A Game Sustained

12 Cricket, war and the ethical dilemma that there were ‘whole circles of society in which the spirit of sacrifice is unknown.’ Such hypocrisy fuelled views on the continuation of sport, particularly professional football, which was heavily criticised by the better off, even as they enjoyed their own recreations. 10 Against such a background, it is not so surprising that some people felt it reasonable, having contributed to the war effort in a factory, in business or in the fields, that they should be able to relax for a few hours playing or watching sport. As time went on and it was clear that the conflict was to be prolonged, many people found ways of accommodating wartime stress into their lives and sought different forms of release to see them through including religious, cultural and recreational diversions. This was at a time when restrictions were placed on travelling, the opening hours of pubs and off-licences were curtailed, and the customary attractions at seaside resorts such as agricultural and floral exhibitions, regattas and water carnivals were cut back. Unsurprisingly, some men came under moral pressure or censure for appearing not to take the situation seriously enough. In 1916 in North Yorkshire, one local Military Service Tribunal (which considered appeals against conscription) heard a plea from a farmer who wanted his son exempted so he could carry on running the family farm. Some members of the tribunal expressed surprise that the son – a well- known local cricketer, crack shot and good rider – should be appealing at all, considering he should have been one of the first to join the Army. Hewas given only amonth’s exemption. In the Whitby Tribunal the same summer, members asked why men who had been exempted frommilitary service were not required to join the Volunteer Training Corps (the home militia corps for those over military age or with business or family commitments which made it hard for them to volunteer), one claiming that men rejected as medically unfit were seen playing football and cricket at all hours. In short, there was a continuous tension between the moral and principled instinct to suspend frivolous and wasteful activities, and the realities of a more pragmatic, day-to-