Gridiron Tradition

THE FOOTBALL TEAM SUFFERED its third consecutive shutout Saturday, equalling an ignoble school mark established by the Crimson of 1879. Little but tradition unites the gridders of 107 years ago and those of today. And in that spirit of tradition we offer a remembrance of our own, back to the 1903 when the football team, the eleven, if you will, sailed to a 9-3 mark.

After rolling up four straight shutouts, however, the squad suffered its first loss, a devastating 5-0 whitewashing at the hands of the Lord Jeffs of Amherst. The Crimson lamented the loss on October 12, 1903, in a staff editorial penned by the newspaper's president, Franklin D. Roosevelt '04.

While it may be long before Harvard men forget the game last Saturday, it will be better if we face only the future and seek only to master the lessons taught us by that game. Above all else we must not give up hope, we must realize that the development of a strong team, of a victorious team, is necessity, and that the only way to do this is for the whole undergraduate body, yes, and for all the graduates too, to show with all their strength that they are to a man behind our eleven.

Even though there were unfortunate circumstances in the Amherst game, we do not try to apologize for defeat. But worse even than the playing was the lack of support from the rest of the University. We agree heartily with the writer of the communication that it is time for the re-organization of the University band and for starting the practice of songs. Still more important is the cheering. Not only was the leading, but also the response, poor on Saturday. Let us have one competent leader with a few good assistants; then let the cheering be a spontaneous outburst to show the team our determination to succeed.