The Athletes and Athletic Sports of Scotland

40 ATHLETIC SPORTS OF SCOTLAND. ing's performances for some years,when at his best, it must be borne inmind that there was an understanding between Donald Dinnie and him. Dinnie was a long way ahead of Fleming at everything except putting, andthe resultof many private trials at putting showed that while Dinnie could not be sure of winning with three throws, still when he did get a good throw it was ahead of anything Fleming could do. The result was that neither of them, asa rule, tried their best in public at putting, and Dinnie heldhimself in at the hammer. When, therefore, as time wore on, after Fleming had broken down, and Dinnie had begun to lose the elasticityof youth, they both saw their records with the samestones orballs, onthe sameground eclipsed, the had eitherto admit that Davidson and Duffy had beaten both on their merits orput forward the plea thatwhen both were attheir best neither had tried towin on many occasions, and so had lost their chance of making perhaps their best records. It is an undoubted fact that this plea has been put forward on behalf of both, andquite true that itis founded on the truth, and agreat pity it is that suchis the case for two reasons. First, because both athletes wilfully threw away the chance when it was in their power to make big records, andaccordingly lostmuch of the credit that might otherwise have justly fallen to the share of both as putters, and of Dinnie as a hammer thrower. Second, because this system of athletes competing without all trying their best to win has donemore to bring athletic sports into discredit than allother things combined. It isa system, also, for which there isno valid excuse. Dinnie's excuse with Fleming, and later on with Davidson, was that in private practicehe could, as a rule, beat them, and aslong as he and Fleming and Davidson were agreeable, it was a matter the publichad no business with. Now, this argument is altogether wrong. The publichave busi­ ness so long as they provide prizes and athletes compete for them. During the summer seasonDinnie, Fleming, and David­ son, for some years were strictly professional athletes, making their livingby performing athletic feats. The money they go'i