the markets of the world; just as she came, in her overflowing wealth
and power, to a recognition of her greatness as a nation, and was
politically ripe for an Imperial policy of colonial expansion; just as,
tired of the loose code of ethics of the scrambling days, when the
country was still one half wilderness and none had time to care for the
public conscience, she was morally ripe for the wonderful revival which
has set in in the ethics of politics and commerce and of which Mr.
Roosevelt has been and is the chief apostle: so, by the individual
richness of her citizens, giving larger leisure in which to cultivate
other pleasures than those which their offices or homes could afford,
she was ripe for the coming of the day of open-air games. And having
turned to them, she threw herself into their pursuit with the ardour
and singleness of purpose which are characteristic of the people and
which, as applied to games, seem to English eyes to savour almost of
professionalism. As a matter of fact they are only the manifestations of
an essential trait of the American character.

The result was that almost at the same time as an American player was
winning the British Amateur Golf Championship, an American polo team was
putting All England on her mettle at Hurlingham, and it was not with any
wider margin than was necessary for comfort that Great Britain retained
the honours in lawn tennis, which she has since lost to one of her own
colonies.

It is curious that this awakening of the amateur sporting spirit in the
United States should have come just at the time when many excellent
judges were bewailing the growing popularity of professional sport in
England. Any day now, one may hear complaints that the British youth is
giving up playing games himself for the purpose of watching professional
wrestlers or football games or county cricket matches. My personal
opinion is that there is no need to worry. The growing interest in
exhibition games reacts in producing a larger number of youths who
strive to become players. Not only in spite of, but largely because of,
the greater spectacular attraction of both football and cricket than in
years gone by, there is an immensely larger number of players of
both--and of all other--games than there ever was before. It is little
more than a score of years since Association football, at least, was
practically the monopoly of a few public schools and of the members of
the two Universities--of "g