Athletics and Football (extract)

ATHLETIC SPORTS IN ENGLAND 17 a race.' At the present the best known record for twenty mileson a cinder path is 1 hour 58 min. 44 sec. With the Restoration, and the revulsionagainst Puritanism which led to the Restoration, came a great burst of athletic enthusiasm. Not only were the May-poles set up again, as everyschoolboyknows,but the footballswere brought out once more into the streets and fields; the decisionof pedestrian con­ tests also became frequent, and attracted much popular favour. Indeed, one mayalmost say that from the reign of Charles II. to the present time a complete and continuous history of pedestrianism could be obtained. So great was the relief in being able to resume the popularsports that even cripples took to foot-races. In the second seriesof the ' LoyalProtestant' we c Cripples' race.