Cricket 1889

JULY 18,1889. C R I C K E T A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 269 team to Canada this autumn. I have reason to believe, though, that he was advised by those best able to speak with authority on the other side, that such a tour would in all probability not be a profitable speculation, and I take it that the idea has been abandoned. T h r e e of this year’s Eton eleven, it will interest most C r ic k e t readers to know, are bound for the Universities next year. W. G. Crum, who batted so well in the first innings against Harrow at Lord’s on Saturday, and H. W. Studd, who bowled with such success in 1888, are both going to Cambridge. J. E. Talbot will be at Oxford next summer. I hear on the best authority that not one of the Harrow eleven goes to Oxford for next year. On the other hand three of the best Harrowplayers, towit—Jackson, Hoare and Wills, will all be in residence at Trinity College in October, so that the Cambridge Freshmen of 1889 will have at least the pickof the Harrowteam. As some of the principal newspapers continue year after year to include the Eton and Harrow match of 1805 as a bona fide contest between the two schools, while refusing to admit that of 1857, it is incumbent on me with a due regard for consistency to repeat my annual protest that the first so-called match of 1805 has, on substantial evidence, been clearly proved not to have been made between the captains of the School elevens, and was consequently not in any sense a legitimate fixture between the two Schools. If the match of 1857 was irregular, that of 1805 was clearly and equally so, as I showed in “ Gossip ” of July 19th last. Harrovians con­ tend that last year each School had won twenty-six times, and that as the match of last week was the sixty-third, Harrow is now ahead, having won twenty-seven and Eton twenty-six of the fifty-three which have been played out. M etropo litan CRiCKET-readers w ill recogn ise on e o f th eir fra tern ity in the ch ie f a cto r in th e ce rem on ia l referred to in the follo w in g a n n o u u ce m e n t:— Oa the 11th July, at St. Mark’s Church, Lewisham, by the Rev. Hamilton S. Cobb, M.A., William, eldest surviving son of Francis Edwards, of Hawthornden, Hither-green, Lewisham, to Mary (May), daughter of John Wilson, of The Laurels, Blessington-road, Lee. Mr. William Edwards is now, and has been for many years, the captain of the Granville Cricket Club, which has its head-quarters at Lee, and in that capa­ city is well known to most cricketers around London. He played for Kent a few seasons back against Lancashire and Surrey, and with considerable success. As an all-round player he showed no small promise, but business, as it has many others, prevented his giving the necessary time for real practice, and as he was not able to devote himself seri­ ously to the game, County cricket only knewhim for one year. His wife, I may add, is the daughter of the Treasurer of the Granville Club, himself amost ardent supporter of cricket. Mr. Edwards, it may interest some to know, was also a good football player, and what is more, could claim the unusual distinction of profi­ ciency under both codes. As anything in the way of news from the other side respecting the visit of another Australian team to England can not fail to be of interest, I reproduce an answer to correspondents from the Mel­ bourne Leader, of June 8 , word for word :— There seems every reason to expect that another Australian eleven will go to England next year, but the players are not likely to be definitely ohosen for the next six months, though a preliminary selection of some who are considered certain to be included will probably be made earlier. T h e ways of the country umpire, like those of the Heathen Chinee, are a little peculiar at times. I have not heard a better ‘‘ derangement of epitaphs,”toquote Mrs. Malaprop, though, thanwas aotually recorded in a hy no means unimportant fixture played by a County Club against a local team this week. A well-known County player was batting, andinplaying a bumping ballwhich got upwell over the wicket, raised his arm instinctively to protect himself. The ball hit his hand, and in reply to an appeal from the bowler, the local umpire gave vent to the followingremarkable exclamation—“ Out. Beg jfcmr pardon, sir, not out, but you must go.” After the innings the official expressed his great grief at his mistake, adding that if there was acricketerwhom he wanted to see bat, it was the profes­ sional whom he had been unfortunate enough to give out. C r ic k e t at Saint Vincent must be a most enjoyable recreation to judge by the following paragraph, which has come to me in a very roundabout fashion, repro­ duced as it is from the Empire newspaper of Toronto: Sometimes the lot of a cricketer is a par­ ticularly happy one. The Oxford Maqaxine reports that an Oxford graduate, calling at St. Vincent on a homeward voyage from the West Indies, found the island wholly giv«n to oricket, played on English lines, with one brilliant exception. The olub included lady members, who, as each batsman is out, issue from the tent, pavilion, or bower (or what­ soever represents the tropical form of shelter) walk up to the disoomfited player, and offer him eaoh an arm. “ Leaning upon these friendly and tender supports, he re-enters the tent, and finds solaoe for defeat, or an additional zest to his triumph.” I am not at all certain that batsmen would be so disinclinedto leave the wioket as they now frequently are, were the surroundings so agreeable and attractive. C r ic k e te r s have been very much in evidence in other branches of sport just lately. Mr. A-. P. Gaskell, the Secretary of the Chiswick Park Club, and by no means a bad cricketer, holds the title of Amateur Billiard Champion, which he securedrecentlyafter an easyvictory over the challenger, Mr. Alabone. The Hon. Alfred Lyttelton has, too, just won the Tennis Gold Prize of the Marylebone Club for the third year in succession, de­ feating Sir E. Grey last week for the premiership. Three of the competitors in the Inter-UniversityFour-handTennis Match, to wit, Messrs. E. Crawley and E. M. Butler (Cambridge), andH. Philip­ son (Oxford), are well-known cricketers, and the Cantabs, who are^bothOldHarro­ vians, by the way, had an easy victory, winning by three games to love. The Gentlemen of Philadelphia, who have so far proved themselves to be a good all-round side, and one that cer­ tainly stays well, are to make their first appearance in London at the Oval to-day. The Gentlemen of Surrey who are to oppose themwill berepresentedbyMessrs. J. Shuter, W. W. Bead, K. J. Key, F. Fielding, L. A. Shuter, C. E. Horner, C. L. Morgan, T. P. Harvey, D. L. A. Jephson, F. W. Freeman, and C. L. Hemmerde. I t will be gratifying to his many friends in England to learn that H. F. Boyle has been recently presented with a testimonial by the leading junior cricket clubs of Melbourne, in recognition of the interest he has shown in promoting and fostering the interests of our national game generally, but more particularly in appreciation of his efforts to develop junior cricket. The testimonial, which bore an inscription eulogistic of Boyle’s manyservicestothegame,wassignedbythe following representatives of junior clubs: N. Batchelor (Capulet), W. Anderson (Ormond), W. Drysdale (North Fitzroy), J. Henderson (South Melbourne Juniors), J. Swan (Camberwell), A. Fox (Western Market) andW. Dunstone (Coburg). T h e following are the results of the various matches played between the eight first-class counties this season so far : "Won. Drawn. Lost. Notts .................5 .. 0 .. 0 Lancashire .. .. 5 .. 0 .. 2 Surrey .................4 .. 0 .. 2 Kent........................2 .. 0 .. 1 Middlesex .. .. 3 .. 0 ... 8 Gloucestershire .. 1 .. 1 .. 3 Sussex .................1 1 •• 6 Yorkshire .. •• 0 .. 0 .. 6 The match between Middlesex afid Kent at Lord’s was not commenced, owing to bad weather. S in c e I enumerated the many long innings made by Mr. C. A. S. Leggatt for the Ewell Club, that run-getting batsman has added another score of three figures to his record in the shape of one of 112 for Ewell against Epsom, last Thursday.