
had been counted upon as winners.
Then, In the semi-final, the Washing
ton flyer, was left standing on the
mark when his competitors were al
lowed to go on a poorly-shot gun. The
Seattle entry raised no outcry, but
bided his time until the 220, which he
won with ease.
In the quarter-mile event the Pacific
Northwest has two men to offer.
Brailey Gish, formerly of Seattle, and
Clarence Edmundson. the Idaho middle
distance runner. Gish has placed sec
ond in two recent National champion
ships, in 1909 and 1911. both times be
ing beaten by Lindberg. also a marvel.
Gish's race at the Pittsburg games last
Summer brought forth no little com
ment, and he was beaten by a scant
three or four inches.
Kdmundson la 1'nbeatable.
Yet there was not a man on the Seat
tle team which went East last year
which did not know that Edmundson
could beat Gish at least by five yards
in the quarter-mile. He could not enter
the event, in fact, has almost invar
iably been excluded from It, because
of it coming so soon after the half
mile, the event In which he stars. But
at Stockholm only one race of a similar
kind will be run on each day, and Ed
mundson will have every chance to dis
play what he can do. "Bill" Hayward.
the Oregon trainer of champions, has
been quoted as saying that Edmundson
is unbeatable in his specialty.
Edmundson will also be able to shine
in the half-mile, an event in which he
has been beaten but once, when he fell
five yards from the finish at rittsburg
last year when his foot struck a soft
spot on the track. Inasmuch as Ed
mundson was leading the marvelous
Mel Sheppard by five yards at the time
of his unlucky fall, and as Sheppard
finished in 1:54 1-5, a full second below
the former A. A. U. record, Edmund-
sons performance siampea mm as a
champion of champions.
There are other athletes of the Pa
cific Northwest who will be heard from
on the 1912 United States team to the
Olympic games. Portland, as usual.
will be represented, altnougn not Dy
such a galaxy of stars as carried tho
fame of Oregon around the world In
1908 Smithson, Gilbert and Kelly. Sam
Bcllah. In the pole vault, daily round
ing Into top form, probably will be
Portland's leading light.
Bellak la Great Form.
Bcllah Is in such shape this season
that it would not be surprising if he
should add to the record in his partic
ular event. But another Oregonian
who may be heard from Is Martin
Hawkins, the great University of Ore
BEAVER RECRUIT, BOYHOOD RIVAL
gon hurdler, whose record is only one
fifth second less than that of the
great Forrest Smithson. Oregon's
champion, now at Los Angeles.
Still another athlete who will rep
resent the Pacific Northwest is Con
Walsh, of Seattle, the giant weight
tosser. Walsh, although not a product
of the Pacific Northwest, has developed
wonderfully here and in practice he
has recently been breaking his own
world record with the 56-pound shot.
Walsh, representing the New York
Athletic Club, won the 16-pound ham
mer throw at the National champion
ships last year, with 177 feet 6 'A
inches, beating even Matt McGrath.
The previous year he won the 66
pound weight event at the champion
ships. Seattle has still one other possibility,
although he is little other than a pos
sibility at present. This is Walter
Thomassen, high jumper, who won the
high Jump at the 1910 National cham
pionship with six feet two Inches. He
competed at Pittsburg last year but
failed to qualify. At the New Orleans
games, in 1910, Thomassen cleared the
bar at six feet six inches, a world's
record, and just after he alighted a
puff of wind carried down the bar and,
under the rules, the jump which other
wise would have broken the wonderful
mark set by M. F. Sweeney in 1893, a
mark which has since not even been
approached save on this one occasion,
was disallowed.
It Is such men as these that the Pa
cific Northwest has to offer to the
country to uphold its honor against the
other nations of the world men who
are virtually Incomparable In their re
spective events. Eight athletes of
such a small territory are enough of an
index to point to something other than
chance. It may be In the air. it may
be that do or die spirit which rules the
people of this great district, but what
ever It is, it is there.
The claim that the Pacific North
west will make for recognition on the
American team may not meet with im
mediate favor from the East, but there
is but one man of the entire eight
Hawkins who is not already known
for his prowess to the officials in
charge of picking the team and these
men are looking for men who will be
able to win. And even Hawkins, they
have beard of, and they are watching
him.
On his performances this season over
the high sticks, and particularly in the
Pacific Coast try-outs when he will
have a chance to compete against
Smithson, will depend whether he also
will be one of the men who will sail
across the seas primed to the minute
to wrest from the nations, centuries
old, tho laurels which the newest Na
tion of them all has learned so well
to wear In recent decades.
LEAGUE SCHEDULE ARRANGED
Railway Men's Tennis Open Season's
Games on April 6.
The Railway Baseball League will
open its season on April 6, with a two
game schedule with four teams on the
roll: The O.-W. R. & N. Company, the
Norfh Bank, the Northern Express
Company and the Portland Railway,
Light & Power Company nines will
contain much fast talent, gathered from
the best independent teams of the city.
The schedule:
April 6 O.-W. R. & N. against
North Bank: Northern Express Com
pany against Portland Railway, Light
& l'ower Company.
April 13 North Bank against North
ern Express Company: O.-W. R. & N.
against Portland Railway, Light &
Power Company.
April 20 O.-W. R. & N. against
Northern Express Company; North
Bank against Portland Railway, Light
& Power Company.
April 27 Northern Express Company
against Portland Railway, Light &
Power Company; O.-W. R. & N. against
North Bank.
May 4 O.-W. R. & X. against Port
land Railway, Light & Power Company;
North Bank against Northern Express,
May 11 North Bank against Port
land Railway. Light & Power Com
pany; O.-W. R. & X. against Northern
Express Company.
Mav 18 O.-W. R. & N. against North
Bank; Northern Express Company
against Portland Railway, Light i
Power Company.
May 23 O.-W. R. & N. against Port
land Railway, Light & Power Company;
North Bank against Northern Express
Company.
June 1 North Bank against Portland
Railway. Light & Power Company; O.
W. R. & N. against Northern Express
Company.
ATHLETES' UXIFOKMS CHOSEN
Red, White and Blue to Be Colors
of Garb of American Team.
NEW YORK. March 16. To dis
tinguish American athletes who will
represent this country at the Olympic
games from those of other countries
while in Sweden next Summer, the
American Olympic committee has de
cided on a special uniform for its rep
resentatives. All Americans will wear
a white jacket, white cap and white
trunks, with a red. white and blue
stripe down each side. On the jacket
and cap there will be a large American
shield.
That the uniforms will fit. the man
agers of fhe different tryouts, which
will be liell on June 8 at Cambridge.
Chicago and. San Francisco, have been
instructed by the committee to have
each athlete who enters, state on his
entry blank' the size of the cap. jacket
and trunks he might have to use.
OF GENE KRAPP.
OLYMPIC
US
HELP AMERICANS
Members of Same Country's
Team Not to Compete in
Eliminations.
MARATHON AIDES BARRED
Running of Similar Events Close
Together May Hurt United States
Men, AVho Await Programme.
Sprinters Arc Lacking.
BY EDWARD It. Bl'SHXEI.!..
There are to be two radical innova
tions in the rules governing the Olym
pic games to be held at Stockholm,
Sweden, this Summer. One of them, at
least, is sure to be of incalculable bene
fit to this country, and the other con
tains some merit. Kristian Hellstrom,
the secretary of tho Swedish Olympic
committee, has sent tT the American
committee the decision of his commit
tee on several important features of
the rule.
The most important feature of the
new rules is that the Swedish com
mittee intends so to arrange the heats
that the best men of a given country
shall not be drawn together in tho
preliminaries. In this respect the
Swedish committee proposes to show a
consideration to America which the
British committee denied in 1908. There
were several flagrant cases of this dis
regard of America's rights and wishes
at the 1908 Olympiad.
The worst case occurred in the 1500
meter run In which Melvln Sheppard
and J. P. Halstead were drawn In tho
same preliminary heat. The rule pro
vided that only the winner of a heat
should be allowed to start in the final.
Inasmuch as Sheppard and Halstead
were admittedly the best men America
had for this event there was much in
dignation that. they should have been
drawn in the same heat.
In spite of tne protest the British
committee refused to make any change.
As it happened, Sheppard and Halstead
had the most gruelling kind of a race
for the honor of starting In the final.
So keen was the struggle that Shep
pard, to beat the Cornell man by the
bare margin of a foot, had to create a
new Olympic record. As It turned out,
Sheppard won the final from Wilson,
of England, but his victory was by a
more comfortable margin than that by
which Sheppard had beaten his Ameri
can rival. If these two men had been
placed In different heats, the chances
are that America, instead of winning
only first place, would have had first
and second.
English. Kxcnse Weak.
The English committee gave as iti
excuse for this apparent discrimination
against the United States thai, they
were following tho custom pursued in
their own championships.
The Swedes are approaching th
problem in the same way that the In
tercollegiate Amateur Athletic Associ
ation of America handles it at its an
nual championships. At these game;
there is a rule providing that heals
shall be so arranged that no college
shall start more than one man in a
single heat unless absolutely neces
sary, and then, it is provided that tin
two representatives of a single uni
versity are not its best men. This in
sures getting the four fastest men int
the final, if four is the number allowed
The second important change in tin
rules affects the Marathon run. This
event is to bo run over hilly ground,
probably a more difficult course tlmr
that at London in 1908. But the Swedes
have decided that they will allow nc
attendant to accompany the runners
on bicycles. At London each runnel
was permitted to have an attendant
on a bicycle to meet him at the end
of tho first five miles and accompany
him to the entrance of the Stadium
The attendant was allowed to give th
runner nourishment and other assist
ance. The Swedes intend that eacr
runner shall go every step of the wa)
without any other assistance than thai
which Is provided by men stationed
along the course to- give information
when needed or look after any athlete:
who fall by the wayside in distress.
Doubling Ip May Be Prevented.
There is a great deal of curiosity tt
see the arrangement of the Swedish
programme to learn to what extent the
Americans will be able to double up in
various events. It was reported some
time ago that the Swedes had so ar
ranged the various events that th
Americans who have a habit of dou
bling up in such events as the 100 and
the 200 meters and the 800 and the
1500 meters run could not do so. If
they are put close together, as ru
mored, it will be only an exceptional
man who will be able to duplicate hia
performances. N
It will be good news to the Ameri
cans that Forrest Smithson has started
to train for the Olympic games. With
the possible exception of Kranzlein,
Smithson is the greatest hurdler that
thi3 country ever developed. He won
the 110-meter hurdle race at London in
15 seconds flat. One hundred and ten
meters is equal to 121 yards, so 'that
Smithson's time, applied to the regu
lation distance of 120 yards, was equi
valent to almost 1 4-5 seconds and
was the fastest hurdling that the ath
letic world has ever seen.
At the recent San Francisco games,
Ralph Rose shoved the 16-pound shot
out more than 61 feet. With him and
such men as Beatty, of Columbia Uni
versity, and Horner, of Michigan, the
latter two being able to put the leaden
hall more than 48 feet, this country
need not fear any foreign shot-putters.
America Lacks Sprinters.
At the present writing the Ameri
cans do not have as good prospects in
the sprints and the 400 meters events
as in 1!I08. If R. C. Craig persists in
his determination not to compete in
the two short sprints this country will
be In a bad way unless a number of
hiirh-class men are developed this
Spring. In 1908 this country had at
least half a dozen men who were con
sistent 10-second performers. This
year, outside of Craig, there is not a
single man who has shown 10-second
form. Henry, of Texas, won the A. A.
U. championship last. Summer in 10
seconds flat, but he has yet to demon
strate a consistency equal to that of
Craig. Marshall, of Pennsylvania, has
a record of 10 seconds, and next to
Henry he seems to be the best of the
new sprinters.
The same conditions exist in the 400
meter run. In 1908 America had Tay
lor, of Pennsylvania, with a record of
48 4-5 seconds: Carpenter, of Cornell,
with a mark of 49 seconds; Robbins, of
Boston, who was as fast; Do Si-lding.
of Harvard, and Merriam. of Chicago,
both of whom were good for 50 sec
onds. This year there aro but two
Americans in competition who have
consistently beaten 50 seconds. They
arc. Young, of Amherst, who has a
mark of 48 4-5 seconds, and Daven
port, of Chicago, who has mado tha
same time.