Cricket 1897

130 CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. M a y 13, 1897. batsman, who, I believe, was Lord Harris, in. Nobody ever gave fewer doubtful decisions than Thoms. Once I played in a match with the pitch too long. It was for the Free Foresters against the Gentlemen of Notts. Oddly enough nobody discovered it during our first innings, but as soon as I had bowled a ball down before the Gentlemen’s inn­ ings began I said, ‘ Oh, this is too long.’ When the pitch was measured it was found to be too long by about four feet. One of our side afterwards remarked that he had never seen so many long hops in his life as when the Gentlemen of Notts were bowliDg ! ” After he left school Mr. Rutter played for Uxbridge, who had a very good team. “ I probably should never have played in county cricket,” he said, “ it it had not been for V. E . Walker. It was about 1865, I should think, that he started the Middlesex county club, and I went down to Cambridge to play for him for Gentle­ men of England against the University. After that Walker put me in the Middle­ sex team, and I played for the county for ten years or so, sharing most of the bowling with George Howitt, a left-hand fast bowler.” “ Can you remember the names of the Middlesex team in those days ?” “ I can remember most of them. There were V. E., R. D., and I. D. Walker, C. E . Green, C. F. Buller, Tom Hearne, Bissett, A. J. Wilkinson, W. H . Hadow, B. Pauncefote, C. J . Brune, and M. Turner. The Walkers were the best cricketers I ever played with, and knew more about the game than anybody else. Y . E . Walker was a splendid captain, always cheerful and good tempered, and never put you out.” “ What was your first match for Middlesex p ” “ It was against Kent on the old Bat and Ball ground at Gravesend. I remem­ ber that I took five wickets in the first innings and six in the second. But we were beaten. Lipscomb, the Kent fast bowler, knocked us about a good deal, and Willsher was very difficult to play.” “ At that time Middlesex did not play at Lord’s ?” “ No. Our ground was on the old cattle market, Islington. One of the earliest matches played there tvas against Yorkshire, for whom Freeman and Emmett bowled. Freeman was the best bowler I ever met; no other bowler could compare with him. A ball from him used to hum like a top as it came to you. Emmett, at that time, had an extra­ ordinary break. I remember that in this match I. D. Walker was in, and I was running for him. Emmett bowled a ball wide of the leg stump, and I, standing in my place behind the wicket-keeper, jumped out of the way of it, but it took Walker’s off bail instead of coming on to me. It was a fast ball too. Walker stood for a minute, not realizing he had been bowled, when Emmett, in his broad Yorkshire, exclaimed: ‘ They call that “ oot ” whar I coom from.’ ” “ Middlesex also played at Prince’s P” “ After we left the cattle market. Prince’s was not by any means what I should call a bowler’s ground. In connection with one of the matches which we played there, against Notting­ ham, I remember a ball that I bowled to Daft. It was the first ball he had, and pitched some way off the off stump and came with my arm. He didn’t know what to make of it, and thinking that he was quite safe did not attempt to play it, with the result that he was bowled. I shall never forget his look of surprise as he walked away. I don’t remember seeing any record of this incident in his book.” “ When did you give up first-class cricket ?” “ In 1876 I think. But I afterwards turned out as one of the Veterans who played against M.C.C. at Lord’s. I had not played good cricket for a long time. When Grace was apparently set for a big score, and was getting very busy, Walker put me on, The joke was that I bowled him first ball— a very slow one, to which he played too quickly. He looked very surprised and sold, while I did my best to look as if it were the sort of thing I could do any day.” “ Do you still play for any club besides the Free Foresters ?” “ Very seldom. I arrange the matches for the Free Foresters, and go in last, but I very rarely bowl nowadays. I had practi­ cally given up cricket some years ago, but Shepperton started a club in 1881, and I had to do most of the work connected with it. As the ground was close to my house I attended to it constantly, and often did the rolling myself. Unfortu­ nately, too, most of the work in the way of bowling and making runs was thrown on my shoulders, but two or three years ago the members of the club got tired of cricket and the club was given up. We had an old postman, who, being very fond of the game, sometimes used to umpiie for us. I was once bowling, and the batsman at the other end was caught at the wicket. I turned round to my old postman and asked ‘ How’s that ?’ and he gave the man out. ‘ What did you give him out for ?’ I asked. ‘ Oh,’ he replied, ‘ I could see plainly from here that he was out of his ground.’ Fortunately the batsman was quite satisfied with the decision— he was really out.” “ You have frequently played at South­ gate for the Free Foresters against the Walkers ? ” “ Yes. One of my best performances was for the Free Foresters against South­ gate— in 1869. Southgate had a very strong side, including five Walkers, John amongst them, and F. Burbidge. We had a strong sile also, including B. B. Cooper. I took nine wickets in the first innings and eight in the second. There was for years a lot of good cricket played at Southgate. I consider that the amateur cricket— of which people saw practically nothing— was as good asone could wish to see, and I have often said of the South­ gate matches that if they were played in London people would flock to see them.” Mr. Rutter wasplaying in tho match at Beeston, Gentlemen of the North v. Gentlemen of the South. “ W.G. and G.F. Grace made, I believe, their first appear­ ance in Nottinghamshire,” he said, “ and great curiosity was excited. Although a wire was sent into Nottingham when W. G. went in, the crowd saw very little of his play, but next day G. F. made 189 and I. D. Walker 179, and the Nottingham lambs would have it that G. F. was the better player of the two.” In the famous tie match between Surrey and Middlesex in 1868 Mr. Rutter was playing for Middlesex. “ Surrey had to bat last,” he said. “ When matters were approaching a crisis Teddy Walker took me off, although I had taken six wickets. This was, I think, very wise of him, for the last man, Roberts, who came in when the game was a tie, might easily have had a blind swipe at me, and have made a four. But Tom Hearne, who was just the man for such an important moment, sent down a straight one, and took the wicket. I can remember seeing the scorers stand up when the game was atie. All the spectators stood up also in their excitement. I played in another very exciting match last year for the Free Foresters against the Gunners at Shoe- buryness. We had to stop at six o’clock, and a minute before time the last man had to come in. There was only one ball to be bowled to finish the over. The man came in, and as the clock struck six he was bowled, and we won the match. The other sidewere in doubt as to whether they were actually compelled to send in their man or not, as then it was only a minute before time when he came in, but of course as good sportsmen they sent him in.” Mr. Rutter was a great football player at the time when the Rugby Union game was in its infancy.. He played for Rich­ mond, and when the first international match was arranged he was asked to go to Scotland. But by this time his foot­ ball days were drawing to a close, and he had had about enough of it. If the match had been played at Richmond he would probably have been induced to play. His position in the field was full back, and he was particularly good at drop kicking with either foot, although he was at his best with the left foot. W. A. B e t t e s w o r t h . J. C. LOVELL’S X I. v. NORBTJRY.—Played at Norbury onMay 8. J. C. L o v e ll’ s XT. S. H. Flindt, c and b Simpson ........ ... 1 K. Robinson,bHolmes 0 C. H. Mountain,cM.ac- aldin, b Holmes ... 3 J. S. Lovell, b Holmes 4 F. H. Hunt, b Simpson 0 E. D. Lovell.bSimpson 2 S. Lloyd-Jones, c Payne, b Beate ... 27 N orbury . A. V. Russell,stBow- ditch, b Holmes E. G. Langton, c Simpson, b Holmes G. A. Ring, b Payne J. C. Lovell, not out... B 8, lb 1, w 1 Total Plummer, b Robinson Simpson, b Robinson Snowden, b J.S.Lovell Holmes, b Robinson... Bowditch, b Robinson Macaldin, b Robinson Heath, b J. S. Lovell Payne, not out ........ Grant, c Langton, Flindt ............ Beate, c Hunt, Flindt ............ Snell, c Robinson, Flindt ............ Byes ............ Total ...