Cricket 1894

8 8 6 OBXCKET’ s A . WEEKLY BEOOBB OP TH® flAMEj SEPT. 13, 1894 bow lel at the wicket where Good stood umpire, who had not breathed a sentence as to the unfairness of his delivery; but he had scarcely delivered a ball at Calde- court’s wicket when he was startled with the cry of ‘ No-ball.’ This did not arise from his stepping over the crease, but Caldecourt took an objection to his delivery, although he had not altered his mode in the slightest perceptible degree. When the cry of ‘ No-ball ’ was repeated, Hodson and the field stood, as it were, aghast, wondering what was meant by suoh an unseemly interference. The constant repetition of ‘ No-ball,’ and the increase, in consequence, to the Maryle­ bone score, showed them that the umpire was in earnest. The result was, after a loss o f 26 runs in about ten minutes by the ‘ n o-ball’ cry, Hodson was with­ drawn.” And then follows this plain speakingto Caldecourt;— “ Had M r.Calde­ court no regard for the opinion of Mr. Good, his colleague ? Was his judgment to go for nothing ? Had Hodson been bowling through the first innings to an inexperienced umpire ? . . . Bayley and Sewell, superior judges of the game to Caldecourt, have stood to Hodson’s bowling, and have never hinted anything in the shape of unfairness. H e is not so high as Pilch, and who has ever disputed the fairness of Pilch’s bowling ? It may be said in support of Caldecourt, What is the use of having an umpire if he is not to offer his opinion at his own wicket ? In answer we say, that the examples before him : the total silence preserved by Bayley, Sewell, and G o o d ; the general difficulty of deciding what is fair bowling, and his having been allowed to go through the first innings without a dissentient voice ; and taking also the situation of the Sussex players, who had an uphill game to fight, we say, under all these con­ siderations, the interference was ill-timed, and manifested a hostile feeling to the Sussex players. Not one of the spectators approved of the decision, and it was re­ pudiated by nine-tenths of the Gentlemen of the Marylebone Club—not the young players, but the veteran players, whoso judgment Caldecourt, we are persuaded, will not be bold enough to question. Whether he will be continued as an umpire by the M.C.C.we cannot say ; but the Sussex players are determined never again to play where he stands umpire.” Isn’t it amusing ? Recall the Willsher n o­ ball incident in the Surrey and England match of 1862, when John Lillywhite was the offending umpire, and we may say of this 1839 episode, “ com ing events, etc.” Never abetter judge,or more uprightman, than old Caldecourt. As I said in a recent notch, infallible decisions would never be accepted without demur. Who would “ stand ” after this ? What has my old friend, Thoms, to tell of his experiences as umpire ? When he used to run down and umpire for us in Hertfordshire 25 years ago nobody would have questioned his verdicts any more than we would have dared to contradict the prophecies in “ Zadkiel’s Almanac.” Our friendship goes back further than that time, even to the good old days of the Eton and Middlesex ground at the foot of Primrose H ill, owned by Thoms and the late Humphrey Payne. Better wickets than theirs one could not wish for. And it must be more than 30 years since, at Thoms’ request, I went hunting out­ side the Oval for four stones for him to count the balls with, and came back with four flints weighing at least three pounds apiece! And here he is still at bis old place. I don’t want him to pass an ex­ amination in eyesight, though he has entered his seventieth year, for he can tell everything by instinct; he would be almost as efficient an umpire had he d o eyes at all, And he has just given us his annual message, as usual on the eve of the Hastings Festival; as fresh and easy as ever. Why won’t somebody make him write bis reminiscences ? Once upon a time—I forget dates now— he had a big hand in Gemse’s “ Cricket Notes and Notabilities”— the very best series of papers on the game I ever read. They came out during successive winters in the Sporting Life ; I kept a few o f th em ; I once offered to buy the L ife for the entire years in which these notes were written, but without success. I f any of my readers possess them and would care to part with them, I will gladly take them at his price. Can anybody sell me “ Weather on Wickets,” by Bernard Dale ? I have lost m y copy. But this letter is not an advertising m edium ; m y keenness as a collector carried me away. Scarborough and Hastings are our immediate business, though they are not of special importance. Scarborough ground on the North Cliff is a delightful spot in the Dog-days ; it’s never too hot there; but with a stiff Nor’- easter blowing half a gale in September, as happened during the closing match, oce can conceive of a snuggerplaca for a day’s outing. It was almost w interly; I re­ gretted not being by m y own fireside. Yorkshire v. Lancashire was the match, with all the serious elements left out—a scratch affair, and unfinished through rain, Wednesday being a dies non. Oddly enough, Lancashire scored just the same total in their first innings as they did at Bradford in Peel’s match—181, Sugg (42), Baker (30); and Tinsley (38 not out) all playing brisk and stylish cricket, a re freshing contrast to Albert Ward's more cautious methods. Yorkshire stopped short at 152, though at luncheon on Tuesday they looked full o f runs, Brown having then scored an unfinished 53; the lunch must have disagreed with him, as he added no more afterwards. How splendidly he and Sugg are winding up. Less than two months ago Sugg had not scored a couple of hundred runs, now he is among the 10G0 men. But he has a big business to look after in Liverpool, and the burden of that completely put him off play in the early days of the season. Since then he has shifted the responsibility on to a capable manager; hence his success with the bat. Including the first match at Hastings, he has scored 232 runs in his last five innings. There were no extras in Lancashire’s first innings, and they were well in the running when the play was stopped, being 132 on with 7 wickets standing. Ernest Smith would have been a welcome figure at the Festival—that ground favours hard hitting, as it generally takes all the sting out of the fast bowling. Mold was no more dangerous than Lockwood had proved the match before, Oakley (6 for 50), the Sefton professional, having the best figures of all the bowlers on either side. On thewhole, Scarborough failed to score their customary success, last year showing a nett profit of £G40. One missed the Australians. It may be worth asking whether the executive can­ not another year provide a more attractive series of matches. The distance from the South may prove a serious block ; but the amateurs are always treated so hand­ somely there that one would imagine all of them would readily respond to an invita­ tion to play. They might revive the Band which was given up on account of certain spiteful remarks in a local paper. Hastings always mana.es well. Two attractive matches, capital teams, and our two ablest umpires. Their eighth festival, unlucky as to weather for once. North and South have met each year, and won three matches apiece, two being drawn. No record this year, both the big smiters being away, de Trafford en route for America, oncricketbent. It w illbea long time before Smith (Ernest) and de Traf- ford’s hitting of last year is beaten—254 runs in an hour and three-quarters ! And Richardson, Lockwood, and J. T. Hearne bowling. Sugg's 71 was tbe only score this year above mediocrity. Martin and Ilearne’s stand for the first wicket hints at the advisability of changing the order of going in occasionally. Lockwood has been moved up with splendid results; might not others? Some bowlers never get a chance of showing their real form with the bat; they don’t try to score when they know they will in a few minutes have to start the bowling. I can’t say what truth there is in old Lillywhite’s theory— he said that batting spoiled your arm for bowling. More than once he would not go in to bat, but would make for the scoring box and tell them to put Lilly- white absent. Richardson was well out of the way, as he must have had enough bowling for one season. I was surprised to learn from Mold only the other day that he doesn’t think he could stand a winter’s cricket in Australia, not unless they let him off bowling. He must lie fallow all the winter,and do nothing either at cricket or other employment. Some of us wish we could work hard for five months, and then afford to loaf the remaining seven. One lives to learn. Here’s another sur­ prise : I was recently chatting with one of our greatest amateur stumpers; I generally want to examine their hands. By-the-by, there used to be a Southern stumper who would show his battered hands “ for a drink,” but on no other terms. One has usually heard it said, and it has been said so often that it has almost passed into a proverb, that horny hands are best adapted for wicket-keeping. Hence the imagined superiority of the professional (especially if a handicrafts­ man) over an amateur. M y interlocutor disabused m y mind on this score ; he has stood behind to the fastest bowling and