THE STUDENTS JOURNAL.
9
CORRESPONDENCE.
COLUMBIAN LETTER
I notice, in its interesting account of the Kansas-Missouri football game, the Kansas City Times speaks rather unfavorably of the absence of rough play, and characterizes the game as lady-like. Any reference to that game may at this date seem stale to readers of the STUDENTS JOURNAL, but they must remember that neither the newspaper that brought me the account of th game, nor this letter, traveled by telegraph; for notwithstanding its many very creditable and important improvements this year, I believe the STUDENTS JOURNAL doesn't yet receive telegraphic dispatches. We may however expect them in the near future.
From what I have read of the Kansas University games of 1894, they have all been free from rough play, and I hope they may continue so. If the Western game is lady-like, it is certain that the Eastern game is not, nor is it even manly. I attended, on Thanksgiving day, a football game, played by Georgetown College and the Columbia Athletic Club, for the championship of the District of Columbia. Within fifteen minutes after play began, four men had been carried off the field on the shoulders of their comrades, some of them apparently senseless, to the hospital. Minor injuries were many, but were unnoticed—for a broken collar bone, a broken arm and an almost broken back make little things like bruises and sprains too trivial to mention. The science of this game was based upon the well known fact that if you kill off all the strong players of the opposing side in the first half, you will have no trouble to win in the second. I never saw players try harder to be "scientific." In the second half, at one time, all attempt to mask the real character of the game was abandoned for as much as two minutes, and players and substitutes engaged in a lively fist fight that was with difficulty stopped by the police. No noses were broken for the very good reason that no one was foolish enough to offer such a shining mark for opposing players' fists—both teams almost to a man wore nose protectors. I have been told that the doctors say the young man whose back was injured—and he was so badly hurt that he will either die or be a lifelong invalid—was probably hurt by some one jumping on him with both
knees as he lay on the ground. There is talk of a criminal prosecution of the men responsible for his injury.
Perhaps this is not a fair sample of Eastern football methods. If it is, I should say the Kansas City Times' criticism is the highest praise that could be given the Kansas-Missouri players. Football had better be abandoned if the players can no longer be men but must descend almost to the level of thugs and cut throats.
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Congress began its session on the 3rd of December. What most struck me the first time I attended a session of the House, was a characteristic possibly familiar to readers of the STUDENTS JOURNAL The members seemingly pay not the slightest attention to the regular proceedings, but are either canvassing with one another or reading letters and newspapers. Even the Presidents' message, after the clerk had been reading about ten minutes, attracted very little attention. though a considerable number did crowd around the speaker's desk when the discussion of financial affairs was reached Half what is said can not be heard from the gallery on account of the raise.
The other day there was an old gentleman making a speech that, judging from his manners was, in his eyes, very important, but not a soul was listening to him; and so he stopped and said, "Mr Speaker, can't we have better order?" When speaker Crisp found out what had been reque ted, for he himself was engaged in conversation with some member at the time, he rapped and said: "The house will be in order." But it wasn't paid no more attention to him than it had to the orator—went right on talking and reading in hapyy forgetfulness of the important man and his speech.
In the senate they say it is quite the reverse, stillness almost deathly in comparison pervades the chamber, and often a senator will make a speech inspired by an audience that consists only of presiding officer, pages and a few clerks. They say this is the case with one of the Kansas senators at times, but I cannot vouch for the truth of these statements. M.
LANGUAGE CONFERENCE.
The meeting of the Conference on last Friday was one of the most interesting held this fall. B.M.Dickinson presented a critical review of Lessing's Philotas. He thinks