FORTUNES LOST THROUGH FOOTBALL

Auckland Star, Volume XXXII, Issue 149, 25 June 1901, Page 8

FORTUNES LOST THROUGH FOOTBALL

While football has been the means by which many young- men have advanced towards prosperity, it has been the cause of not a few persons missing or losing ample fortunes. A member of the Oxford University team has discovered, by personal experience, how this could occur. Hid uncle, upon whom he was dependent to a great extent, objected to football on the ground that it was "brutal." Unaware Of this for a long time, .the young Oxonian went in for the Rugby game with the utmost enthusiasm, and became one of the smart men of his club. Then he learnt of his urjcle's detestation of the game, and upon being offered the choice between giving it up or abandoning all thought of inheriting his uncle's fortune, wisely chose the former.

But shortly afterwards he unwisely engaged to play for his University in a match the Oxonians were particularly anxious to win, hoping that the fact that he participated in the game would not come to his uncle's knowledge. It was not until the uncle died and his will'was read that the young man had any idea that his last game of football had cost him something between £20,000 and £30,000.

Those who know the fascinating influence football exercises over players can perhaps appreciate the feelings of a young accountant in Manchester, who missed a splendid income through his love of the game, to which he always devoted his winter Saturday afternoons, however great might be the pressure of his business.

One Saturday morning he received a summons to attend at once to the accounts of a big company. To do so would have necessitated his giving up a match he was engaged to take part in that afternoon, and rather than disappoint his club, he sent a message in T««ply to the summons to say he could not touch t'hc business until the following Monday.

On attending" the company's office on the Monday, he was told that the work was done, and that the secretaryship, worth £500 a year, which the directors had intended to offer him —if he managed to do the books in time to allow of the negotiations for the amalgamation of the company with another to be settled before a wealthy American had to leave for Liverpool— had been bestowed upon another accountant, who had been called in the place of the first. Thus, for one game of football, he had unconsciously thrown away the chance of a permanent position worth £500 a year, or an income- equal to the interest upon a fortune of £ 10,000 at five per cent.

lln one case, at leai;t, not only was a handsome fortune lost, but a. woman's promising life was ruined by enthusiasm for the national winter game. A young- lady, the daughter of the wealthy owner of a Sydney newspaper, wus wintering in England with some friends. Her unusual love of the game drew her into the football field to watch maitches whenever she was free to go, and she thus became acquainted and fell in love with a professional footballer, who was very slow to show any kindred sentiment until it became known to him that his victim, was an heiress. That the man had little or nothing in him beyond his skill at football to attract the lady, is pretty clear from the fact that he earned among his ac~ quaintances, by his peculiar ugliness and bad temper, a very uncomplimentary nickname. Nevertheless, she agreed to secretly marry him. JXo sooner were they married than he gave ug his profession, and, took, Jq bl^cfe-,

mailing her for her allowance from home, upon which he lived in idleness and drunken habits for some few months. When the foolish young woman's father heard of the wretched marriage he refused to have anything more to do with her. and had it not been for the generosity of her friends in England she would have fallen from wealth to absolute destitution through the fascinating influence of football. Sonic of these facts came out a. short time since, when the man was charged before a provincial bench with assaulting his wife because she had no money to give him.