Doubtless it is quite true that a couple of good-sized cups of tea at breakfast, half a pint of liquid for lunch, and a pint at dinner is enough for most men in training; but to hold that a man who finds himself parched after his exercise at four o'clock is to wait until his dinner at seven before he can touch a drop of liquid is to turn a useful generalisation into a ridiculous rule. Rigid rules as to the quantity and quality of diet and exercise are not to be relied upon, and the effect of giving a man so much beer for dinner, and telling him he must under no circumstances have any more, leads to most absurd scenes and unsatisfactory results. Some great brawny fellow - perhaps the strong man of the crew - eyes his pint of beer with a wistful gaze, and does not take anything more than just a sip when he cannot possibly get his food down without it, in the vain hope that at the end of dinner he will have enough left to have a really good drink, and cease to feel thirsty for the first time during the day.

It needs no doctor to say that the man who eats his dinner under such circumstances will fail to get the full benefit out of it, notwithstanding that he has fulfilled the requirement so dear to dyspeptics of eating his food dry.

It is often urged in reply to the argument that rigid rules of diet are a mistake, that if you give a man carte blanche to eat and drink whatever he thinks good for him, his wishes will be fathers to the thought that everything for which he has contracted an unhealthy fondness will be beneficial. To this we answer that a man knows perfectly well when he has eaten enough, and, in fact, cannot eat too much when in active exercise without finding it out; that the same rule applies to drink, and that if a man is unable to keep himself from taking solids and liquids which he does not require he will never be of any account as an athlete. The absurdity of the old system is shown from the fact that it was the frequent custom of the 'owners' of professional pugilists and pedestrians to put a watchman in attendance to see that their particular 'pet' in training did not sneak surreptitiously into public-houses or carry little bottles of liquid about with him in his pocket.

So much must be said as to the quantity of liquor. In the meantime there are other vexed questions as to the drink of the athlete. Until quite recently a man who trained upon teetotal principles was considered a vara avis, and the old English trainers believed in English beer as much as they believed in English beef and mutton. Of recent years, however, not only have temperance principles been widely preached, but the larger number of the oarsmen and athletes from America and Canada have adopted the system of training upon water alone, and taking no alcohol in any shape during training. From the views we have expressed above it will be seen that we are not likely to take one side or the other with great ardour, as we believe that there should be no violent change in the manner of living when a young and healthy man goes into training. We must confess, however, to have a strong leaning towards the Transatlantic or teetotal method of training. Whether alcohol be good or not we leave doctors to decide, but of all people in the world the athlete who is not overtrained least requires its stimulus.

We believe doctors still differ upon the question as to whether it is nutritious to any degree, but all agree that it is very hard to digest, and this alone should be a strong argument against its use. Of one thing we feel confident, that if a man drinks water at his meals as a natural habit he will be very unwise to leave it off for beer or claret. If, however, he is accustomed to drink beer or wine, it is a hard thing to say that the athlete should give either up and take to water if he doesn't like it. We have seen men?veil trained upon beer, upon claret, and upon weak whisky-and-water, and are quite willing to admit that these beverages have done no harm. Any other wines, however, for a man in robust health are, we think, bad in training, as they excite the nerves and interfere with sound and quiet sleep. Of course, if a man is getting stale, good strengthening wine may do him a world of good; but as long as the athlete is not in this state, the glass or two of port, which he is often recommended to take, is exceedingly likely to do harm, and can hardly do any good. While, however, advocating training upon temperance principles, we wish to make it clear that circumstances and idiosyncrasies alter cases.

A man with a naturally weak nervous organisation may find that old ale or a glass of port after dinner may prevent his training off through the work he has to undergo, and if such men take to the practice of athletic sports they must train on principles that suit their particular cases. With strong healthy men, however - the only men who in the present age of keen rivalry can indulge with perfect safety in athletic sports - we think that upon general principles the less alcohol they take the better.

So far it will be seen we have not suggested that a man in training should undergo any very serious trials and privations. There is one thing, however, which he must learn to do without, and that is smoking. While we are quite ready to admit that a moderate use of the comforting weed is not injurious to the health, there can be very little question that it tends to shorten the wind, and does so more especially when tobacco is indulged in between meals and not after them. Very probably many men, and especially sprinters training for short races, have smoked during training and done themselves no appreciable harm, as their smoking has been confined to a cigar or a pipe immediately after dinner; but even these cases, we should think? are rare. The uses and functions of tobacco may almost be described as totally incompatible with the cultivation of athletic excellence. Tobacco is a narcotic; it is no doubt not only pleasant, but may be wholesome, to men whose nerves require soothing after hard brain-work and worry, but, except under abnormal conditions, an athlete in training can hardly want a narcotic; he wants to be brisk, vigorous, and robust, and anything which tends to make him lazy must do him harm for athletic purposes.