Cricket 1898

“ T o g e t h e r jo in e d in C r ic k e t ’ s m a n l y t o i l . ” — Byron. s o . 4 8 3 . v o l . X V I I . THURSDAY, JUNE 2,3, 1898. p b i o e aa. A CHAT ABOUT GEORGE ULYETT. When the news of the death on Satur­ day of the famous Yorkshireman appeared in the Sunday newspapers it came as a startling surprise to cricketers. It had, indeed, been noticed that for years—in fact since he gave up playing for the county—that he did not look very well, and lately he seemed alto­ gether out of health, but nobody thought that the end was so near. With Mr. F. S. Jackson he shares the honour uf being the finest all-round cricketer ever produced by Yorkshire. Like Mr. Jack­ son, too, his batting was of the kind most delightful to watch, his bowling was fast and his fielding perfect; he was, moreover, a true sports­ man. During the time he played in first-class cricket the Yorkshire team included many men who were idolised by the crowd, but it would be impossible, as it would be invidious, to try to discover which was the most popular. It is enough that George was one of them. Whether on or off the field he was always good humoured, good tem­ pered, and above all natural. He played cricket with en­ thusiasm, and, no matter what might be the state of the game, he woiked his hardest to the very last moment, as if the result of the match depended on his efforts alone. Except that he had a habit of hitting a ball back to them like a rocket, bowlers enjoyed the excitement of trying to get him out, for they never knew what would happen. The ball which they fondly hoped would settle him was as likely as not to be hit for four with terrific force ; on the other hand, there was always the chance that he would lift it, though it by no means followed that if be did it would be caught. There was a certain amount of risk about his batting, for he was not at all particular about keeping the ball “ on the carpet; ” he liked to see it sailing away into the dim distance occasionally. But for years he was one of the most dangerous bats­ men in England. It would be interest­ ing to know whether any man who has caught him, or tried to catch him, at extra cover or cover, is of opinion that he has known any batsman who could hit harder in that direction. As a bowler George was variable, but for some years he met with very great success. The ball cume very fast from the pitch, and was apt to rap the batsman on the knuckles pretty often. Who, among the spectators at the match at Sheffield in 1882, will ever forget seeing him hit Mr. Ellis three times in succession on identically the same place on the hip, knocking him clean off his legs ? Or, who among them, will forget seeing him turn on the rougher part of the crowd when they laughed at the last blow ? No one was more sorry than he if an accident, how­ ever slight, happened to a batsman through his bowling. He was a splendid cricketer of the old style, which, fortu­ nately for England, is also the new style. As a raconteur Ulyett was inimitable, and when he could be induced to speak of his ex­ periences, his audience had a delightful time. To hear him describe how he persuaded two batsmen in anup-country match in Australia that they were both run out at the same time was quite a revela­ tion in its way. The story has often been told, and it loses so much when it is merely set forth in print that it is useless to try to repeat Ulyett’s actual words. Suffice it to say thatUlyett was bowl­ ing. The batsmen started to run, and the ball was thrown to the bowler, who promptly put the wicket down. He then turned towards the other wicket, which he reached j ust before the batsman; he put this wicket down also. Then in the most bland manner he asked the umpires “ How’s that ? ” Somewhat mystified, they could not de­ cide which man was out, and after waiting for a reasonable time to allow them to make up their minds, George ex­ plained that there could be no possible doubt about it. The men were evidently both out. They demurred at this, naturally enough, reminding him that two men could not be out at once. To which Ulyett replied, with the air of an oracle, “ Ah, lads, but when the same man puts both wickets down, you see, things are different.” The explanation proved en­ tirely satisfactory. The men walked away, and though they were assured by the rest of the team that it was all a j oke, they re­ fused to come back, probably thinking fromUlyett’slook of wisdom, that he must OKOBGE ULYETT. (From a Photo by E. Hawkins it CoBrighton.)