Cricket 1894

JUNE 7, 1894 (OBICJ&B?* k WEKKLT EECOBB OF TEW 0AM®, 185 conclusively,as was the case at the Oval, that they are capable of playing an uphill game wit pluck. This is a qualification of itself which will commend them heartily to the good will of the British public, which dearly loves a good sportsman. It is satisfactory, too, to note that the out cricket, which, on their previous form, seemed to be their weak point, on this occasion was by no means the least influential factor in their success. The victory at Lord’s on Tuesday every C r i c k e t reader will hope is only the forerunner of many similar achievements. E v e n in Club Cricket it is a very rare feat for two bowlers to keep up their ends through­ out both innings of a match.“ A special line,” to use a favourite phrase of the trade, there­ fore is due to A. Price-Jones and Tj. H. Roberts,who were credited with a performance of this kind on Wednesday of last week at Streatham. They were playing for Streatham against Kensington Park, and their respective figures were as follows :— 0. M. R. w. A. Price-Tones............................... 26 15 19 12 L. H. Roberts ............................ 258 50 7 W a t t s and Street, the two young Surrey players, had a pleasant little outing in Essex on Tuesday last. They were playing for Cog- geBball against Kelvedon, and they equally divided the twenty wickets of the latter. In the first innings Street got six and Watts four, and in the second the positions were exactly reversed, so that each of the pair was credited with ten wickets in the match. Coggeshall, who onthe same occasion last year were fielding the whole of the day for a big total of over four hundred, this time had a full revenge. And all on account of Street and Watts ! S yd n ey B e c k le y , it may save Secretaries of Clubs some trouble to know, has been ordered away on sick leave toEgypt, where he is likely to remain for some little time. S. B, has taken such an active part not only in Club Cricket in the neighbourhood of London, but has always lent suoh a willing hand in the direction and organisation of social functions in the interest of Metropolitian Clubs, that this announcement of his relegation to the abroad list may spare some C r ic k e t readers at least waste of time as well as probable incon venience. I h a v e great pleasure in giving publicity to the following letter from Mr. F. M. Bissell, the hon. sec. of the International Match Committee of Philadelphia, on the subject of the abandonment of the tour originally arranged for this year. Although my letter, informing you of the necessity for abandoning the trip of our team for this year, gave very explicitly the causes which induced such action, I do not believe that cricketers in your country quite appreciate not only the ordinary difficulties that surround such an undertaking as sending an eleven to England from Philadelphia, when the conditions are favourable, but more especially the absolute impossibility that confronted us during the past winter, owing to the business depression that extends over this entire country. When the project of sending an eleven over in 1894 was first broached last fall, we took the same steps to secure the men that we wanted to represent Philadelphia, as we have heretofore, and we had at that time no reason to expect a failure when the time came to make definite arrangements for the tour. The remarkable and unprecedented stagnation in business, and (what is much more serious) the great uncertainty for the future, of which no one is able to predict the outcome, made it impossible for several members of the team, whose services were indispensable, but who represent important business and financial interests, to take such a prolonged absence at this time. We appreciated thoroughly the fact that such a course on our part might embarrass the clubs with which fixtures have been made, and might possibly create some prejudice towards any similar undertaking in the future, but under the circumstances, of which I have attempted to give you some idea, the Committee had no alternative. If the Com­ mittee had a large number of cricketers to draw from, the task of selecting an eleven to send abroad would be comparatively easy, but while we have a great many cricketers in Philadelphia, very few of them are of the class that would bo considered at all for such a trip. Recent newspaper articles make it evident that the raison d'etre and the scope of the International Match Committee of Philadel­ phia are not understood by some of the crick­ eters in England. The work of that Commit­ tee has teen ertirelv in the interest of Ameri­ can cricket, and outside of Philadelphia there are few, if any, American cricketers whowould be entitled to form part of such a team as the Philadelphia Committee intended to send to England this summer to cope with some of Ihe strongest elevens to be found there. During the ten or eleven years tbat the Committee has been engaged in this work, there has never been any intention on its part to go outside of Philadelphia, either to raise money, or find men for its teams, which have been made up of cricketers who were not only Philadelphians, but also Americans. I think it is due to the Committee that this fact should be made clear, in Order to correct any erroneous impression wnich may exist in Engtand, and which is perhaps due to newspaper articles written in this country by unauthorised and irresponsible persons. At the risk of wearying you, I have gone very fully into this matter, but we consider it desirable that the facts should be understood by English cricketers from whom the cricketers of Philadelphia have so often received evidences of kindly feeling both in your country and here. T h r e e seems to be a mystic number j ust now in Yorkshire cricket. Both their County t matches of last weekwerewon by three wickets, andoddly enough the Middlesexmatch atLoi d’s in 1893 was won by exactly the same margin. In a similar way Surrey for the moment might be inclined to think there was some fatality about the ninth wicket. It was for the ninth wicket of Middlesex that Mr. R. S. Lucas and Phillips made their big stand, as it was for the South Africans a week later that Messrs. Castens and Glover put on 85 runs. Just for a minute or so, too, there was a little anxiety when Messrs. Perkins and Robinson got to­ gether in tbe second innings of Cambridge on luesday. But this is weakness !! What price the Thirteen Club ? I t is pleasant to see that the insidious at­ tractions of the royal game ha\e not as yet seriously impaired the powers of L. M, Bal­ four-Melville as a crickeUr. Only last Satur­ day he wielded the bat with very much the i same success which has brought him into | quite the front rank of golfers. ALother of the best of Scotch gentle tappers, R. H. John­ ston to wit, was also on the knock in the same match, the Grange against the West of Scot. land, at Partick. The Grange closed their innings with the total 244 for two wickets, and then dismissed the West for 110. Of the 224 L. M. Balfour, as he was for so long known, contributed 102, and Johnson 100. Both too were not out. “ F e l ix , ’* of the Australasian , is respon­ sible for the statement that the veteran H. F. Boyle, who did so many good performances with the ball for the earlier Australian teams, has made up his mind definitely to retire from active cricket. A time, of course, comes when it is advisable to retire, even if, in a majority of cases, the decision is deferred to a “ more convenient date,’*and often enough when all that remains is the memory of a big reputation. “ Let me not live when my lamp lacks oil ’’ is perhaps the idea that has run through “ Boylee’s ’’ mind in coming to his cor. elusion. It is something of a wrench to think that the game is losing the services of a right cheery cricketer, and one who never lost heart however the play was going. Still, the con­ sciousness of thirty years of hard and honest work is a pleasing record for any cricketer on his withdrawal from active life. I t would seem as if, with the captaincy, Mr. Key has not been able to provide himself with a coin of at all a proper sense of propor­ tions, that is, of course, pro-Surrey propor­ tions. At any rate, captains have come to the Oval, have seen and have invariably conquered in the choice of innings. So far, this year, Surrey has lost the toss in every one of the seven matches in which the county has taken part It is magnificent, no doubt to use a well-known phrase, of course. But it is not war. Perhaps I should say waur. Still, no one seems to be very much the waur. T he South African Team, it may concern some C ricket readers to know, are not to have an idle time of it the latter psrt of this week. Though they will not have any cricket, at least of their own, to engage their attention to day, they are in for an extra match, even if they are not ‘ billed” for it, at Beckenham tc-morrow and Saturday. The game, which has been a ranged through the intervention of a Lot don South African,will be none the less enjoyable from the fact that the cricket, perhaps, will not be taken as severely as it is on some of the principal English grounds. PRINCIPAL MATCHES FOR NEXT WEEK. June 7— Cam' ridge, Cambiidge Univer. v. Surrey June 7—Dewsbury, Yorkshiie v. Sus-ex June 7— Liverpool, Lancashire v. Middlesex June 7—Oxford, Oxford University v. M.C.C. & G. June 11 - Lord’s, Middlesex v. Not<s June It—Birmingham, Warwickphire v. Essex June 11 —Canterbury, Kent v. Somerset June 11- Derby, Derbyshiie v. Lancashire Jur e 11—1eicester, Leicestershire v. South ' frica June 11—Sheffield, Yorkshire v. Surrey Walker and Porter put on 169 for the tenth wicket for Essfx C. and G. v. Manor Park, at Leyton, on Tuesday. After E. O. Drabble and J. C. Mallam had scored 172 for Waldegrave Park againstWinchester Houee at Twickenham, last Saturday, without the loss of a wicket, the innings was closed.