The Sunday Oregonian., July 25, 1920, Magazine Section, Page 3, Image 77

AMERICAN ATHLETES ON TIPTOE FOR OLYMPIC
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Earl Eby, a product of dilcaco pnblie
achools. will wear the UnWeralty of
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ter event.
BT WALTER V. DUNN.
AMERICA'S manhood today la pre
paring to attack the world in
athletics. Almost every nation
in the world Is keyed upo perspiring
pitch in advance of the coming Olym
pic games to be held this year at
Antwerp.
These contests of speed, strength,
skill and honor. In which our country
baa thus far done itaolf proud, are a
modern revival of perhaps the oldest
and most earnestly worshiped athletic
festivals recorded In the great works
of the world. For the series which
opened on the little plain of Olympia,
I T. -1 I i n O w 0 - . - . . M
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Bethlehem ushered In a new era, was
a revival of athletic rites previously
revived by Iphltus, king of Ells, In
884 B. C, and then said to have been
practiced time out of mind. There
fore the date of the first of these fes
tivals may be lost in the dawn of his
tory. Far different from the present pur
pose was that of the first Olympio
games. They were religious rites per
formed for the gratification of the
Greek god Zeus, and they were sur
rounded by all the pomp and cere
mony of that ancient system of belief
which nourished civilization.
Throughout the 1174 years of their
unbroken history they formed an ex
pression of Hellenic religious piety
and Hellenic pride of race those two
- pillars upon which rested the power
and progress of Greece.
tnce every four years during these
centuries the flower of Grecian youth
came together in the small state of
Elis, on the western coast of the
Peloponnesus, and there, on the sacred
plain, dedicated Its manhood to the
Hellenic piety and bore witness to the
strength of the blood that united Ath
ens and Sparta with the distant
dwellers in the Greek settlements
along the coast of the Black sea or
the Qulf of Lyons.
The midsummer moon of each euc-
ceedlng quadrennlum beamed on this
pilgrimage, and long before its face
was full heralds went forth through
out Greece to proclaim a truce, during
which peace was obligatory between
city and city and state and state
for these were a covetous folk and
they quarreled much amonc them
selves.
In order that the contestants in the
games might proceed to Olympia with
out molestation or attaok, however, a
month of peace preceded each celebra
tion. ' And during this, month there
journeyed to Elis the noblest speci
mens of Greek manhood, such flawless
types as Inspired the chisels Of Phidias
and Praxiteles.
The plain of Olympia, as descHbed
in the pages of the National Review
of London, was hallowed ground, ded
icated to Zeus.
On Its northern side was the Altis
or sanctum. In it were the temples of
Zeus and Of Hera and altars to te
meter and Aphrodite, and it was
adorned, to say the least, as time went
on, sth the most exquisite produc
tiotis of Hellenic art, including the
statue of Zeus by Phidias, that same
from which he removed and weighed
the gold In order to disprove the ac
cusatton that he had been guilty of
speculation In his use of the precious
metal.
Extreme care was taken to prevent
the games who would by lack of char
acter or piety profane the rellglou
nature of the festival. The first qual
, ification was that of pure Helleni
blood, but no Vouth who had been
branded by his own state for any dis
graceful offense or was known to
have sinned against divine laws was
allowed to compete. Lack of patriot
ism was also sufficient to exclude
competitor.. Thus the horses of Hleron
of Syracuse were excluded at the in
stance of Themlstocles because he had
failed to take part with his country
men in resisting the Persian danger.
The festival was dedicated absolutely
to the manhood of the race. No worn
an might cross the river Alpheus,
which bounded the plain on the south,
tinder pain of being thrown from the
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THE
The Very Finest
the Old Greek Contests; Every Section of the Union Will Be
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The man picked to carry off pentathloa honors, which went to Jim Weat
Thorpe, the famona Indian. In lia, ia none other than a boy from M.
Kansas farina. He la Everett Bradley, a student at the state univer
sity there.
Typaean rock, though a single excep
tion to this law was made in favor of
the priestess of Demeter, who sat at
an altar of white marble during the
festival. One daring woman. It is
true, made an exception for herself,
but when her sex was discovered was
pardoned on the ground that her
father, her brothers and her son had
all been victors in the games.
The candidate, having proved that
he was a freeman of pure Hellenic
blood, was required also to furnish
proof that he had trained for the
contests during ten months, to swear
before the statue of Zeus that he
would be guilty of no crime In con
nection with the contests and finally
to attend for 30 days certain pre
scribed exercises under the judges,
who enforced the laws of the con
tests, determined thT) winners, pre
sented the prizes and presided over
the ceremony, sitting In purple robes
special seats.
The competitors, after havfhg their
names and countries proclaimed by
eralds, took up their places by lot.
were exhorted to acquit themselves
nobly and the winner was crowned
on a table of gold with the garland
f wild olive cut by a boy with a
golden sickle from the sacred grove
ear the altar of Aphrodite. The
great gathering, which lasted some
four or five day at the period of
highest development, was concluded
by a religious ceremony, in which
the deputies, representing the various
states, made sacrifices to Zeus.
As might be expected in an Insti
tution which had a continuous exist-
nce Of nearly 12 centuries. Its ath
letic side had a gradual development.
Thus, for 13 Olympiads a short foot
race is the only event of which any
reoord can be found. This was run
ver a course of 600 Greek feet, the
length of the stadium. The Greek
foot being only six millimeters short
f the English foot, this race may be
ompared for all practical uses to our
present 220 yards. '
From the next Olympiad, the 14th
onward, was added a race of two
stadia or 400 yards. rWlth the 15th
Olympiad were Introduced longer
races from six to 24 stadia. Only at
the 18th Olympiad, 72 years after the
revival of the festival, were general
athletics instituted by the Inclusion
of wrestling and the pentathlon of
five exercises, which doubtless was
the origin of the pentathlon common
ly termed today. It included leaping.
foot race, throwing the discus and
the javelin and wrestling. In that
year also came some sort of a long
Jump In which Croton is said to have
cleared 55 feet. Gutterson or Worth-
ngton, two of America' Olympic
entrants of recent years, would have
dumbfounded the world's officials had
they leaped to a distance of 25 feet.
Therefore It is the belief that Cro-
ton' long-standing record must have
been made in the form of the present-
day hop, skip and jump, for which
Dan Abearn holds a record of 50 feet
H inches, mad at Celtic park, New
York, In 1911.
Boxing and horse racing were added
to the 23d Olympiad; chariot rac
ing with four Jull-grown horses at
the 25th. Later 'came the pancratium
or wrestling and boxing combined.
Subsequent addition to the pro-
Eiaiuiim were me iooi races ror men
In armor, which was Introduced at
th 65th Olympiad, and the competi
tion of heralds and trumpeter, which
came in with the 96th celebration
The other items which came after
ward were mainly development of
some of these, in Which the exten
sion of a whole series of contests for
boys was included. Thus there were
chariot races with mules, with mares,
with foals, both pair and four-ln
hand, and horse races for foals. Most
of the adult exercises, like boxing
and foot racing and the pantathlon,
were thrown Open to the boys and by
the 145th Olympiad that la. In the
year 196 B. . C. the programme in
cluded 24 events and occupied about
..lve days' time. ..
The poorest citizen could compete
in the games, and the noblest and the
lowest , of the Hellenic race met side
SUNDAY OltEGONIAN,
Examples of Uncle Sam's Young
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One of the most conn latent mile nn
In America today la Jole Ray.
who wear the Insignia of the Illi
nois A. C. of Chicago. Middle west
ern sportsmen uai htm to uphold
our country', mama la th 1500
meter ran.
by. side and were held to have hon
ored each other by their rivalry,
though th equestrian exercises were
undoubtedly confined to those of the
richer classes. It is notable that as
years wore on women wer allowed
to enter theff horses for the chariot
races and were often triumphant, the
first woman so distinguished being
Cynlsca, the sister of Agesllaus.
The winners had their rewards from
th citizens of their own state or
country, which frequently took thi
form of triumphal progress. The re
ward of the Olympia itself was purely
one of honor. The garland of wild
olive was the winner s sole prize, but
his statue was erected In the Altls.
and his name given to the Olympiad
in which he prevailed, a period of
four years, by which the Hellenic his
torian came to measure their chron
ology; thus the first Olympiad was
known as that of Corebus, the win
ner in 776 B. C, and from that year
onwara until 217 B. C. the winner of
MAIDEN CITY OF IRELAND HAS CHARM
CHARACTERIZED BY SONG IN MARCHING
Along Two-Mile Quays of River Irishmen Jolly Each Other as They Load and Unload the Foreign, Colo
nial and Coasting Trade of Docking Vessels Four L ines Tell Story.
W
ASHINGTON, July 24. Th Na- I
tlonal Geographic society has
Issued the following bulletin
about Londonderry, Ireland: j
"Derry, or Londonderry, in Ulster,
known In song and legend as the
Maiden City of Ireland, has the charm
of the encery, busy town and Is truly
characterized by the stirring march
ing song which these Irish sing on
their days of celebration:
'Where foyU Ms swelling waters rolls
northward to the main:
Here, Queen of Hrtn'a daughters, fairy
Derry fixed her reign;
A holy tempi crowned her, and com-
, merce graced her street:
A rampart wall was round her, the river
at her feet."
'These four lines briefly tell Lon
donderry's story. Along the two-mile
quays of the river Irishmen jolly each
other as they load and unload the
foreign, colonial and coasting trade of
the docking vessels. For the Foyle is
wide and deep, and large tonnage
ships sailing the flags of France, Aus
tralia, Brazil, the United States and
India bring their wares to her port.
Kusy looms in the city make linen and.
then laughing, twinkly-eyed Irish
girls make the linen into shirts be
fore it leaves Londonderry. The sal
mon fishery on the Foyie is important
and the town has timber mills, foun
dries, grain mills and shipyards.
. "But Derry has for the traveler a
charm greater than Its hustle and up-
and-doing atmosphere the story of a
past replete with romance, devotion
to principle and the exhibition of an
Indomitable spirit. Columna,- the
greatest of the Irish saints after Pat
rick and Brigid, in 546 looked on the
oak-clad hills and coveted them.
Here he founded his abbey, known
PORTLAND, JULY 25,
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Cheater. Pi, ia Bending- Liwkbc
Shlelda to capture the hlsheat hoaora
la the 1500-meter race.
V: N J . r ;t- At-
Captaia B. G. D. Itudd of th Oxford university team will find more opposi
tion from Americana In a scratch race. lie will be an entry from South
Africa la the Antwerp gamea.
each of the contests every fourth year I tlon of the Olympics of which we are
Is recorded.
For the more modern revival of the
Olympic games th world may. be
grateful to Baron Pierre de Coubertln.
an eminent French sportsman. It was
his idea of th possibility of applying
to modern conditions and interna
tional sports the ideas and traditions
of the ancient festivals, and he was
the leading character in the forma-
as Daire-Columbkllle or Columba'a
oak grove, within th shadow of th
great fort on a neighboring hill, the
stronghold of the lord Of Tyrone, In
order that his sanctuary might have
the protection of the fort. But In vain
did he reckon his rhanoea against the
Danes and Baxonu who, tim and
again, pushed their boats against his
shores.
Despite their plunderlngs and burn
ings, th settlement, of which he had
made th nucleus, grew and main
tained it independence against even
the English until 1609.
Walls Wide ISnoueh for Coach.
Derry was then given to the cor
poration of London, which tacked on
the prefix London. Three year later
the Irish society, to which London
derry and much of the surrounding
country had been given, pledged itself
to enclose Derry within walls, and
these walls, wide enough for a coach
and four, are excellently preserved
today, perhaps to the inconvenience
of the inhabitants, but certainly in
accordance with their sentiment and
wishes. Anyone who expressed a de
sire that they be taken down would
be treated as a traitor.
Long ago they grew too email to
encompass all the inhabitants of the
hustling port, but they stand like a
stiff belt around the waist line of the
hill on which th city is built. The
most inconvenient thing about them is
that, though they are more than a
mile In circumference, there are only
seven gates leading through them.
Because the walls defended the city
in the Biege begun by James IL a busy
1920
Manhood Will Be
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Patrick; McDoaald, a New York policeman, whoae atrencth won him a
place in the 1013 Olympic at Stockholm, la aa-aln prepared to match
his power of muscles with the world's best weight men.
so much concerned today.
As a result of the Interest and en
exemplified the glory of Greece, after
lapse of 1502 years, the Olympiads
were resumed, and four years later
the cames were held in Paris. Then
thuslasm thus created, th,e first Olym
pio games of modern times was held
In Athens in midsummer of 189C.
There In the very city which onco
man must make quite a jaunt out of
his way to find a passageway through
them, but. true1 to Irish sentiment, he
does it without a murmur. On one of
the bastions of t h lalwnaeshrdluuu
the bastions of the wall an old gun
affectionately known as 'Roaring
Meg,' points Jier nose over the city.
Cemetery Surrounds Cathedral.
"Here, too, on the hill in the center
of a crowded old graveyard stands the
quaint, squat cathedral with Its queer
pinnacled tower. It Is called after St.
Columba, although it is not on the
site of the old abbey built by the
saint 14 centuries ago.
"On a high. Inaccessible hill In the
distance looms th stronghold of the
lords of Tyrone. It is said that St.
Patrick came to the fort to baptize
Owen, who first set himself up to rule
over the province of Tyrone, and St.
Columba visited it before his exile
Here, too, captive Danes who had
threatened the peace of the .city were
dragged in triumph.
"Though every trace of the old cas
tie has been obliterated, the massive
stone wall 14 feet thick and 18 feet
high, resembling the handiwork of
cyclops, has stood out grimly against
the centuries. A small iron gate
hangs across a two-foot doorway, the
only entrance to Its huge amphithe
ater-lik interior, which reveals fur
ther devices designed for the protec
tion of the inmates."
Bank Clerks Come to Canada.
MONTREAL, P. Q. On board the
"Megantio." which docked her dur
Ing the week, was a party of 43 bank
clerks from England lor tne uomln
ion bank at Toropto.
Competitors
Represented
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la the 1811 game Bans Kohlemalaen,
a Finnish boy. won three first
places, after which he came to
America and act UP numerous rec
ord In distance raeea. Han will
repreaeat Finland again thla sum
mer. In 1904 th OlymDlad was held in St.
Louis.
An Olympiad was planned for Rome
In 1902, but some unexpected difficul
ties arose causing it to go to
London.
Athena celebrated th 10th anni
versary of the modern revival of th
games by a mammoth festival in 1906,
two years before the London classic
The games held In Stockholm, Sweden,
In 1Q19 rex frufih In thA mlnrift of a
... .
great many, although the world has
uffered doubtless from Its greatest
period of strife since then. Th Olym-
tc of 1916. It- will be remembered,
ad been planned for Berlin. We are
not dependent upon historians to give
the cause for postponement until
the present summer.
It seems quite befitting that the
oomlng games should be held upon
the reconstructed peaceful soil of the
Belgians, who by courageous deeds
are able to send out heralds calling
ogether the flower of manhood from
their allies. Queen Elizabeth and King
Albert are going to present th wild
olive branches with more pride and
gratification than ever bestowed by
rulers spoken of in the history of the
Olympics. Before th summer passes
scenes of the most dramatic touch
will b written by the sportsmen of
the world. We venture to say that 75
per cent of the American athletes
wnm to faithful training for this
great meet to be held In Antwerp
have been "over there." Needless to
say, many are sleeping beneath the
soil over which the time-honored mr
athon Is to be run. from Brussels to
Ghent. What a solemn thought It is
Unquestionably the games of 1920 will
be as religious as recreative.
In speaking of the ancient mara
thon brings to mind an event tnat
has never been short of a dramatic or
marvelous incident to all Olympic
games. Perhaps the most marvelous
accomplishment in Olympiad history
was written- around Loues, the shep
herd boy of th Attlcan hills, who,
without special training, saved the
day and honor of entire Greece by
Winning the memorable marathon of
1896 for his countrymen,
Famous writers tell us that the
hopes of Greece winning at least one
event were fading with the light that
gradually disappeared from that great
Athenian stadium of marble. Amerl
cans were sweeping victoriously
through the majority of the events,
and all had been completed save the
marathon, which long race began On
the plains from which the name was
taken centuries before. When the
signal gun for the marathon was
Cired every person arose from his
seat. .They strained their gaze to
ward the street leading from -over
the Illssus. The cavalry dashed down
the street, clearing the way for the
tired runner. But sound ran faster
than horse or man, and before the
runner appeared to those in the sta
lium they bad caught the cry, "It is
a Greek; we win."
A lady from Smyrna took off her
jewels and sent them to Loues.
3
GAMES
. W. Richards will doubtless make
hla final try to win the Interna
tional honors In high Jump event.
little shepherd boy from the Attlcan
hills. Others followed with showers
of tokens for tne victor. Th host
of people rolled the applause back
ward and forward. The hopes of the
generous, hospitable Greeks wer
fulfilled.
Loues received the spontaneous ova
tion of his nation. Th peasant of
the village of Amarovsl was the hero
of Greece. He had saved his coun
trymen from th almost inevitable
shame, that of not winning an event
In the great Olympiad. Dramatic tales
soon reached the ears of the visiting
scribes. It was said that Loues had
told the starters at Marathon that he
would win the race or die. Again
a story was told that Loues had en
tered the marathon wltli the hope of
gaining the recognition of high offi
cials, who might release his brother
from prison. This report was met by
Loues' denial, stating that he knew
the tradition of Grecian games, which
meant nothing but honor to himself
and kindred.
The various Olympiads have bad
their pathetic sides and their amus
ing as well. A story is told of how
the Hungarians almost created tur
moil during the games held in Paris
In 1900. Those who witnessed these
events will never forget the scene
that took place when the confusion
of the Parisian bandmaster stirred th
emotion of th Austria-Hungary ad
herents. Th bandmaster was In
formed by th official to signalize
th nation winning each event by
playing the national anthem of that
country.
. intnusiasm ran nign; in uuiura
almost oulged with humanity. At th
Enthusiasm ran high; the stadium
Paris game of 1900 Americans wer
winning with annoying repetition to
other nations. Kraenzletn, a product
of the University of Pennsylvania, had
won the 60-meter sprint. His suc
cess was announced by the playing
of the "Star-Spangled Banner."
Jarvis, an American, won the 100-
meter dash. This achievement was
signaled by th playing of th "Star-
Spangled Banner."
Tewkesbury, another son of old
Fenn.. captured th 100-meter event.
This was made known to th multi
tude by a repetition of th "Star-
Spangled Banner."
Long, also an American entry.
romped home with premier honor In
the 400-meter race. His victory wa
announced to th tuneful rendition of
the "Star-Spangled' Banner."
George Ortan. another entry, fol
lowed by faithful sons of th red and
blue, finished first in the 2500-meter
steaplechase. By this time America's
national anthem wa sharing the fa
miliarity of the "Marseillaise" with th
Parisian musicians. Kraenzletn fig
ured In another victory: Baxter tri
umphed for Uncle Sam; Prlnsteln fol
lowed with like success. The "Star-
Spangled Banner" by this time waa
contagloua to th vocal parte of th
world. Before Ewry was through his
performance the tun had been
played three more tlmea. Partisans
of other national sections pleaded, but
the pleadings were of no effect upon
the foreign entrants.
In course of time a" Hungarian by'
the name of Bauer finished with th
greatest distance In th discus event.
For your information it wa only 118
feet, 2 9-10 inches. The dormant emo
tions of the Hungarian attendance
waa awakened. Something terrible
had reached their ears. The volume
of protests echoed in the Champs
Elysscs. Persons housed In dingy
places along the Montmartre were
startled from their ignorance of what
was going on kilometers away.
The picturesque scene had become
violent In aspect. Men carrying their
silk hats and waving canes in atmos
phere filled with verbal combat,
rushed from the stadium toward the
field. Women joined In the attack,
leading frightened children. It was a
terrible mistake on the part of the
Parisian bandmaster. Probably from
force of habit he replayed the "Star
Spar.gled Banner" even though Bauer
was victorious for the Hungarians.
Thu go the stories of former Olym
piads. What is In store for the ath-
the'letes of the world this year?
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