Cricket 1898

M a r c h 31, 1898. CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 45 21, several of their team going down very suddenly. The stand of the innings was made by Gregory and Trumper, while Coningham and Donnan stopped a serious rot later in the innings. When South Australia went in a second time they lost Darling and Lyons for 48 before play ended on the Saturday night, but on the Monday, Hill was in splendid form, and made 170, while Jarvis, who had previously never scored a hundred in a first-class match, surpassed himself by putting up 142 before the close of the day. He increased the score to 154 on the Tuesday. Thanks almost entirely to these two men, the total was 442— they scored 324 of this between them. With 421 to make to win, New South Wales collapsed. S outh A ustralia . First innings. Second innings. J. J. Lyons, c Gregory, b N ob le...............................28 c McKibbin, b Noble ......... 5 C. Hill,cNoble,bMcKibbin 0 b D onnan........ 170 J. Darling, c Pye, b Noble... 75 b Noble ......... 16 J. Reedman, c Gregory, b Noble ...............................67 b Trumper........... 21 F. Jarvis, c Evers, b Noble 20 c and b Noble ...154 \V. Giffen. b Trumper ... 38 b Newell ... ... 1 A. E H Evans, run out ... 1c sub,bMcKibbin 32 A. Green, not out .. ...... 35 b Newell ...... 8 E. Jones, b Trumper........ 5 c and b Noble ... 19 Y. Hugo, b Trumper........ 1 runout......... 0 J. McKenzie, c Newell, b Trumper ........................ 4 not out................. 0 Extras.................... 15 Extras .......16 Total ............289 Total .......442 N ew S outh W ales . M. A. Noble, b Jones........27 c and b Evans ... 38 V. Tiumper, run ou t........68 st McKenzie, b Evans ........ 7 S.E.Gregory,cEvans,bJones 83 b Jones ..........11 A. C. Mackenzie, b Evans... 6 b Jones .......... 9 L. W. Pye, b Jones .......... 9 c and b Evans ... 2 H. A. Evers, c McKenzie, b Jones ............................... 4 b Jones ..........10 A. Newell, b Jones ...........................4 o Lyons, b Jones0 H. Donnan, c & b Reedman 31 b Jones .......... 8 A. Coningham, b Jones ... 51 runout.............. 24 J. J. Kelly, not out ... ... 9 notout................ 7 T. R. McKibbin, c Giffen, b Hugo ... ........................ 1 cDarling,bEvans 8 Extras....................14 Extras ........ 2 Total .......... ...310 T otal..........126 S outh A ustralia . O. M. R. W . O. M. R. W. Noble................. 86 10 95 4 ..............42 8 164 4 McKibbin.......... 23 5 89 1 ..............18 3 72 1 Coningham ... 10 4 31 0 ............ 9 2 40 0 Trumper .......... 6'5 1 32 4 . 16 3 53 1 Newell .......... 7 5 5 0 ............ 23 12 37 2 Pye ................. 6 0 22 0 ............ 5 1 19 0 Donran .. 11 2 41 1 Noble bowled ten wides, McKibbin two wides and three no-balls, and Newell and Donnan two no-balls each. N ew S outh W ales . O. M. R. W . O. M. R. W . Jones................. 35 6 140 6 ........... 19 4 62 5 Evans................. 24 4 73 1 ........... 18'5 3 6i 4 Reedman ........... 14 3 47 1 .......... H u g o................. 7 2 0 36 1 .......... Reedman bowled three no-balls. IMPORTANT NOTICE TO OUR READERS. The Spring Number of Cricket will be pub­ lished April 14th, containing a handsome coloured supplement, 30 by 20, suitable for hanging up in pavilions and club houses. The sheet will contain a R evised L ist of P rincipal F ixtures , with a picture of the S urrey C ounty G round in 1848, also one of the N ew P avilion for 1898, showing the improvement of -F ifty Y ears . Excellent portraits will be reproduced of Messrs. A. C. MacLaren and Harry Trott, also K. S. Ran­ jitsinhji and Richardson. Copies of this issue will be on sale at all the railway bookstalls and newsagents. Copies can be had, post free 2jd., by applying direct to Cricket Office, 168, Upper Thames Street, London. GEORGE G IFFEN ’S BOOK. Under the title of “ With Bat and Ball,” Messrs. Ward, Lock and Co. pub­ lish the twenty-four years’ reminiscences of Australian and Anglo-Australian cricket of the famous South Australian batsman and bowler. To some extent the book is modelled on that of Dr. Grace, and it may fairly claim to be the Austra­ lian supplement to that notable work at about half the price. The contents may be divided into five chief headings— Early Days, Intercolonial Matches, Tours with Australian Teams, Visits from English Teams, and Short Biographies of Australians with whom Giffen has Played. In an appendix the usual hints to young cricketers are given, some of whieh are excellent, while others are not likely to be of much use. One of the hints to bowlers is sure to attract atten­ tion. “ Supposing that when he delivers one ball his countenance wears a particu­ larly determined expression, a pleasant smile accompanying the next and, per­ haps, more difficult ball, may deceive the batsman.” Giffen distingu'shes as between a good yorker and a bad yorker, stating that the former is easily dispatched for four, while the latter takes a good deal of playing. Although the book can­ not be considered as anecdotal, it is very far from being dry. The story of the author’s early struggle to become a good cricketer and his determination to succeed is very attractive, while the accounts of the Intercolonial matches and the earlier tours will be read with great interest. The biographies of famous Australians are somewhat disappointing by com­ parison with the “ Cricketers I have met,” of Dr. Grace, and a little less brevity and a little more animation would have been an improvement. In subsequent editions —there are sure to be several—it would be easy to make some such alteration, which would greatly add to the value of the book. Two chapters are devo­ ted to these biographies, the one headed “ Celebrated Contemporary Australians,” the other “ Contemporary Celebrated Australians,” the which is a riddle. The illustrations, which are nearly all from photographs, are for the most part as good as such illustrations can be, and only a few of the bowlers are in the cus­ tomary attitude of signalling a cab. THE G EN E RAL INTEREST IN CR ICKET . IS IT REASONABLE AND JUSTI­ FIABLE ? (B y the R ev . G eorge W alters .) There has been a good deal of bitter cynicism and biting sarcasm with refer­ ence to the popular excitement over the games of cricket played against Mr. Stoddart’s team. The crowds who watch the scoring boards are supposed to be all fools; the thousands who flock to the scene of battle and watch the varying fortunes of the game are set down as more or less harmless lunatics; the men —ay ! and the women, too—who talk about the various players, their style of play, their batting and bowling averages, and so on, are voted insufferable nuis­ ances. Now, I make no timid or half-hearted excuses for these so-c tiled nuisances, idiots, and fools, but maintain that, generally speaking, they are a great deal more sensible than many of those who find fault with them and cry them down. I plead guilty to being an enthusiast with regard to cricket, and, instead of being ashamed of it, I can even feel proud of being so intensely interested in so grand and beautiful a game. In these days enthusiasm is somewhat rare, and should be all the more prized when it is actually discovered. The second-hand imitation of Pontius Pilate may give an upward curl to his nose and sneering lines to his mouth, as he ques­ tions the use or profit of making a fuss about anything. But the world is kept alive by earnestness and enthusiasm, and even the most severe critic of popular amusements will be found, upon exami­ nation, to take an interest in something. The question is—Is that something more reasonable or more j ustifiable than, say, cricket P We all need some relaxation—some recreation amid the duties, the cares, and the anxieties of life. Even business may take too firm and too complete a hold upon the thought and attention of a man or a woman. The mind needs a change. It is quite true that “ all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” Work, rest, and recreation, all these are necessary for the complete and well-ordered life. Now, if some recreation is needed—if we must have some amusement to which to turn occasionally—I should like to know what more innocent amusement or what more healthy recreation can be found than in either playing or watching a game of cricket. Of course, to the uninitiated it may seem absurd for a number of able-bodied men to throw or knock a ball about a field. Chasing a leather ball may seem a very undignified task. But in such a spirit every popular amusement may be derided. Billiards may be con­ demned as merely knocking a few ivory balls about a table with a long stick. Cards may be ridiculed as playthings for a child. Racing may be set down as frivolous, and even cruel. Such super­ ficial aspects of the great games and amusements of the people may make us smile—if we do not weep. As compared with many other forms of so-called re­ creation, cricket is innocent, manly, ennobling, and capable of arousing a reasonable amount of enthusiasm. A man may say, “ Oh ! I don’ t understand the game! ” or “ I don’t care for the game! ” and we can let him pass on upon his weary way. But if any man says that enthusiasm for cricket, on the part of one who does understand and does like the game, is unreasonable or absurd, then I beg to differ, and I say that I am quite prepared to defend that form of innocent recreation against other forms that will not bear so irreproach­ able a character. [To be continued ).