YALE LETTER.

The football outlook at Yale seems more dubious than ever after the exhibition given by the eleven at West Point on Saturday. The slump in the team work is due, more than to anything else, to the inexperience and consequent lack of confidence of the individual players. In the game with the Carlisle Indians at New York on the twenty-third, the work showed evidences of team work and of improvement in the defensive play, which encouraged Yale men considerably. The practice during the past week has been the best of the season in spite of the temporary loss of several of the most promising candidates. The men were drilled in stopping mass plays and the number of coachers present made it possible to give more attention to individual work. Chamberlin, last year's centre, has been placed at tackle and will probably be a fixture in that position. The ends are still weak points in the team, but Hazen and Slocovitch are gaining steadily. The most serious fault of the backs is the tendency to fumble, but this may be overcome. Marshall has been playing at left-guard since Cadwalader's injury, and Sullivan is at quarter now that both DeSaulles and Ely are unable to continue. At halfback two new men, Shattuck and Dudley, are showing up well and these positions are by no means determined yet. Post, substitute tackle, has been played at centre for the last few days. The coachers during the week past were Tompkins '84, W. T. Bull '88S., W. W. Heffelfinger '91S., W. C. Rhodes '91, V. C. McCormick '93S., F. S. Butterworth '95, and L. Hinkey '97.

The fall track games of the Athletic Association were held Saturday. No unusual recoreds were made but the entries gave evidence of good material for the work of the spring.

The preliminary trials for the Harvard-Yale debate were held on Friday in Osborne Hall. The speaking was not up to the usual standard and showed a great lack of preparation. The eight men who were chosen to speak in the final trials and are therefore eligible for the Thacher Prize are: H. Bingham, Jr., '98, K. Bruce 1900, J. K. Clark '99, C. L. Darlington '99, H. W. Fisher '98, G. M. Ripley '98, F. E. Richardson '98, B. C. Smith '99. The final trials will be held on Friday of this week.

The academic senior class yesterday began to wear caps and gowns and will continue to wear them Sundays throughout the year. This custom is now pretty well established at Yale.