Impressions of Northern Athletes and Athletics

the North. With regard to the former, that may be attributed to the fact that, in Caithness, the various species of the tall coniferous tree never thrive properly, owing to this county being mainly being composed of the Devonian or Old Red Sandstone, which affords no nourishment to, and defy even the penetrating roots of the beautiful species of trees which so much enhance the scenic beauty of Sutherland. But this is not an adequate reason why the splendid feat of tossing the caber should never be seen in Caithness, because every Games Committee could quite easily procure at a small outlay a caber which would serve its purpose permanently, as it could always be tossed for length. This is done in the South, where the tree is stripped of the branches and other protuberances, and always protected from the dilapidating influence of varying weather. As to the feat of throwing the weight, it is inexplicable why it should be so rarely seen. Throwing a 28 lb. [12.70 kg] weight constitutes an excellent feat, which invariably creates a favourable impression, and demands much energy and skill. Clandestine and secret tricks in competition should be rigorously suppressed, as they vitiate genuine sport. More Prizes. The number of prizes allocated to each feat should be increased to five, even although the value of the first three would thereby be diminished. The exemplary Committee of the Dunbeath Games awards four prizes in practically all the items in its programme. If all Games Committees went even a step better than this, athletics would get an unwonted stimulus, because it is more the honour than the intrinsic worth of the prize that encourages the novice to do better things. Some kind of medal or trophy should always accompany the first prize. Moreover, special medals of good quality should be offered to athletes as an incentive to athletes to accomplish certain feats of great merit. “The More, the Merrier.” I have frequently heard northern sportsmen voice opinions to the effect that all comparatively small Games should affiliate into one or two large meetings. But this would be very inadvisable, as it would more or less debar local competitors, who would thus be greatly discouraged to persist in their training. Indeed, were every county to confine their games, more athletes would rise up, as they would not be kept under by a certain tribe of men who do hardly anything else but train and compete in all quarters. So long as the prizes are somewhat small, the south athlete would not appear, unless he can attend several gatherings en route. - - - 12 WHO IS THE STRONGEST MAN ON EARTH?