ne another, and charging wildly when the ball is about ten
yards away in front, I begin to consider that the time has positively
arrived when the Scottish Football Association, if it wishes to retain
its hold, should interfere, and make a selection of clubs to compete for
the "blue ribbon" of Association glory. Quadruple the subscriptions to
the Association if necessary, and, above all, revise the bye-laws in
such a way that what is known as a "rough game" would be impossible. It
is but fair, however, to the Scottish Football Association to state that
they have long been alive to the fact, and have since taken the matter
up while deciding protests.

The Association Rules, however, are immensely popular with the people,
and in some of the big matches it is quite a common thing to see 10,000
or 15,000 spectators. I have heard of such people as those who actually
hate cricket and football, and make it a constant aim to prevent those
over whom they have some influence from engaging in the manly sport.
They occasionally flit across one's path like an evil spirit, and
disappear as rapidly, but leave behind a chilling effect on the
imagination, far more intense than the terrible nightmare after a
disastrous defeat. They cannot see the fun of spending valuable time in
such a way. If you follow one of those gentle "cads," however, at the
close of an evening, he may be seen, cue in hand, earnestly engaged at
the billiard table. He is not in a happy mood, for he is one of the
losing side, and there is a wild look about his eyes. He sometimes gets
home rather early in the morning, and is not particularly careful of his
choice of companions at times. They are childish amusements, these games
at cricket and football, "and none but silly people," he continues,
"would ever think of engaging in, or even encouraging, them any way."

And another thing. There is a sort of prejudice to football, and, in
fact, to a lot of healthful out-door exercises, in Scotland, among the
older people, who can scarcely endure the thought of spending time under
any circumstances; and parents are often the cause of degenerating a
kind of deception more common than one would believe--viz., playing
under assumed names. Surely it is much better for the young men to spend
a spare afternoon on the football field, enjoying the fresh air, than
being, perhaps, engaged in questionable "time-smashing," in the way of
playing cards, draughts, or drinking. On asking a we