Cricket 1897

186 CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. J use 3, 1897. O n page 181 an interesting letter will be found from Colonel K ington, refer­ ring to the tie match mentioned by the Rev. W . K . R. Bedford in “ Chats on the Cricket Field ” last week. S c e n e . Outside Cannon Street Station. Monday afternoon at about ten minutes past two. Cabs, waggons and hurrying pedestrians. Enter small boy with newspapers and a contents bill on which is printed in large letters. SURREY’S S E N S A T I O N A L START . Rush of hurrying pedestrians towards small boy. Much fumbling for coppers. Alarums and excursions. Chorus. “ Surrey four wickets for 19 and five for 30.” Curtain falls on jubilant small boy, cabs and waggons as before ; pedestrians reading papers with great solemnity. W h e n Bea was given out in the first innings of M.C.C. against Leicestershire he must have felt that the adage “ it never rains but it pours ” was distinctly applicable to his position. Bad luck has stuck to him with a good deal of persistence this year, but it was disheartening to be given run out at the end of an over because the ball accidentally hit the wicket when tossed to the other end by W oodcock. It did not appear that the bowler had any intention of running Bean out, for the batsman could easily have got back if he had tried. I t seems to be a certain cure for a temporary falling off in skill to mention in Cricket that such and such a cricketer has not done himself justice this season. Mr. Jessop’s is the latest cure. Last week’s Cricket said “ Jessop seems to be a little off colour this year at present.” It was enough. He proceeded to take five wickets for 19 against Yorkshire for Cambridge; to knock up 25 out of 26 required to win in five overs; to take six wickets for 74 and four for 33 for Glouces­ tershire against Surrey; and in the same match to score 26 in a quarter of an hour at a most critical time, when every run was of the utmost value. T h e Yorkshire tail, which has for so long been the admiration of cricketers seems to be taking a rest. The scores of the last four men in the last two matches against Cambridge and Hampshire were 0, 1, 0, 9, not ou t; 8 , 2, 0, 5 (v. Cam­ bridge) and 5, 0, 9, 0 not out (v. Hamp­ shire). T h e first hundred of the season in America has been scored by Mr. F. F. Kelly, who will be remembered b y London cricketers as playing for the Stoics and Emeriti a few seasons ago. H e was given out under peculiar circumstances, for obstructing the field when he had made exactly 100 runs. He was at the bowler’s end and called the other batsman for a short run, the ball having been played to about the centre of the wicket. It would seem that Mr. Kelly had the start of the bowler and ran up the centre of the pitch in front of him. The bowler was unable to get hold of the ball and appealed for obstruction. The decision of the umpire caused some comment, but it was clearly a case in which the umpire must act according to his judgment. S u r r e y ’ s well-wishers will be glad to learn that Y. F. S. Crawford, who has been practically out of cricket for some little time owing to water on the knee, is getting to work again. He is going pretty strong, too, to judge by the fact that he made fifty-one out of fifty-three, and one of these was a bye, while he was in on Saturday for Cane Hill v. Carshalton, The other young Surrey Crawford, or rather, Crawfurd, J. W ., to wit, has also been scoring heavily. During the last week or- so he has been credited with three successive centuries in Merchant Taylors’ School cricket. T h e Incogniti will be particularly in luck for their annual dinner this year in having as their chairman Sir A. W . L. Hemming, the President of the Club. Sir Augustus, as pretty nearly every Cricket reader knows, is Governor of British Guiana. An Incog, dinner with­ out the President would be like Hamlet —never mind the rest. His Excellency is over, presumably, for the Jubilee festivities. He will be just in the nick of time to preside over the Incogs, at their annual function. In fact, he is only due in England next Wednesday, and the Incogs, are to dine at the St. James’ Restaurant the follow ing evening, at half-past seven for eight o’clock. Mem­ bers wishing to attend should apply for tickets to W . J. Seton, 3, New Square, Lincoln’s Inn, W.C. T h e Philadelphian cricketers reached Southampton yesterday to time in the ss. St. Paul’s. Their headquarters while in London are at the Arundel Hotel, Norfolk Street. The Marylebone authori­ ties have very kindly granted them the use of Lord’s for the latter part of this week for practice. Their first match, as everyone knows, is at Oxford, on Monday, so that this will be actually their only opportunity for getting into anything like condition. A few remarks on the members of the team, kindly sent b y a well-known cricket authority in Phila­ delphia, will be found in another place. T h e Surrey executive have deemed it advisable in view of the heavy programme before them and the certainly not immo­ derate amount of bowling at their dis­ posal, to give Richardson a rest from the Oxford match. Nice, who has done some excellent bowling performances this sea­ son in club matches, will take his place to-day, so that T. R. should appear at Trent Bridge on Monday next against Notts like a giant refreshed. Reference to Surrey reminds one that Mr. N. F. Druce, the Cambridge captain, has pro­ mised to play in the later matches and will take his place in the Surrey eleven after July 15. A record of Australian cricket is not altogether a novelty. But at the best Australian cricket guides have been intermittent, and it is therefore a plea­ sure to welcome another, and one which, it is to be hoped, has come to stay. Whether or not, the first number of the “ Australian Cricket Annual,” which is edited by Mr. J. C. Davis ( “ Not O u t” of the Sydney Referee), ought to do well, if reliable statistics, well written and practical contributions on the game, by some of the most prominent person­ alities on Australian cricket, are properly appreciated. I f for nothing else than the Introduction, which is from the genial pen of one of the grand old men of Colonial cricket—T. W. Garrett— the “ Annual” would deserve a kindly welcome in the old country as well as in the new. Any way, it is pleasant to be able to congratulate Mr. Davis heartily on the latest addition to the number of Cricket Annuals. S o m e high scoring took place at an Electorate match played on the Sydney Ground at the end of April. Padding­ ton, for whom A. C. Bannerman scored 133 not out, closed their innings with 269 up for two wickets, and as they could only get one wicket of East Sydney down for 204 the match was drawn. The match will be specially interesting to some of theolder generation of cricketreaders from the mere fact that E. Lipscomb, who formerly played for Kent, was one of the East Sydney Eleven. As it was both the Paddington batsmen were dis­ missed by him, and at a cost of only fifty- two runs. M r . J e s s o p ’ s innings on Wednesday morning may be said to have practically settled the result of the Gloucestershire match against Surrey. On a bowler’s wicket he played exactly the right game, and came off. He even ventured to run out to Richardson before the ball was entirely out of the bowler’s hand. What is more he managed to hit him. When he was caught and bowled by Richardson — off almost the only ball that he played in a peaceable manner—he had left very little to be done b y the remaining bats­ men. T h e total of 531 made at Ootacamund on May 1 beats the record for the ground. The previous best was 524, made by 310 for the Military and 214 for-two wickets b y the Civilians. T h e incident which gave rise to Murch’s dismissal in Gloucestershire’s second innings at the Oval on Tuesday night is one of the instances, not rare in cricket, where someone had blundered. Murch missed playing a ball from H ay­ ward, and Marshall stumped, or thought he had stumped, him. Anyhow, he appealed confidently to the umpire, and thinking the latter had given the bats