Cricket 1885

468 CKICKET ; A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. DEC. 24, 1885. Marylebone Club. There, however, he was not destined to remain very long. Having noted the rapid development of cricket in the neighbourhood of London, in conjunc­ tion with Humphrey Payne, his inseparable friend and companion, a good all-round ciicketsr, many years attached to the Old Copenhagen ground at Islington, Thoms entered into possession of the Eton and Middlesex ground, situite, a3 many C rick et rtaders will well remember, under the shadow of Primrose Hill. Under the joint gui lance of Payne and Thoms cricket flourish d there for twenty years, and in fact it was not till the land fell into the remorseless clutches of tho builder that the enclosure, which had bsen admirably managed, ceased its existence as a cricket centre. But it ia chiefly in his cipacity as an umpire that Thoms’ name will be handed down to posterity. For a quarter of a century he has occupied, as we have already described it, athankless position in a way to merit the highest respect of cricketers of all classes: when Middlesex was regenerated in 1864 and brought to the front by the united efforts of the celebrated brotherhood of the Walkers, he was retained by the County, and for seventeen years with hardly an exception Thoms was to be seen bs- hind the sticks in their matches at Islington, Prince’s, Lord’s, the Oval, and on most of the County grounds of England. Nor was it only with Middlesex that he has been associated as an umpire. At the Oval, too, he has been in great request, and not a season has passed since the Surrey Eleven, under the ltadership of the late Mr. F. P. Miller, tact led England in which Thoms has not officiated in important matches. So universal, indeed, has been his popularity of late years that when the first match between England and Australia at the Oval was arranged in 1880) he was selected with H. H. Stephenson to umpire, as high a testi­ mony to his efficiency as could have been given. No better proof of his impartiality can be adduced, it seems to us, than the readiness with which his appointment has always been received by the Australian teams, who, not as a rule tolerant in the matter of umpiring, have always shown a marked sense of Thoms’ capabilities behind the sticks. Thoms’ re­ cord as an umpire is one we should think without a parallel. Some twenty - five years ago, when the Islington Albion was a power in the land round London, and Lovell and Wallace, two of the best bowlers of the day among metropolitan cricketers, led it to victory, Thoms was its trusted arbiter, and we believe we shall not be beyond the mark in saying that he stood in over two hundred matches for the old Albion without the shadow of an objection to his decisions. Since its very formation he has too been actively identified with the famous wandering club, the Incogniti, and certainly of late years there have been few Public School matches of any importance in which he has not been invited to stand. In 1878 in recognition of his long an.l faithful ser­ vices the executive of the Middlesex County Club gave him a benefit match—Middlesex v. Notts atLjrd’s, the use of which had been kindly graited for the occasion by the Marylebone Club. The fixture itself was not only well supported, but Thoms’ popu larity was further proved by a fcu jatantial subscription list, to which the Australian cricketers, then on their first visit to England were contributors. Thoms, it may fairly be saiJ, is an institution on the cricket-field. Thoroughly independent and never afraid of sxpressing his opinion, there is certainly no more conscientious umpire. With a complete knowledge of the game in every detail, a perfect acquaintance with the rules and their application, his decisions never fail to com­ mand respect. Always respectful without being obtrusive, full of humour with a cricket vocabulary of his- own coining, Thoms is a cheery accompaniment to a cricket match, and we could fill pages, did space permit, with his quaint sayings and odd fancies. In his own fashion he is, too, a most amusing correspondent, as we our­ selves can vouch. Full of cricket lore, he has innumerable reminiscences of cricket, and during the run of the interesting articles compiled by the late Mr. G. M. Craufurd entitled “ Cricket Notes and Notabilities” which appeared in the Sporting Life a few years ago, he was “ Gemse’s ” most valuable contributor with his anecdotal and characteristic sketches. Liberal to a degree, Thoms has always had a ready hand to help his brother professionals, and as we have ourselves had reason to know he is always among the first to assist to the best of his ability any ease of necessity. In his way no one has done more to uphold the integrity of the game, or workedharder to advance the position of his brother professionals, none in fact deserve! better of cricketers of all classes than Robert Thoms, the Middlesex Veteran. Our portrait is from a photograph by Hawkins of 108, King’s Road, Brighton. THE AU STRAL IAN V IS IT OF 1886 . On Monday afternoon a meeting of Secre­ taries convened by the Secretary of the Surrey County Club, who has been entrusted with the arrangement of the Australian pro­ gramme, was held in tho Pavilion at Lord’s, by the kind permission of tho Marylebone Club. Mr. H. Perkins (Sec. M.C.C.) was in the chair, and there were also present Lord Harris (Kent), Messrs I. D. Walker and A. J. Webbe (Middlesex), H. Cooke and G. Goldsmith (Sussex), J. Shuter, W. W. Read and C. W. A lco ck (Surrey), E. Browne and C.W.Wright (Notts), J. B. Wostinholm (York­ shire), S. H. Swire (Lancashire), W. G. Grace (Gloucestershire), S. Richardson (Derby­ shire), W. Ansell (Warwickshire), T. H. Vialls (Northamptonshire), H. Murray- Anderdon (Somersetshire), T. Ratliff (Essex), J. Horner (Cheshire), A. H. Heath and C. Biel (Staffordshire), and E. Holmes (Leice­ stershire), A discussion ensued on the subject of the re­ presentative fixtures, and itwas arranged that three matches with E .gland, two with the Gentlemen, two against the North, one against the Players and one against South of England should be fixed, the Secretaries agreeing to render every possible assistance to make the elevens in each cise representative. Altogether twenty-eight matches were arranged as under, some dates having beenpurposely left open either to allow a rest for the Australians or to fill up if they think fit. Same of the County matches arranged at the previous meeting will have to be altered, but though inconvenience may be caused ia some cases there will bj no serious difficulty in settling matters if the rearrangement is conducted in a cardial spirit. On the conclusion of the programme, Lord Harris commented forcibly on the great inconvenience caused to Eng­ lish Clubs by the absence of any official announcement from the Melbourne that a team was coming before the date always fixed for the arrangement of the English programme, and the following resolution, proposed by him, seconded by Mr. W. G. Grace, was carried unanimously “ The Secretaries of the County Cricket Clubs trust that on tbe occasion of any future visit of Australian Cricketers to this country they will consider the convenience of those who have to arrange the list of matches in England to announce their in­ tention at a sufficiently early date.” MAY. 13 -Sheffield Park, v. Lord Sheffield’s XI. 17—Nottingham, v. N ots 20—Kenn.ngton Oval, v. Surrey 24—Lord’s, v. M.O.C. and Ground (Two dayB) 27—Oxford, v. Oxford University 31—Manchester or Bradford, v. North of England JUNE. 3—Lord’s, v. Gentlemen of England 7—Derby, v. Derbyshire 10—Cambridge, v. Cambridge University 14—Manchester, v. Lancashire 17—Kennineton Oval. v. Gentlemen of England 21—Nottingham, v. Players of England 21—Lord’s, v, Middlesex JULY. 5—Manchester, v. England 8 —Nottingham, v. Notts 12—Sheffield, v. Yorkshire 19—Lord’s, v. England 22—Huddersfield, v, Yorkshire 26—Stoke, v. An England Eleven 29—Leyton, v. Past and Present of Cambridge Univ AUGUST. 2—Canterbury, v. Kent 5—Clifton, v. Gloucestershire 9—Kenningtoj Oval, v. Surrey 12—Kennington Oval, v. England 16—Chi ltenham, v. Gloucestershire 26—Brighton, v. Sussex. 30—Gravesend, v. South of England. SEPTEMBER. 2—Scarborough, v. Gentlemen of England or I Zin- gail. L IST OF SECRETAR IES . The following names may be added to the list of Secretaries published in the last number of C r ic k e t. METROPOLITAN CLUBS. B r ix to n — J. H. Lofthouse, 44, Herne Hill Road, S.E. C iv il Service C lu b —W. Langley, Foreign Office, S.W. D a ls t o n A lb e r t —J. W. Smithers, 101, Lefevre Road, North Bow, E. H on. A r t i lle r y Co.—The Secretary, Armoury House, Finsbury, E. L o w e r C lapton —W. F. Bishop, West Lynn, Seven Sisters Road, Finsbury Park, N. O atlands P ark —R. Newman, Weybridge. S ta r —G. W. Largen, 74, Gellatly Road, Peckham, S .E . Su rbiton —P. C. Bates, St. Mary’s Road, Long Ditton, WANDERING CLUBS. B u rlin gton W a n d e r e r s — C. A . Stein, 12, St. John’s Road, Brixton, S .W . Guinev Pios-J. L. Nickisson, Stosk Exchange, E.C. C iv il S e r v ic e C lu b .— Mr. W. Langley, of the Foreign Office, has been appointed S e c­ retary of the Civil Service Cricket C lu b iu the place of Mr. A. ffolliott Powell, resigned. Next Issue January 28.