HOW TO GET STRONG
sod; the best players in a great foot-ball match; or the fleetest pedalers on that oval,—with our wonderful press facilities,—such as Greece and Rome in their palmiest days never even dreamed of—would win a national and lasting name in an afternoon—even as to-day we know the names of some of the best men on those ancient plains two thousand years ago; for, as Mr. Thirlwall says in his History of Greece, Chapter X.:
"The mainspring of emulation was undoubtedly the celebrity of the festival, and the presence of so vast a multitude of spectators, who were soon to spread the fame of the successful athletes to the extremity of the Grecian world." … (Our press would attend to that, and easily beat them at it.) "Thus it happened that sports not essentially different from those of our village-greens gave birth to master-pieces of sculpture, and called forth the sublimest strains of the lyric muse. Viewed merely as a spectacle designed for public amusement, and indicating the taste of the people, the Olympic Games might justly claim to be ranked far above all similar exhibitions of other nations. It could only be for the sake of a contrast, by which their general purity, innocence, and humanity would be placed in the strongest light, that they could be compared with the bloody sports of a Roman or Spanish amphitheatre; and the tournaments of our chivalrous ancestors, examined by their side, would appear little better than barbarous shows."
How roundly such meetings—and larger yet, International ones—would pay the management, the hotels, the railroads, and the varied other interests, will be seen at a glance—especially if the games ran through two or three afternoons. New York is not ready for such an American Derby yet. She would be but for one thing. She has many charming spots in her northern Borough where a grand track could be had and at small cost, for it would need but a few acres of land. But, save for a few trains each day, she has no rapid transit. Upon a stage-coach, such as was driven a century ago, Mr. Cat-
488
