Cricket 1900

S ept . 13, 1900. CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 405 T H E I N C O G N I T I C L U B I N 1 9 0 0 . By “ R. T .” This club, which was formed in 1861, and which has since that date made its name famous as one of the chief of the roving clubs, wound up the season on September ist at Devonshire Park, having during the past four months been on the go almost daily, and got through a programme of 49 matches, w ith a result of more wins than losses ; so that means that the “ In c o g s” have had a satisfactory season. The greater p ir t of these matches were tw o-day fixtures, in which they have journeyed to the U n i­ versities of Cambridge and Oxford, the Public Schools; as also into the counties of Essex, Beds, Herts, H ants and Sussex, and the far W est. The chief of the leading suburban clubs have also been m et, and special visits made to the charming country seats of Sir Daniel Gooch, at W in d sor; Sir H enry T ich- borne, at Alresford ; Baron de W orm s, at E g h am ; Sydney P latt, at W arg rave; and W . E . Harrison, at Lichfield; where, as per usual, they were most hospitably entertained. Unfortunately the matches at Bury St. Edmunds and other places in the Eastern Counties fell through, as did also some of the annual fixtures at the m ilitary centres,lowing to the inability of getting teams together, so many members being away in South Africa. In fact, the ever courteous H on. Sec., Sir W illiam Bussell, has had a particularly trying and anxious time, the “ putting o ff” of these matches entailing so much extra and continuous correspondence. A s the Tours were under the genial guidance of Capt. P . C . W . Trevor, L . E . G . Abney, J. E . Baven, G . E . W inter, and W . P . Carpmael, excellent teams were got together, and their “ peregrinations ” renderod most enjoyable. One of the most pleasing incidents of the season was to be seen in the esteemed President of the club, Sir A . W . L . H emm ing, G .C .M .G ., taking part in some of the matches, and it must indeed have brought the days that are past forcibly to m ind, for it was under his especial supervision, whilst H on . Sec., that the “ Incogniti ” was reared and nurtured for a great number of years, and placed on the solid foundation it now h o ld s; he also being the “ pioneer” of the Tours in the far W est, etc., etc. Cricket has from week to week recorded the club’s matches, bu t in the way of form at a glance ” it m ay be recounted that the most prominent run-getters, and who have topped the hundred in an inn­ ings, have been J . A . G ibb (123 not out), B . O . Schwarz (118 and 115), H . S. Barksworth (113) and J . J . Orman (104), whilst those that have “ knocked u p ” scores of over 50, and in many instances been near the coveted century on several occasions, are A . P . Neam e, B . 0.8 ch w a rz, J . A . G ibb, D . C. Lee, W . W . Torrens, J . C . Snaith, A . G . Archer, T . O. Bett, C . G . W inter, E . H . Berridge, D . E . Collins, F . D . Browne, B . D . Dillon, F . G . Thorne, C . M . Hemmerde, W . C. Collins, W . E . Harrison, L . H . T rough­ ton, L . S. Browne, P . Deane, C. E . Pritchett, T . W . Pritchett, H . A . Francis, C. B . Murray, A . H . Batcliff, C. O . Sewell, A . M . Ioglis, M .B . Quin, F . W . Poland, F . J . Portman, and H . S. Barks­ worth. The most effective bowlers, and “ who have borne the brunt of the trundling,” have been Sir W . Bussell, C. S. W . Cobbold, R . O . Schwarz, L . E . G . Abney, J . C. Snaith, L . S. Browne, C. M . Hemmerde, G . Tassell, F . J . Portman, G . W . Gilbert, and H . A . Francis. And the sparkling w icket- keeping must be notified of M . Cloete, who caught six batsmen and stumped one in one innings off the trundling of L . E . G . Abney, and not having done any “ snapping ” for two seasons, was a remarkable performance, and thus verify­ in g an old saying of mine, that you can’t make a wicket-keeper, he must be to the business born, and, naturally, take to it. Since I last wrote o f the doings of the Incogniti, one of its most esteemed and popu'ar members, Colonel Ambrose Bircham , has passed away. H e had been connected with the club for close on thirty years, and it m ay be safely stated that Philip H ilton (the “ Kentish Lion ” ), George Fraser (the “ Tiger ” ), and Ambrose Bircham (the “ W oodcock ” ), the “ three-in-one bosom friends,” con­ junctively did very much to enhance the fame of the Incogniti in their first visits whilst touring to Portsmouth, South­ ampton, Brighton, Lewes, Eastbourne, W indm ill H ill, Horsham , W itham , Col­ chester, Ipswich, K in gs L ynn, Norwich, Bury St. Edmunds, Gunton Park, Cam ­ bridge, Newmarket, Huntingdon, N orth­ ampton, Derby, N ottingham , Cnelford, Liverpool, Birkenhead Park, Manchester, L ytham , Eccles, Leeds, Y ork , Scar­ borough, Shrewsbury, B ryn -y-N eu add , Hereford, and W orcester; at all which places the “ W oodcock,” when in full feather, was well-known, for he was the very life and soul of the teams. I well recollect that at the time poor Captain W ebb was sw imm ing the Channel the “ Incogs ” were located at Worcester, and the good folks there were in a state of excitement as to whether he would accom ­ plish the feat, and strolled about in the H igh Street awaiting the news. During that evening, at the hotel where the “ In co g s” were staying, the “ W oodcock” after dinner gave one of his entertainments — at which he was so good— consisting of songs, accompanying himself on the banj o and piano, interspersed w ith stump oratory, which so amused the populace— the windows of the hotel being open— that they hung about in a crowd to listen and cheer him . It was only laBt autumn that he wrote me from H arro­ gate, stating that he was bustling about there, getting plenty of the open air, and feeling so much better, and building himself up for the winter. Alas ! he is gone, and much missed, not only by “ Incogs and Surreyites,” but by all that knew him, “ for Ambrose Bircham was one of the most cheery, kind-hearted, every-day-alike gentlemen that ever lived or trod a cricket-ground, and I thus pay this regretful tribute to his m em ory,” H e had for many years— up to his decease last winter— been H on. Treasurer of the club, and the difficulty now arose to find his successor. Fortunately for the old club Alfred M . Inglis, b y dint of much persuasion, was prevailed u p jn to accept the onerous p o s t; so now tbe “ finances ” will be looked after by that most ener­ getic and talented “ all-round” cricketer and one of the best of the very best fieldsmen that ever “ swooped down ” on to a cricket-ball; and thus the future prosperity of the club is again assured. And now, as a closer, in bidding adieu to the cricket season of the “ Old Century,” the ‘ ‘ Incogs ” wish through the medium of Cricket to return many thanks for the welcomes they have received, here, there and everywhere, with the fervent hope that in 1901, and for years to come, they m ay be found renewing the friendships they have form ed— cm in the past. B A T S M E N A N D B O W L E R S . .. From TheField. A t the end of a season the arithmetical side of cricket almost inevitably comes uppermost. So convenient and impres­ sive are scores and statistics that even while a match is in progress they receive more consideration than they deserve. Spectators at L ord’s who have just let a fine hit go unremarked make a point of vociferously applauding the leg-b ye that turns ninety-nine into a hundred on the scoring board. So, too, when tables of results, with batting and bow ling aver­ ages, are drawn up and published, their tendency is to obscure many of the details which ought to be considered in form ing an estimate of players or elevens. W e forget the turns of fortune and especially the caprices of the weather that have utterly frustrated the most b rillia it efforts; missed catches are om itted from the record, while scores are quite inequitably valued in proportion to their size rather than the difficulties overcome in m aking them . There is indubitably some instructiveness in cricket figures, but they are so likely to lead to unsound generalisation that a better appreciation of the whole season can perhaps be found from the impressions stored during its progress in a retentive memory. One fallacy which has to be carefully resisted is the inference that in any given match not manifestly controlled b y luck victory must afford a strong presumption of superior skill. The fact is that luck is always a factor in a cricket contest, and it is impossible to say how long a run of successes or defeats is required to establish a demonstration. There is one point, however, on which the aid of arithmetic m ay fairly be invoked, and general assent m ay be claimed for the observation that the season now drawing to a close has been one of very high scoring. The summer has been characterised by variable weather, and, com ing after a succession of very dry seasons, has helped to com ­ plete the test of batsman versus bowler.