Cricket 1900

THB PINBST BAT THB WOULD PRODUCES. S e p t . 6, 1900. CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 387 BUSSEY’S <ij™o 9 c l o - ^ 7 M t-3 O S r fn C D D ■ C/3 U J _ J I— ^ >J U J * w £ s . — go CO l L § ■ ■ ■ M - * S C/j • “ s =3 " | i - S > * g z C D ^ _ CO 0 3 r— CO CVi « a CO CO W CO s P » S M o W 0 3 °f C O £ C O o 1 3 J § s 0 3 BUSSEY’S A T T H E S IG N O F T H E W I C K E T . B y F. S. A s h lk y -C o o p k r . In the last issue of Cricket was published an interesting letter from “ A n Old H ar­ rovian,” who suggested that when the scores of matches are inserted in the sporting papers, the number of balls delivered by a bowler should be stated in preference to the number of overs. This suggestion, I venture to think, w ill meet with the approval of most enthusiasts, especially of those who, like myself, occa­ sionally dabble in statistics. For many years, from 1744 to 1889, the over con­ sisted of four balls ; in 1889 the number was increased to five, and this year to six. It is impossible in the case of such a player as M r. S. M . J. W oods, who par­ ticipated in great matches before 1889, and in every year up to the present, to state the number of overs he delivered during his career, for overs consisting of four balls cannot be added to those of five and six balls, although such a feat is occasionally attempted by some. A ll the matches played this year, with the excep­ tion of that at the Oval between Surrey and London County, have taken place since the over has been increased to six balls. “ A n Old Harrovian,” in the third paragraph of his article, stated: “ It is believed that at first six balls were delivered each over.” I have heard this opinion expressed by many old cricketers, but I could never satisfactorily discover what authority they had for m aking the statement. Perhaps “ A n O ld H arro­ vian ” can oblige ? I f the over did originally consist of as many as six balls, which, by the way, I very much doubt, it must have been in quite the legendry days of cricket, for as far back as 1744, according to the rules drawn up that year, only four balls were delivered each over. The earliest mention I can find of an over consisting of six balls occurs in one of the numerous editions of “ L am ­ bert’s Cricketer’s Guide,’ where a footnote states: “ It has been a custom in some matches to bow l six balls (and which m ay be done provided both parties are agree­ able, but not w ithout).” That was in 1816. I should like to supplement “ A n Old Harrovian’s ” suggestion with another, v i z , that when secretaries of clubs forward the scores of matches to the sporting papers for publication, the initials of professional players should always be prefixed to the names. It is unjust (besides being very confusing) to deprive a cricketer of his initials merely because he relies upon his skill at the game to earn him his living. “ A man’s a man for a’ that.” A case in point m ay be given. A player named Humphreys scored 207 for Sanatorium v. Old Sirnp- sonians on August 25th. W h o is H um ­ phreys ? It is impossible to say, as no initial was given, and the name is by no means an uncommon one. It would be impossible for the great majority of enthusiasts, even w ith file copies of the sporting papers and their Wisden before them , to give the initials of many cricketers who have participated in first- class cricket during the season, e.g., Qravatt _ (Hants), Cranfield and Lewis (Somerset), Langd on (Gloucestershire), Tremlin (Essex), Bannister (Worcester­ shire), etc. Although the sides were far from repre­ sentative, the recent Gentlemen v. Players match at Scarborough will long be remembered on account of the successful batting performances of F . S. Jackson and Thompson. The former’s long in­ nings against the bow ling of several of the best professionals of the day (including Rhodes) plainly showed that his sojourn in South Africa had not caused his right arm to lose its cunning. H is innings, taking everything into consideration, must be one of the finest he has ever played. The success which attended the efforts of Thompson cannot have come as a surprise to those who have seen him play. Like H ughes, of Hertfordshire, and a few others, he would have become famous had he belonged to a tirst-class county. B y scoring a century on his first appearance in a Gentlemen v Players match, he has equalled the feats per­ formed by M arlow , C. J. Burnup, and R . E . Foster. It is curious that, although this has been done by only four players in the whole history of .the match, three instances should occur during the present season. This, presumably, is ow ing in a gre*t measure to the wonderful ex­ cellence of modern wickets. The H astings Festival, which generally winds up the season, will commence to­ day with a match between the North and S ju th . Gcanted fiue weather, a cipital week’s cricket ought to be seen, as the teams selected will be the strongest which have ever played at Hastings. Cricket during the week, although always keen, proves a pleasant relief to the excitement which generally accompanies county championship matches, and this year especially, with A bel and R injitsinbji, to say nothing of Hayward and F ry, trying their utmost to make additions to their already long lists of centuries, the cricket will be followed with even more than usual interest. Hastings and district is one of the earliest strongholds of Sussex cricket, for as far back as September, 1738, a match is known to have been played near the seat of the Earl of W il­ m ington between Battle and Eastbourne, the latter team being led by Lord John Sackville. In this match, Battle went in first, and scored 23 aud 56, agaiust 37 aud 43 for six wickets, accordingly losing by four wickets. This week I append, as a curiosity, the score of a match played at Cheltenham College in 1878. CHRISTO WE T. GARTH GARMON. Played at Cheltenham College, July 11,1878. G a r t h G a r m o n . First innings. H. Tyler, run o u t ............... J. Gilford, c Commeline, Walker ................ J. Green, b Walker ... . Second innings, b Walker ........... < A. Jon s, b Walker ........... 2 F. Steel, b Cornwall .. ... o C. Huberts, b ornwall ... 4 E. Jone-s b Cornwall.......... 6 J. Vaughan, b Cornwall ... 0 W . H Carnsew, b Cornwall 0 A. Leiachman, not out ... 0 C. Btainer, b Cornwall ... 0 Byes ........................... 5 Total...........................29 b Cornwall........... c Walker, b Corn­ wall ... ... lbw, b Cornwall... b Cornw all.......... b Wa.ker ........... b ( 'ornw all........... not o u t ................. b Cornwall........... b C orn w all......... b Cornwall........... B 6, w 1 ... Total ...