LECTURE ON PHYSICAL CULTURE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13544, 17 March 1906, Page 5

LECTURE ON PHYSICAL CULTURE.

Mr P. A. Hornibrook, the well-known exponent of the Sandow system of physical culture, gave the first of a series of four lectures in the Choral _ Hall last evening in the presence of a fairly large audience, included in which was a. satisfactory representation of ladies.

At. the outset the lecturer devoted himself to explaining the meaning of healthy physical culture. It did not mean the culture o£ tho body at the expense of the mind,' nor the culture cf one part of tho body at the expense of tho rest, but its purpose was to develop lall the bodly powers to their utmost, and thus enable people, to live healthy and happy lives. Physical culture was not to be confounded with athleticism, which only endeavoured to cultivate the. bodily powers in some special direction, such .as running or walking; nor was it to be confounded with muscle culture. A wcll-devclopcd man was necessarily a muscular man, but a muscular man was by no means necessarily welldeveloped. The aim of the modern physical culturist was the same as that of the ancient Greek—viz., to attain a regular and symmetrical development of the wholo, body. As a boy the Greek received a regular physical education—running, leaping, swimming, etc, and afterwards were added boxing, wrestling, archory, javelinthrowing, etc. According to Aristotle and Plato, ibis physical training should begin at the age of six and continue to tho ago of 10, when it was to be combined with mental training. Aristotle said that gymnastics wore only regarded as a preparation for tho_cdu.cat.ion of tho soul, this being greatly aesistcd by music; but to-day young men were apt to make gymnastic ability tho end itself, and not tho means. After referring at length to the excellent results achieved by the Greeks and Romans as a result of their thoroughness in the matter of real physical culture, the lecturer dealt with the ethical element of the question-a. phase which, he stated, was often neglected. It was a great missaid Mr Hornibrook, to imagine that physical culture dealt merely with the pody. Physical education, as a department ot scienoe, should be critically considered ni respect, to its results, which' were physical, mental and moral, and highly stimulative of both the will and! the intelligence, integrity of mental action and integrity of moral purpose depended to a considerable extent upon integrity of muscle. This was shown by the muscles of those who are mentally and moraJly irresponsible. The muscles of idiots wero flaccid, and an habitual lack of moral integrity was registered in the weakened tissues of tho body, producing what was known as "criminal muscle." Briefly, the objects of physical training were better health, better physique, grace, selfcontrol, self-reliance, fortitude, courage, power of endurance, alertness of perception, quickness of action, muscular development,' will power, and morals. Speaking generally of college men, the moral tono of athletes was above that of other undergraduates at a university. This was true also of schoolboys. The boy who was trained in a gymnasium had greater strength of will to overcome evil habits than tho one who had not been so trainod, and small boys should be taught .not only to care for their bodies, but to associate moral ideas with health and strength. To sum up: Physical education developed moral character, first, by lending its strength to the will; secondly, by directing this strength to the moral channels, through tho influence of a. man's own physical nature, through his associates, and

through the purity of the scenes 6f IfH work. Physical perfection helped ns to attain moral perfection. If therefore, people, would form their boys or their girls into men or women of ample development, of generous and intrepid will, capable of frreai! undertaking.':, they should first, and above all, secure to that child a health]- ami a wholesome body. , The lecture was excellently illustrated by a number of lantern slides of very fine Grecian statuary, and Mr E. W, ,T. Johnson, local instructor of physical culture, Rave an interesting exhibition of muscular posioe. 11l the next lecture of the series Mr Hornibrook will take as bia subject "Physical Culture and Alcohol: Their influence on the physical life of tl.e nation."