Athletic Sports (extract)

The Physical Proportions of the Ty/>icnt Alan height, weight, and chest-girth of person- of different ages and nationalities, and the dimensions of other parts of the body have been taken at various times by artist anat­ omists, military surgeons, and gymnasiarchs, yet no one system of measurements has ever been adopted by any two examiners ; on the contrary, each observerhas taken measure­ ments for a specific purpose, according to a system peculiar to himself, so that we look in vain for anything like harmony or congruity in the results obtained. In some cases the subjects are measured or weighed without clothing, and in others partly or completely clothed. In one class of measurements the height is taken with the boots on, in another class with the boots off, while by another observer the girth measurements are taken with the muscles contracted at one part of the body. What is most needed at the present day is a uniform system of measurements, and a common understanding among observers as to what points and under what condi­ tions the various parts of the body are to be measured ; a great step will then be taken toward securing valuable anthropo­ metric data. Having resolvedsome years ago to make physical training my profession, and be-