Lampoon Nearly Ended Tiger Rivalry

When the Crimson taken to the Palmer Stadium turf tomorrow afternoon, football fans will view this forty-first renewal of an ancient rivalry an a friendly, ivy-covered rivalry indeed. But things were not always this; and, for a period of several years, it looked as though the two schools were never again to face each other athletically.

The crisis came in 1926, but it had been brewing a long time. Perhaps it was the two crushing defeats which Princeton has inflicted on Harvard in 1924 and 1925. Or perhaps it was a Princeton feeling that Harvard had adopted a "superior" attitude towards old Nassau. In other case no love was wanted when the two teams clashed.

Double Trouble

Two other factors served to create an attitude of unpleasantness prior to the 1926 encounter. Princeton credited participation in the Yale game and the Harvard game equally towards getting a letter, while at Harvard a letter could be acquired only by playing in the Yale game. Princeton athletic authorities considered this a snub, and wanted Harvard to adopt a policy similar to Princeton's.

And Princeton athletic authorities felt that they had even more cause to believe they were being treated shoddily when word started circulating that Harvard was trying to book a home-and-home two-year series with Michigan or Indiana to replace the Princeton game in 1927 and 1928.

It was with this feeling of unpleasantness in the air that the denizens of Nassau Hall journeyed forth from their New Jersey haunts to trod the brick side walks of Cambridge. The welcome mat was hardly out, however.

Instead, the visitors welcome consisted of the Princeton issue of the Lampoon, which made it quite plain that the Princetonians were unwelcome guests and which quite bluntly expressed the wish that relationships between the two colleges be terminated.

Featured in the issue was the cartoon reproduced above, which did little to cement the bond of friendship between the two institutions.

Princeton Superior

Nor was the game itself one to achieve this end. Though Princeton was clearly the superior team, and was never headed, in allegedly fifth down Tiger field goal created an element of discussion. And when three of Harvard's best players sustained injuries, one from a blow on the head, the effect was hardly to restrain the animosity which the opposing stands felt for each other.

The final blow was landed when the Lampoon started distributing throughout the Princeton stands the fake issue of the CRIMSON pictured above. Its announcement of the death of Princeton's Coach Roper completely took in the Princeton stands. And one person sitting in those stands was Mrs. Roper, who almost collapsed herself when she glanced at the bogus issue.

Sudden Death

Within five days, Princeton had severed athletic relationships with Harvard in all sports, and the nation's press had risen to support Old Nassau and to describe Harvard's attitude toward her as "cheap" and "unsavory."

But this attempt to end the relationship between the colleges could not succeed. To be sure, many alternatives to the Big Three approach to Harvard athletics were proposed.

One suggestion, which gained considerable approval at the time the House system was being established, was to abolish Varsity athletics altogether. Instead, an intra-mural schedule would be established with the sole inter-collegiate events occurring when the House played their Yale counter-parts. The contests between Harvard Houses and Yale Colleges which take place today are a survival of this idea.

Still another proposal was to use an intra-mural program as the basis of college athletics, choosing an all-star team from the House teams to be the Varsity and play against Yale.

Students Force Action

But for all these programs, students at Harvard wanted Varsity athletics and they wanted to play Princeton. Likewise students at Princeton felt that the game with Harvard was really an essential part of a Tiger schedule. The result was a gradual rapprochement between the two. First the two crews raced each other, with MIT also in the race to act as a buffer. Then the minor sport competitions was resumed.

Finally, the great day dawned, and, on November 2, 1934, Harvard and Princeton resumed the football rivalry they had been conducting since 1877.

Under Coach Fritz Crisler, the Tigers rolled to a 19 to O victory over the Crimson, but all was sweetness and light.Said the Dally Princeton, "It is up to the present undergraduate body to make sure that the present bond of good feeling is further strengthened and cemented together."

Said the CRIMSON, "The events of 1926 are veiled in legend. Today is one which starts a now era in our athletic history.