Dimming of the Day

58 on the off side. On 11 July it was reported that Sir Edward Carson was off to Belfast to foment trouble by addressing the “Ulster provisional government”. The extent to which The Times sided with the unionists as they edged closer and closer to rebellion is remarkable. Winston Churchill, speaking in Dundee, said that he was confident that British good sense would prevail. Very few commentators at the time would have credited Churchill, impulsive and warlike, with that particular virtue. The Eton v Harrow match got an article to itself in the news pages rather than just among the other scores. Harrow made 232, Eton 146. The Times goes on to list the spectators in the carriages and the more distinguished ones in the stands as if it were royal ball rather than a cricket match. There were no anarchists here. The other cricket reports led with Gentlemen v Players. The Gentlemen were 90 behind on first innings, being out for 237 with the Players 143-3 in their second innings; they were slow but then Arthur Jaques was bowling his leg theory again. Keeping wicket for the Gentlemen was Harold Garnett of Lancashire. By the end of the season he was opening the batting, keeping wicket and captaining Lancashire all at once. He died at Cambrai in December 1917. At Huddersfield Northamptonshire were bowled out twice in a day for 146 and 192 to leave Yorkshire winning by an innings. Kent beat Somerset by nine wickets: Lancashire beat Leicestershire by eight wickets, the report headed ‘Lancashire’s new bowler’ with reference to Cecil Parkin who took 14 for 99 in the match. Parkin had played one match for Yorkshire in 1906, but this was his debut for Lancashire at the age of 28. In 1906 Parkin had told Lord Hawke on the morning of his Yorkshire debut that he had actually (just) been born in Durham, to which the noble lord replied, ‘We are not particular about a few yards; you play today’ 26 A telegram from MCC lodging an objection to qualification followed. Parkin joined Tunstall in the North Staffordshire League, later moving to Church in the Lancashire League and subsequently Rochdale which meant that he only played for Lancashire when free. Gloucestershire were not quite so bad in their second innings against Hampshire: Kennedy and Newman took ten wickets apiece in the match. On 13 July The Times had three leaders, dealing with Ulster, the death of Lady Hardinge and the report into the loss of the Empress of Ireland . It reported the sudden death of M Hartwig, the Russian Minister at Belgrade – he had a sudden fatal heart attack while in conversation with his opposite number from Vienna. It was not in itself a crucial point, but it emphasised the rising unrest in the Balkans. The Times reported on ‘panic’ among Austrians in Belgrade who believed they were to be murdered in their beds. The Austrian government was said to believe that two Russian anarchists had arrived in Belgrade (complete with bombs) to blow up the 26 Cecil Parkin, Cricket Triumphs and Troubles , Nicholls & Co, 1936 July 1914