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THE YALE-PRINCETON GAME.
The Preparations Made for it by the
Field Corporation,
About the middle of July the ques-
tion of the location of the Yale—Prince-
ton football game was left to the Grad-
uate Committee, consisting of Mr.
Harris of Princeton and Mr. Camp of
Yale. They chose New Haven as the
place for the game, on the ground that
Yale went to Princeton last, when these
games were previously played on col-
lege grounds. This would send Yale
to Princeton next year. There was a
good deal of discussion on the matter
before this decision was reached, and
many Princeton men were strongly of
the opinion that the precedent of several
years back would not apply and that,
in view of Princeton’s supremacy and
for other reasons, the game should be
arranged at least on neutral ground.
The final settlement of the case on the
basis above given has, however, been
received as an equitable one.
This decision brought to the men
who control the Yale Field a problem
of large size requiring immediate solu-
tion. It meant the making of a foot
ball field and stands sufficient for the
accommodation of a crowd of from
ten to twenty thousand. There were
no accommodations at.hand for this
purpose, and besides the actual work
at the Field, there were also the ques-
tions of proper and quick transporta-
tion.
Later in this article are given the
details of the way in which this ques-
tion has been met and settled: Suffice
it to say in general that the Field Cor-
poration, under the active direction of
Mr. Sargent, has spared no effort to
settle the thing right. All facts about
the handling of large crowds that can
be learned from. experience have been
gathered by visits to, or correspond-
ence with, the managers of the grounds
in such places as Cambridge and Phila-
delphia, where the same problem has
before been met. :
Some points remain. to be settled.
It may be that they will not be ad-
justed before the game of. this year.
It is, however, hoped, and in many
quarters confidently expected, that the
early completion of the new bridge on
Derby avenue will encourage the
street railroad corporation to extend
its tracks, and be in readiness to handle
with promptness the great crowd of
that day. The car accommodations on
Chapel street have certainlv been much
improved by double tracking for the
full distance, which will allow cars to
run much more frequently, of course.
The asphalting on West Chapel will
also add materially to the convenience
and the comfort of reaching the
grounds in other ways.
But this is anticipating the rest of
this article. It only remains to be said
that the expense of completing this
work, outside of the cost of the land,
has been guaranteed by the Yale Finan-
cial Union, and that part of it has
already been raised by subscription.
On behalf of the Corporation, it is also
in order to say that it has every hope
that the friends of Yale athletics, who
will see, on visiting the Field this Fall,
how much of the improved land is now
given up entirely to exhibition teams
and exhibition games, will show a sub-
stantial appreciation of the need of
developing the rest of the Field for the
general athletic purposes of the great
hody of Yale students.
NEW HAVEN, CONN., THURSDAY, SEPTEMBE
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~oO-
R 16, 1897.
Price Ten Cents.
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NEW ARRANGEMENT OF YALE FIELD.
The site chosen for this new football
ground, which is to be one of the fin-
est in the country, is almost the same
as the old: University gridiron. The
playing field itself has been moved west
until its edge almost corresponds with
the former western boundary of the
Yale Field itself. A strip of land west
of the Field, fronting 90 feet on Derby
avenue and running southerly 840 feet,
has been purchased, on which the west-
erly stand will be placed. The pur-
chase was made on the condition that
the house and orchard on this strip
should be removed, and this has been
done. But the new land, to be of use,.
had to be filled in to raise it to a level
with the rest of the ground on which
the new football field is to be made.
THE STANDS.
The plan is to have a stand on each
side of the rectangle formed by this
foot ball field. The east and west
stands are to be supported by timbers
of yellow pine, made with great care to
avoid all structural weaknesses, so that
the spectators need fear no repetition
of such an accident as happened at
Berkeley Oval. Mr. Robinson, the
architect, has a reputation which is
guarantee enough that the factor of
safety will be very large, in all the
stands. These two stands on the east
and west are to accommodate 5,200
et
persons each. The seats are to be
between them. |
The west stand is to be a permanent
structure, and enough land was- pur-
chased so that whenever a larger seat-
ing capacity is required fifteen more
rows may be added at the back: The
east stand is to be built in sections
which can be taken down and moved.
The reason for this is that this same
stand can also be used to increase the
seating capacity for the Commence-
ment base ball game by placing one
half of it on each side of the grand
stand. There has long been a need of
more seats at this game. This mova-
ble stand will of course be more costly,
but at the same time immensely more
useful than if a permanent structure.
COMFORTABLE SEATS.
The seats themselves are to be made
comfortable. There is to be a back
and a foot rest, and the seat itself is to
be tipped slightly backwards. The
front row of seats is to be elevated
enough, so that the holder of a seat
there can, without rising, see over the
heads of anyone standing in the pas-
sage way in front of it, and the rise, as
one goes toward the back of the stand,
is to be sufficient, so that the occupant
of a back seat can see plainly. The
passage way in front of the stands is to
be larger than usual, and each aisle is to
be reached* by steps running up from
‘the passage way, but arranged to take
up as little space as possible.
The elevation of the front seat makes
a more costly stand than if they were
placed on the ground in the usual style,
but the disagreeable feature of having
the occupants of the front row stand up
in order to see and thus making the
whole crowd stand, has been avoided.
These two stands will cost over $1.00
per seat, or over $10,000.
NORTH AND SOUTH STANDS.
The north and south stands, if it shall
be found necessary to build them, are to
hold 2,400 persons each, and are to be
somewhat similar in construction to
the east and west stands. The con-
tracts call for the completion of the
east stand before College opens, and
the west stand by November 1. In
case of failure there isa forfeiture. If it
is estimated that the crowd which will
attend the Princeton game, November
24th, will be too great for these stands,
the north and south stands will be in
readiness by that date.
There is to be an entrance to the
grounds on either side of the north
stand.
The Field Corporation are making a
study of how to sift the crowd, in order
to have no blocking at any point, and a
convenient way for each ticket-holder
