Cricket 1901

42 CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD 0 ? THE GAME. M a r c h 28 , l ; O l . T he committee of the M.C.C. have issued the follow ing code of signalling to be added to the general instructions to umpires:— Boundaries shall bfe signalled by waving the hand from side to side. Byes shall ho signalled by raising the open hand above ihe head. Leg-byes shall be signalled by raising the leg and touching it with the hand. Wides shall be signalled by extending both arms horizontally. No-balls shall be signalled by extending one arm horizontally. The decision Out shall be i-ignalled by raising the index finger above the head. Umpires should wait until a s:gnal has been answered by the scorer before allowing the game to proceed. Be>ides signalling, the un pire should “ call” distinctly fcr the informa'inn of the players. On giving a decision the umpire should make sure that the batsman understands what the decision is. A t the annual ger eral meeting of the Leicestershire Ccunty C.C. it was an­ nounced that the past t-eason had resulted in an adverse balance of £860, but that £300 had been subscribed towards paying this off. It is fully anticipated that the j ew ground will be ready for use in May. Pougber was handed the sum of £228 as the proceeds of his benefit match—a somewhat striking contrast to the pro­ ceeds of benefit matches in Yorkshire. The follow ing are additions to the list, which appeared in our last issue, of resoluticns passed by the county com ­ mittees with regard to the action o f the county captains cn the question of throwing :— S u r r e y . — T h e (Committee, in reply to the circular of the M.C.C., expressed their desire for the Marylebone Club to officially consider the recent action of the county captains on the throwing question, and to give their decision thereon. W a r w ic k s h ir e . — The Warwickshire County C.C. Committee think it most desirable the SI.C.C. should consider the question of unfair bowling, and suggest they should, in conjunction with the county captains, deal definitely with the matter. L eicestershire —That the Committee of the Leicestershire County Cricket Club is thoroughly in accord with the spirit of Law 48, but would be glad to have an expression of opinion from the M.C.C. on the recent action of the captains i especting it; further, this committee considers that the M.C.C. should have sole control of any question affecting the laws of the game. M id d le se x .— In reply to your circular of the 12th ult., I am desired to say that the Middlesex County Cricket Club Committee would be glad to have an expression of opinion from the M .C .C . on the question of throwing. [A proposal to add as an amend­ ment to the above the words “ and think that the captains did well to raise the question” was lost.] E ssex . —That the Committee of the Essex County Cricket Club unanimously agreed that the M.C.C. Committee should take action and uphold the decision of the captains with regard to Law 48. K e n t . —That the Committee of the Kent County Cricket Club approve of the action of the county captains, and wish to express their great satisfaction at the fact that the M.C.C. Commit’ee are prepared to take the question in hand in consultation with the county captains. S d ssh x . —That the Committee of the Sussex County Cricket Club are of opinion that the matter with regard to hule 48 should be left in the hands of the M.C.C. Committee for decision. A n x io u s to do what is best for the community, the Parks and Open Spaces Committee of the London County Council have given their attention to the question whether cricket, lawn tennis, etc., should be allowed in the open spaces of the London district on Sundays. Many people sympathise with the scheme, and their arguments may be summed up as follows : Sunday play is carried on under certain conditions over the links of probably the majority of golf clubs. Cricket, lawn tennis, croquet, and similar outdoor pastimes are indulged in by numbers who possess grounds of sufficient capacity. Tennis, rackets, and fives are also among the forms of amusement open to the upper and middle classes. Why those not so well blessed with money and opportunities should be debarred is a question that may very naturally arise. There are the grounds; why should they not be used ? O p p o n e n t s of the scheme say that the open spaces are for the public and not for a part of it only. They argue that Sunday in the parks would savour of a Continental Sunday if games were per­ mitted in them, and that a vast number of people would feel that grievous wrong was being done. Quite apart from sentiment it is very doubtful whether the grounds at present available would prove adequate for the calls made on them. For the present the question is shelved, for the committee has decided to prohibit the use of the grounds for games on Sundays. “ I t is not a bit too early to begin negotiating for the visit of an English eleven next .Fall,” says the American Cricketer. “ Arrangements should be made at once, for we don’t want another fiasco like last year. It is safe to assert that there will hardly be a dissenting voice when the question is discuBsed as to the advisability of bringing a foreign team to our shores this year. Even though a large number of players were against this last Fall, it is certain that this sentiment referred only to that particular year, and it must be admitted that there was a lack somewhere last Fall. We have become so accustomed to having foreign teams here m September and October, that the absence of such a team was most noticeable.” R e f e r r in g to the action of the county captains, “ M id -O n ” in the Melbourne Leader says:— “ The more one ponders over this latest innovation the more regrettable its adoption appears to be. It certainly seems to me that nothing could be more outrageously absurd or unjust than to say in effect to a bo w ler:— The leading umpires of England have passed your method of bow ling without objection, but there may be something wrong with it next season, and we have decided that instead of having an oppor­ tunity to show whether your delivery is legitimate or not, you shall be snuffed out before the season commences ! ” I n the Inter-Colonial or (Inter-State) matches this year George Giffen’s four wickets cost 494 runs. If George had merely considered his own reputation instead of wishing to do his best for his colony as long as he could, he would have retired from first-class cricket a year ago. M r . G. L. W il s o n , the old Sus'ex cricketer, still occasionally takes part in the game, although since he left Mel­ bourne he has been seldom heard of. In a recent local match he took six wickets for 49. M r. T. S. S id n e y , who, under the pseudonym of “ K ing W illow ,” has often written for Cricket , has been appointed District Commissioner of L ig js , West Africa, under the Colonial Department. Mr. Sidney, who is a barrister-at-law, was formerly editor and proprietor of the Nilgiri News, a Madras newspaper very popular with the English residents. “ W e have .become so accustomed,” says the Sydney Referee, “ to see New South Wales lose matches in which they have, as batsmen, towered over the oppo­ sition, and bowled quite as well, that it were nonsense to ascribe it to luck, or to anything but the real thing; that is, inferiority in fielding and captaincy. I n connection with this remark b y our contemporary about the captaincy, it is interesting to note that in the match which was won by Yictoria b y a wicket T. H . Howard, who was selected as a bowler for New South Wales, was only put on for a single over in Yictoria’s second innings of 344. I f an Australian eleven had to be selected at the present moment to play England, it is highly probable that only about six of the team which visited England in 1899 would find a placs. Tw o interesting bow ling analyses:— H. Trott, Victoria v. Tasmania, 242 balls, 177 runs, 8 wickets. M. A. Noble, New South Wales v. Victoria, 240 balls, 60 runs, 2 wickets. A CURIOUS question arose in a match between North Brisbane and South Bris­ bane (Queensland). North made 143 ; South made 125 in the first innings. North made only 37 in their second attempt, thus leaving South only 56 to make to win, and an hour and two minutes to get them. The umpires, after the ten minutes allowed between innings, went to the wickets, and on the ball being asked for it was thrown out, but the captain threw it back, and said : “ We demand a new ball,” notwithstanding that the ball produced was scarcely