The Athletes and Athletic Sports of Scotland

116 ATHLETIC SPORTS OF SCOTLAND. the best Scottish athletes in Scotland. The best Scottish athlete in Scotland is therefore entitled in the meantime to the title of champion Scottish athlete. Until C. M'Hardy or any other Scottishathlete outof Scotland comes to Scotland, as the headquarters of Scottish sports, and there wins the title of champion Scottish athlete, the issue of challenges in Australia or America, and the assumption of the title of championathlete, are mere empty brag so far as the championship in Scottish athletic sports is concerned. CHAPTER XHI. PROFESSIONAL V. AMATEUR ATHLETES. ^CCORDING to the definition of the class of athletes who call themselves amateurs, any athlete who has everwon or competed for a money prize is a professional. A professional athlete is also defined as one whomakes his living by the money he wins at athletic sports. It will be seen that in each case money is the maintest when defining a professional athlete ; win or try to win money asan athlete, andyou are at once classed as a professional. Now it is evident that anathlete may win, or try to win money in an athletic competition, without making athletic sports his profession in the true senseof the word. In an experience of about 25 years as a competitor at Scottish games, thewriter hasknown of hundreds—if not ofthousands— of athletes who have wonmoney prizesat athletic sports ; he has never known of one whose sole profession was athletic sports. It would be difficult to point to twenty intwenty-five years who pursued athletic sports as a means of livelihood continuously for a whole year at one time. A few runners, and leapers, and pipers, anddancers leave what is really their professional work, the workthey depend on for their living, for from a few weeks to from three tofour months in the summer season, and gothe