OCR Text |
Show TREMENDOUS CROWDS PACK POLO GROUNDS NEW YORK, Nov. 23. Forty-two thousand persona snw the Navy go down in defeat tills afternoon in the Army-Navy Army-Navy game on the Polo grounds, transformed trans-formed from a baseball diamond to a football field. No greater throntr haB ever seen an Army-Navy game. Tho multitude which crowded the stands included President Wilson, thc secretaries of war and of the navy, other cabinet offlccre, senators, congressmen and the flower of the military and naval service, Every seat was occupied and many more persons would have been present had space to seat them been available. Set in nn oval of humanity was the ro-mado ro-mado gridiron, protected from tho rain till this afternoon b'y a twelve-Inch blanket of straw. To the south on the side line was the Army stand, to the north sat tho Navy, with tho field between, be-tween, raked by a cross-flro of cheering that did not end till tho Army's colors fluttered over tho Held from tho tops (fit tho goal posts-President posts-President Divides Time. President "Wilson and his partv followed fol-lowed precedent In dlvldlnp their tlm at the same hotween the contenders. The president was a few minutes late and the Kame did not start till he had taken IUh aeat In an upper Brandstnd box. almost directly over the Army stand. "Whon the i first half ended he was escorted by Secretary Sec-retary of War Garrison, Secrctnrv Daniels Dan-iels of the .navy and Assistant Secretary Roosevelt to Lhe Navy side. Ruin threatened every minute during , the first three periods of the game and came in the last quarter In the form of a drizzle. As the Army battalions marched upon the field, headed by the cadet band, the crowd cheered. Down the side lines marched the band, the battalions of gray and jold following in columns of four. Around the field they marched, then followed fol-lowed the band the length of tho field, down tho center, fifty abreast, turning1 by fours, reforming In long lines and halting halt-ing before the south stand. As they marked time the Navy eleven ran out onto the field. Another cheer -went up. Tho cadet band quickened Us tune to a jig and the lines of gray broke and ran for the stand. Navy's Crowd Appears. Meantime a flourish of bugles announced an-nounced the approach of the naval battalions. bat-talions. It was nearlng time for the game and they did not circle the Held as tho Army had done, but marched down the center, Across the shoulder of each man's long blue overcoat , gleamed a gold band; from each mn'h'ss hand waved a gold pennant. When they made i the stand, the blue was hidden by a I moving forest of golden standards and streamers. The Army eleven scurried out on the field. . A great cheer went up. Across the field tho Navy blue and gold cheered the army; and the Army, with the blare of many bugles and the, roar of many voices, gave back a cheer of greeting to the navy. Blue-coated and gray-garbed cheer leaders, swinging mogaphones, darted out to the side lines and took their stand before each battalion. Then came the tumult of rival cheers and songs drowning tho torrent of applause from mere civilians as the elevens look their A field goal by the Navy in tho first quarter set the streamers of gold snapping snap-ping wildly. For a moment, the Army stand was silent and then answered with a ripping cheer of encouragement for their men ln the field, Tn the second period the Army tied the score by scoring a flold goal, and the Army stands went wild. Touchdown Brings Delirium. But tho greatest delirium was saved for the Army touchdown In the, same period. Six hundred West Pointers rose to their feet as one man, tossed "their caps on high, flashed their pennants of gold and black, unloosened their voices ln wild hurrahs, and forgot to give their college yells in thoir delight. At the end of the game the Army celebrated with the usual rush to the colors. From the stand they stormed the Held and danced In a great circle over tho gridiron. The circle widened until : the lino of gray-clnd men surrounded the field. In tho center wore planted the Army colors. As the crowds surged out on the field from' the grandstand two stalwart youths In gray overcoats climbed to tho top of the Navy's goal posts and nailed the Army colors there. It was tho first time the present cadets ca-dets had witnessed their colors flying in" victory over the Navy. |