Cricket 1883

130 CRICKET; A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. m a y s i , isss . credited with sixty wickets, and on the memora­ ble occasion of England, at the Oval, he took eight wickets at a cost of seventy-one runs, the best bowling performance on the side. In his two most recent matches at Cam­ bridge, this season, Peate has been singularly unsuccessful, but on his two appearances at Lord’s bis bowling was as effective as ever; and for the North against the South, in the Whit­ suntide match, ho had a wonderful analysis of 74 overs for 6*2 runs and 12 wickets. Peate is, beyond a doubt, the best slow bowler of the present day. His delivery (left-hand) is very easy, his accuracy of pitch is unerring. He varies his bowling, too, with great judgment. He generally works away from the off, but occasionally bowls a most difficult ball, coming with his arm. He alters the height and pace of the ball, too,cleverly, and when he finds a spot to help him the best batsmen find it impossible to score. As a batsman he has more than once proved use­ ful at the finish of an innings, and has fre­ quently been of great service to the Yorkshire Eleven at a crisis. Some of his batting, during the tour of Shaw’s team in Australia, was very creditable, and he has several times surprised the spectators by the resistance he has offered to the best bowlers. Fielding is, perhaps, his worst point, but, even in this department, he is not a failure. There are few better conducted cricketers than Edmund Peate, and it need hardly be added that his general popularity is thoroughly well deserved. * ^ C 0 ^ ^ E g P 0 p iD E ^ C E ^ We are not responsible for the opinions expressed by our correspondents. No communications can be inserted un­ less they bear the nam9 and address of the writer, as a proof of good faith, not necessarily for publication. LAW X. To t h e E ditor of “ C ricket .” S ir , —Will you allow me to call the attention of managers of Crioket Club3 throughout the country to the important step which has just been taken by the M.C.C. towards checking the increasing practioe of throwing instead of bowling. They have instructed their umpires to carry out in the most stringent manner, the spirit, as well as the letter of Law X., which prohibits the practice alluded to. It is much to be desired, in the true interests of Cricket, that County Clubs, throughout England, should fol­ low this excellent example, and thus put an end to what seriously threatens to bring the noble game into disrepute. Young bowlers should, I think, especially be cautioned in this matter, as a bad habit, once acquired, is diffi­ cult to shake off. I am glad to say that Lord Harris is taking the lead in this movement, and it is in the hope that his efforts will be worthily seconded by Kentish Cricketers that I have ventured to make this appeal.—Yours, &o. H er ber t K n atcb bu ll -H ug essen . Junior Carlton Club, Pall Mall, S.W . SUSSEX CKICKET. To t h e E d ito r of “ C r ic k e t .” S ir , —The query of X.Y. in your paper of the 17th inst. is easily answered. In the list of Sussex cricketers given by him there is not one first class bat, except perhaps Mr. Whitfeld, and certainly not one first-class bowler. How, then, can Sussex be expected to play strong?— W.Z. To th e E d itor of “ C r ick e t . ” S ir , —I was much pleased to see the letter of your correspondent, X.Y., on Sussex Crieket. It does seem surpassing strange that a county with ten such good amateur players as he men­ tions—not naming Messrs. E. T Ellis, A. Blackman, C. J. and F. M. Lucas, F. B. Whit­ field (who never appears for his county), Thornton, Podmore, Wyatt, and C. Sharpe, with Payne and Howard to be added to the professional talent—should as a rule put in such a poor appearance in their principal engagements, I believe, however, this can partially be accounted for by the manner in which their play is usually criticised in the London papers. It is seldom that any excuse is made for them—it is generally looked upon as a sort of what-else-could-you-expect. Under these circumstances it is not surprising that the men fall to pieces, often when the game appears to be ill in their favour. With many others, I most sincerely wish the old County better luck this season, and shall watch her progress with the keenest interest. By-the-bye, would it be quite impossible to persuade Dr. Cotterill to play in some of the northern matches?—Yours, &e., J. S. B r y d e n . ON TRIAL. To t h e E ditor of “ C ricket . ” S ir , —In the article “ On Trial” in the last number of C ricket you contend that tho value of the new ordinance of the M.C.O. will depend in a great measure on the response made to it by the higher order of umpires. It will per­ haps be interesting to you to know that in a club match played here on Saturday, the 26th of May, one of the chosen officials of M.C.C. en­ forced |Law 10 by no-balling one of the Tun­ bridge Wells bowlers, with the result of stopping his bowling in future unless he can effect a change of delivery. The umpire, W. H . Luck, who has been selected to stand in the match Middlesex v. Gloucestershire at Lord’s to day, has thus shown that he has the “ courage of his opinions,” and I trust that other officials of his class will be found to follow his example should the necessity arrive in any of the more impor­ tant contests,—Yours, &c., Tunbridge Wells. T. M a r t in . ON REMOVING AN OLD LANDMARK FROM CRICKET HISTORY. To th e E ditor of “ C r ick e t . ” S ir , —No man has written more earnestly and intelligently about Cricket than Mr. F. Gale, and nobody’s opinions about the game are better worth taking to heart than those which he pro­ claims from time to time, through the press and from the platform. Whenever I see F. G. appended to an article, I read it with pleasure and satisfaction. 1 was pleased to see his article in C r icket , on the old Bat and Ball Inn, with the picture of the famous hostelry where the fathers of our national game met together that they might promote the interests of what in their time was emerging from a rudimentary condition and was more of a boy’s pastime than a man’s delight. Mr. Gale, towards the close of his article expressed something more than a doubt about the statement which has been often repeated in books which have treated on tho history of cricket, that Bishop Ken played at Winchester. This is one of the old landmarks which ought not to be removed without a satisfactory reason. There are two references given by writers who have referred to Bishop Ken’s connection with cricket. One is from John Timbs, who wrote The School-clays of Eminent Men , andwho says: “ Thomas Ken,afterwards the well-kno wnBishop of Bath and Wells, used to wield a bat in Winchester school.” This reference is given in Box’s English Game of Cricket, and also in the Cricket Field. Mr. Pycroft in the latter work, says that Timbs quoted from Lisle Bowles, who wrote the life of Ken, But ths truth is that Timbs put in his own words the fact that Bowles had stated. Bowles, referring to the admission of Ken to Winchester, in 1650, says : “ On the fifth or sixth day our junior is found for the first time attempting to wield a cricket bat.’’ Lisle Bowles was himself a Winchester boy and was captain of the school when he left it in 1781, and as he gives such a detailed account of this event he had either satisfactory evidence before him when he wrote, or he deliberately invented the statement. If he had only given a general account of the fact it might have been a tradition which he was repeating, but mention­ ing the fifth or sixth day places it into another category altogether. Mr.;R. Macgregor, in his Pastimes and Players, refers to a Latin poem by Christopher Johnson, written when he was at Winchester, in the days of Queen Elizabeth. He quotes this lin e:— Saspe repercusso pila te juvat icta bacillo. This is a reference to a game, and Mr. Macgregor says it may have been cricket. The mention of ball and staff or bat shews thatit was a similar game. Bowles says Ken wielded a cricket bat, or per­ haps refers to an amusement which by almost imperceptible changes became the cricket which Bowles remembered to have been played in his own school days. Mr. Pycroft suggests that perhaps Bowles spoke typically of English games, and did not mean to commit himself to cricket in particular. But Mr. Pycroft had the sentence from Timbs before him, and not the detailed statement of Bowles. We know that cricket was played in the South of England at an earlier date than the one at which Ken entered Winchester, and it is well to have all the evidence before us, that we may not reject hastily and without reason what has long been looked upon as an early instance of cricket being played at a Public School.—Yours, &c., T hom as K e yw o r t h . CHELTENHAM v. THORNBURY. To th e E ditor of “ C r ic k e t .” S ir , —In your issue of Thursday last you notice Dr. E. M. Grace’s score of 70 not out for Thornbury v. Cheltenham. I think it would only be fair to record that Thornbury were dismissed first innings for 25, the Chelten­ ham bowlers, Staley and Newman, being well on the wicket. Staley had 6 wickets for 13 runs, and Newman 4 for 12. Cheltenham knocked up 139 in their only innings, and being a single-day match it was a win for Cheltenham. —Yours, &c., R. J. P ear ce . S core Sheets for forwarding matches to C r ick e t can be had at the Office, 17, Paternos- ter-square, London, E.C., price 9d. a dozen.— A d vt . T he Lancashire and Yorkshire Cricketers’ Handbooks for 1883, containing the match fixtures of the principal clubs in these counties, are just out, price 2d. each. They can be had in London of Wright and Co., C ricket Press, 17, Paternoster-square, E.C. C ricket T elegraph B oard for Sale, nearly new, cheap.—B., 76, Winston Road, Stoke Newington Green, N. [Advt.] F or Widnes v. Birkenhead Victoria, on May 26, at Widnes, C, H. Watson went in first and carried out his bat for 72 out of 239. S m a l l S co ring . — Two Yorkshire clubs— Nostell and Crofton—met last week at Crofton. Nostell scored 149, and Crofton figured as follows :—J. Cressy, 1 ; F. Cressey, 1; Lumb, 0 ; C.Fernandes, 0 ; F. Berry, 0 ; R. Fernandes, 0 ; T. Berry; 0 ; T. Cressy, 1; Smith, 0 ; Stead (not out) 0 ; extra, 1; total, 4. T h e Manager of C ricket is desirous of pur­ chasing Liilywhite's Guide for 1853, to com­ plete a set.