Harper's Round Table, September 3, 1895 Part 8

But this method is for sloop measurement. To get the area of a cat-boat sail there is a simpler way, although it is not so absolutely exact.

Draw a line from the throat to the leach parallel to the foot of the sail, and let fall from the point of intersection of this line with the leach another line parallel to the luff. The sail is then divided into a rectangle formed by these two lines, the luff, and part of the foot, and two triangles, one of which is bounded by the head of the sail, a part of the leach, and your first line; the second, by a part of the leach, a part of the foot, and your second line. To compute the areas of these two triangles and the rectangle, and to add them, is a matter of simple mathematics. And then you have the area of your sail.

Between now and the time of the opening of the football season I want to say something each week about the game, more especially about the early training for it, and the elementary principles of play which so many enthusiasts overlook at first, and consequently go in and fail. n.o.body was ever born a football player. To become proficient in the game you must devote many months to practice, and several years to actual study of the game. Football is a science, just as chess is a science--and there are very few great chess-players. There are very few great football players. My advice to the young man who wants to excel on the gridiron is first to find out, if he can, what position he is best suited for (not what position he likes best), and then to study and play that position steadily and for all he is worth. Go to as many big games as possible, and watch the men who play your chosen position. See wherein they excel, and note your own short-comings. In addition, read everything you can get hold of about the science and strategy of the game. There are a number of books on the subject. And after you have read pretty thoroughly, think. No man can be a good football player unless he can think out football problems for himself.

But more of that later. The important question now is that of preliminary training, and by far the most important thing about preliminary training is to do not too much at first. It is not only unwise to work hard at first, but it is dangerous. Most of the men have been away on long vacations, and very few, if any, of them have been taking any regular or systematic exercise. Consequently their muscles are not prepared to endure the sudden strains and wrenches to which they are being subjected. It is a matter of record that more sprains and bruises occur during the first few weeks of practice than at any other time of the season.

For the first week or so the careful Captain will see that his men perform only very light work. He will put them through easy exercises, he will have them pa.s.s and kick the ball and practise falling on it.

Then he will have his men take short runs across country, and do such general light work for wind and muscle as will enable them to take up hard practice without danger. Every man should have a heavy sweater or an overcoat at hand to put on as soon as play is stopped, for every precaution should be taken to avoid catching cold. Every football team should, if possible, have hot and cold water shower-baths convenient to their dressing-rooms--for cleanliness is as important a matter to the welfare of the players as fresh air. Long hot baths are weakening and should be avoided, except when a cold has settled in the muscles, and then hot water is of value.

Football players should be regular in their daily habits. They should rise, take their meals, and retire to bed at the same hours every day; and it is likewise a good thing to have the practice at the same hour each afternoon, and, if possible, at that hour of the day when matches will most probably be played later in the season. The men should have plenty of sleep, say from ten at night until seven in the morning, and on rising they should, if possible, take a short walk before breakfast.

And now that the word breakfast has fallen into the discussion let us look at the commissariat side of the football question.

There was a time when a football player was supposed to make a martyr of himself, as far as the good things of the kitchen were concerned. His bill of fare was made up chiefly of raw beef, and he was permitted to drink only so many gla.s.ses of water a day. This barbarous custom, however, has now been done away with, and from personal experience I can vouch for the delicious fare of the training-table of the present day. A football player's diet must be restricted, of course, but there is an ample list left that he may choose from. Roast beef, beefsteak, lamb chops, roast lamb, broiled chicken, oatmeal, rice, mush, and all kinds of cereal food, potatoes cooked in any style except fried, vegetables, eggs, apple sauce, baked apples (never any raw apples), prunes, oranges, grapes, figs, dates, and all fruit in season; rice and bread pudding, stale bread, and dry toast--all these can go on the bill of fare. The forbidden dishes are pie, cake, salad, pork, veal, rich dressings, anything fried, ice-cream, candy, soda-water, and any kinds of drinks, alcoholic, malt, or soft. No tea, no coffee, no chocolate, and--but this should go without saying--no tobacco.

Another important thing for the Captain of a football team to give his closest attention to is the condition of his men. He should watch them continually, and note the slightest tendency toward overtraining, for overtraining is much easier to prevent than to remedy. As soon as a player gets into this condition he should take absolute rest for several days, and thereafter he should only play for a short time each day. A change of diet is a good thing, too. Remove all restrictions from the diet of the overtrained man, and let him eat what he chooses for a few days. Overtraining shows itself in various ways, but the most common is for a player to feel worn and tired and disinclined to work hard on the field. This is simply an evidence that his muscles have been worked too hard, and have become so fatigued that they cannot recuperate their full vitality between one day's practice and the next.

While speaking of diet I omitted saying that ice-water should be shunned almost as if it were an alcoholic beverage. Never have ice water on the training-table. Drink cold water, but do not have it iced. It is a bad thing, too, to allow players to drink anything during practice or until an hour after practice has been stopped. This will prove a hardship at first, as the mouth gets dry and parched. Have a pail of water near the field and a tin cup, and let the men rinse their mouths, but do not permit them to drink. After a week or so they will become accustomed to the abstinence, and their saliva glands will act more freely.

Gum-chewing is a bad practice, too. Constant mastication stimulates the glands; but it is injurious in the end, just as all artificial methods are in whatever sphere they may be practised.

The football team should work on the field every day, rain or shine.

Practice on a wet and muddy ground is necessary, because it frequently happens that the most important game of the year (usually played at the end of the season) has to be contested on a rainy day. Thus practising in the rain will accustom the players to running and dodging in the mud, and to holding a wet and slippery ball. If the storm is such, however, that work in the open air is out of the question, the team should practise in-doors. Rehearsing signals is good occupation for such occasions, and practice in pa.s.sing the ball and in tackling can also be had. But unless in-door work is unavoidable it should never be indulged in during the active season. The work on the field demands all the energy of the players.

THE GRADUATE.

[Ill.u.s.tration: STAMPS]

This Department is conducted in the interest of stamp and coin collectors, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question on these subjects so far as possible. Correspondents should address Editor Stamp Department.

The American Philatelic a.s.sociation has just been holding its annual convention at Clayton, New York. Two sessions were held each day August 13th, 14th, 15th, and 16th. This should be a very powerful society, but is not on account of poor management. For 1895-96 the following officers were elected: J. K. Tiffany, president; Alvah Davison, vice-president; N. W. Chandler, treasurer; C. W. Kissinger, secretary. The next annual meeting will probably be held in Wisconsin or Minnesota.

The year 1888 the Belgium government withdrew the 5-franc stamp from use. During its life about 45,000 were used, most of which were probably saved by collectors. A short time ago 2400 of these stamps, unused, were found in the Brussels post-office, and these have just been sold by auction to one man, who paid 36,000 francs for the lot, more than three times their face value.

The making of new issues of postage-stamps primarily to sell to collectors has not been stopped. Peru intends to issue one commemorative stamp on September 10, 1895. Uruguay will issue three stamps in commemoration of Joaquin Suarez on October 8, 1895. The pious Belgium postmaster proposes to make two series of local stamps for use in Liege and Brussels in commemoration of St. Lambert, the first bishop of Belgium. France has surcharged her own 15, 25, 30, 50 centimes, and 1 franc stamps D. S. for use in the colony of Diego Suarez. I advise collectors to leave all the above out of their collections. Any money spent for them is simply thrown away.

The new 3, 5, 30, and 50 cent postage-due stamps have been reported as issued; but no copies have yet reached the New York post-office.

It is rumored in stamp circles that the U. S. government is going to use paper water-marked with an eagle for use in printing stamps. I hope the postal authorities will see that the water-mark will be made sufficiently clear to be seen distinctly on every stamp. The present system is simply laughable. In 99 instances out of every 100 the present water-mark can be seen only on the margins of the sheets, and one stamp may contain the water-mark of a portion of one letter only, while others have parts of two letters. Other governments seem to have no difficulty in making clear and artistic designs for use as water-marks. See, for instance, the numerous Great Britain water-marks ill.u.s.trated in HARPER'S ROUND TABLE No. 821.

Still there's more to follow. Another batch of the St. Louis stamps has turned up, and philatelists are wondering how many there were in that Louisville find (not Kansas City as stated in last week's issue).

Perhaps some one has the plate. About a year ago a New York dealer was approached by a man who claimed to have the plate in his possession and offered to print a lot, but the dealer was shy, and declined to make any bargain until after a sample sheet had been shown to him for examination. As this was not done, negotiations ceased.

R. T. K.--The token inscribed on the reverse, "Not one cent for tribute, millions for defence," issued 1841, is very interesting.

It is one of the "hard-money tokens" issued between 1837 and 1842, and are very common. They have no money value. The 1871 U. S.

dollar is worth face only.

E. PATTISON.--The coins mentioned are quite common, and are worth face only.

W. GOFF.--There is no way of cleaning cancelled postage-stamps, hence the high value of most unused compared with used specimens.

For instance, the U. S. 3c. 1857, with outer line, used sells for 25c., but unused commands $15.

K. F. KURTZ.--The K die U. S. envelope 1853 issue on buff can be bought for $3 and less, whether the stamp shows cancellation mark or not. If the entire envelope is unused and clean it is worth $10 and upward. On white paper the prices are much higher.

C. C. B.--The dealers pay $1.15 each for the U. S. gold dollars dated 1850 to 1855, and sell them for about $1.50. These are the common dates. The valuable gold dollars are those of which a few copies only were coined within the past twenty years.

B. MAGELSEN.--There are not two varieties of any Columbian stamp, but almost every denomination can be found in two or more distinct shades. Purple is a very difficult ink to compound, so are certain reds. For instance, there are over 100 different shades of the current 2c.-stamp, all printed within the past year, and all nominally the same color.

J. SMYTHE.--There are not many collectors of U. S. envelopes bearing express names, such as Wells, Fargo, & Co., etc. Hence the envelopes are rarely worth more than the regular issues.

SAN ANTONIO.--The San Antonio of Padua jubilee issue now current in Portugal and the Azores, although good for postage in those countries, is frowned upon by collectors, as their postal use is a mere side issue, the chief reason why they were made being for sale to collectors. There are fifteen varieties, viz., 2-1/2, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 50, 75, 80, 100, 150, 200, 300, 500, and 1000 reis, also one 10-reis postal-card. The same stamps are surcharged Acores for use in that colony.

A. LEWKAWSKY.--There are no reprints of U. S. stamps issued after 1870. If you can buy the $1 and $2 Columbian issue do so by all means. They are going up in value rapidly. The present $1 stamp it is said will be printed in some other color. If so, the chances are that the black ones will advance in price materially.

PHILATUS.

ADVERTIs.e.m.e.nTS.

Highest of all in Leavening Strength.--Latest U. S. Gov't Report.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Royal Baking Powder]

[Ill.u.s.tration: If afflicted with SORE EYES USE Dr. ISAAC THOMPSON'S EYE WATER]

HARPER'S NEW CATALOGUE,

Thoroughly revised, cla.s.sified, and indexed, will be sent by mail to any address on receipt of ten cents.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BICYCLING]

This Department is conducted in the interest of Bicyclers, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question on the subject. Our maps and tours contain much valuable data kindly supplied from the official maps and road-books of the League of American Wheelmen.