Cricket 1893

DEC. 29, 1893 ORXCRSTs A WEERL! EECOED OF THE GAME, 473 “ FELIX ” (Drawn by Himself) although neither a five or biilliant hitter, was very useful in wearing down the bowl ng: was an excellent long-stop to Mr. Fello.wes’ fast bowling, and his opinion wns that if a wicket-keeper accepted one c'a n cs in three either by catches or stumping it was as much as could be expected of him. Rev. Charles P. Harenc, Harrow, Oxford, amd one of the Kent Eleven, wa’ one of the early round-arm bowlers and the first gentle­ man to bring it to any degree of perfection. He pliyed for his school in 1826-7. He was for many years one of the most des- nated the be?t bat the Gentlemen of England have to boast. He uniformly makes excell­ ent average Hon. Francis Silv. ster Grimston, Harrow, a younger brother of the above, was born De\ 8, 1822. As a batsman he was a fine resolute hitter and was one of the best amateur wicket-keepers of his day. He had admirable defence as a batsman, and as a wicket keep?r, ho in 14 matches stump'd 6 and caught 6. Mr. E. S. E. Hartopp, Eton, a member of the M.C.C. and played in many of the Club’s matches. He had very steady defence, and tractive of fast bowlers. Was also a member of the M.C.C. He died in November, 1877. Mr. Arthur Haygarth, Harrow, and an active member of the M.C.C. As a batsman Mr. Haygarth had an ungainly style, but was remarkably steady and resolute, seldom taking liberties with dangerous bowling. He could g'nerally be depended on for a good score. Was an excellent long field, and altogether one of the most effective members of the M.C.C. Mr. Haygarth, in conjunction with Frederick Lillywhite, was compiler of Lillywhite’ s “ Scores and Biographies,” now a very scarce work. Mr. Horner wai a member of the Dulwich, Surrey Club, and one of the founders of the Surrey County Club at Kennington Oval. Mr. Charles H. Hoare, Rugby, was one of the most active members of the Surrey C lub; as a batsman he was a very free punishing hitter, especially to tbe o ff; he was a rather impetuous player, but would at times punish tbe best of bowlers brought against h im : he was an excellent field, and a rare one at practice. All the Hoare family were enthusiasts for Surrey cricket. Mr. C. H. Hoare was born Oct. 24, 1819. Died April 4, 1869. Mr. H. Jenner, Eton, and Oxford, for which University he played in 1829. Mr. Jenner was one of the pioneers of wicket - keeping to fast bowling. Mr. Py- croft says of him, “ Mr. Jenner, famed not only for the neatest stumping but for the marvellous quantity of ground he could cov;r, serving as a near point, leg, and slip, as well as wicket-keeper.” “ Free from affectation, young Jenner, stand forth, And all who are judges a c k n o w l e d g e h i s worth, Wicket keeper,or bowler, or batter— in all He is good, but perhaps he shines most with the ball.” Jenner was very ele­ gant in his movements, a good slow bowler, and very clever in skimming off one bail with his little finger, ball in hand, and not troubling the umpire. Once his friend, Mr. R. K., had an awkward trick of pulling up bis trousers, which lifted his leg, every time he had missed a ball: Mr. Jenner waited for his accustomed habit, caught him in the act, and stumped him—“ The Cricket Field,” pp. 278—80. Mr. li. W. Keate, Etort and Canhrid.’e University, was a good bowl r and all-round cricketer, Mr. Roger Kynaston, Eton, was. Hon. Sec. to the M.C.C. for many years, afterwards contemporary periodical we find the follow­ ing respecting this celebrated cricketer: — “ On the occasion of a match played at Lord’s, on June 1 and 3, 1846, as a testimo­ nial to this gentleman’s talents, so great was the universal respect for him, that nearly 7,000 persons were present, to witness the exertions of some of the finest players in the world, who d d honour to the occasion by exhibiting their prowess.” The sides were chosen by Mr. Felix and Fuller Pilch. Felix’s side scored 47—128, Pilch’s side 104 — 105, Felix made 6— 10, Pilch 5—31. Most of the best players of tbe day took part in this match. Even Royalty honoured Felix, on this occasion, for H .R H. Prince Albert was present and was a “ pleased spectator of the game for nearly two hours.” It is stated his “ favourite p o't in tbe field is ‘ point,’ and he i-^certainly proficient in all its requisites, 1o which he uniformly adds no small portion of the vis comica so peculiarly his own.” As a batsman, Mr. Felix, like most left- handed players, was a h a r d h i t t e r . H e could, however, play steadily, for on one oc­ casion, playing for Kent v. England, he with A. Mynn was in pretly nearly a whole day and had eight bowlers o p p o s e d t o t hem. Mr. Gale writes of Felix — “ Mr. N. Felix — the king of men— schoolmaster at Black- h e a t h , c r i c k e ter, s c h o l a r , l i n g u i s t , singer, musician, artist, and the cheeriest man who ever went into a cricket field. „ „ * t Born in Surray, though playing for Kent, where he taught hundreds of young fellows cricket, he n i claimed for Surrey for birth when they played against K ent; as was Mar­ tingell.” —1' The Game of Cricket,” pp. 257 —258. Mr. Felix died September 3rd, 1876. Hon. Robert Grim­ ston, Harrow. —Hon. R. Grimston was the third son of the fourth Lord Verulam, born Sept. 18, 1816. He was at one time President of the M.C.C. and one of its most efficient and indefatigable members and also one of its committee. He made the highest score for England v. Kent at Lord's, June 22-24, 1846, viz. 11 and 54. He was also a most excellent long-stop W ith his close companion, Lord Bessborough, he took the greatest interest in the success of Harrow School, where h i was himself educated H e died April 7, 1884. Hon. Edward Harbottle Grimston, Harrow, was the elder brother of the above. Was born in 1812 A s a cricketer, it is said, both for style and effect, he “ mi y truly be denom'-