Cricket 1907

S e p t . 19, 1907. CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 425 A t a Committee meeting of the Leicestershire County C.C. last week it was announced that, owing to the ioclement weather during the past season, the deficit of £1,000 at the commencement of the year had been increased to £1,500. It has, therefore, been resolved to call a General Meeting at an early date with the view of obtaining increased support, as the Committee cannot undertake further financial responsibility in regard to the continuance of the Club. A. J. A t f i e l d , the well-known umpire, who has played in his day for both Gloucestershire and Wiltshire, sailed in the E.M.S. “ Armadale Castle” on Saturday last in order to fulfil an engage­ ment as coach to the colleges at Johannesburg during our non-cricket season. In his time he has made many a large scorc, and at the moment of writ­ ing I can vividly recall a not out innings of 206 on his part for Westbury against Trowbridge, a*-. Leighton [nine years ago, when, in partnership with Dr. E. T. Shorland (142), he helped to put up 324 for the first wicket. often running in at the ball and trying to take it a half-volley.” He played his first match at Lord’s when only 18 years of age, and was sent in first wicke' down : with the ball he did not have a chance of distinguishing himself f Bayley and Brockwell bowled unchanged through both innings of the M.C.C. and Ground. Of the twenty-two players who took part in that match he alone remains. S h e r m a n accomplished many fine feats as a bowler during his career, but space will permit of only a few being mentioned. In the match against Sussex at the Oval 57 years ago, he took eight wickets in an innings, and on the same ground in the following year, when play­ ing for Sarrey C. and G. against M.C.O. and G., bowled unchanged throughout JOHN BULL AND BROTHER JONATHAN MEET AGAIN. O n Saturday week a match is to be played at Mitcham for thebenefit of Tom Sherman, who is now in bis eightieth year. He was born at Mitcham on Decem­ ber 1st, 1827, and, to quote Scores and Biographies, “ was a rare good bowler in his day.” He be­ longs to a cricketing family, being son of James Sherman and nephew of John, each of whom was a mem­ ber of the Surrey Eleven in his time. The latter, who participated in the game for 46 seasons and had 21 children, was bom in 1788, and it is of interest to learn that his father was fetched from a cricket match for the event. Tom Sherman is the only survivor of the four ground bowlers originally engaged at the Oval: the other three were George Brockwell (nncle of the better-known William), Chester, and Martingell. He played his first match for Surrey in 1847 and his last in 1870, and in the forty-five games in which he bowled took 229 wickets. Mr. Haygarth, writing in 1862, described him as “ one of the fastest round-armed bowlers theie ever has been, and for some seasons he was very successful in the Sarrey Eleven, being also a fine field. Bats in good style, but is too impatient, with Brockwell. In 1852 he took six wickets for 16 for Surrey and Sussex against England at Lord’s, and three years later, when appaaring for the South against the North at Tunbridge Wells, bowled unchanged through both innings with John Lillywhite. Thii latter feat he repeated with Martingeli at the Oval in 1856 in the Surrey v. Sussex match. Sherman played several times for various England teams, and was coach at Eton, Harrow, Winchester, Rugby, and other Public Schools. Any contribution intended to swell his benefit fund will reach the proper quarter if addressed to him at Mitcham. In the course of an artiole on “ Village Cricket ” in last Thursday’s Times, a correspondent, writing from “ the heart of Berkshire,” observes : — Still, since cricket is the national game, it might be imagined that, except in the matter cf ways and means, there would not he the slightest difficulty in starting a flourishing cricket club in an English village. Such was the expectation with which last year I took a part, more leading than it was ever intended to be, in starting a cricket club f r a village where boys and young men were many, hut there were no facilities for cricket. Money having been obtained ia adequate amount without much difficulty, and a pitch—realty a good one in the midst of a spacious and level pasture—with au infinity o£ trouble, and a captaiu having besn discovered who really played a very sound game, it seemed to me th it nothing could go wrong. But matters began to go amiss almost. at once. At ourfirst meeting—villages are fond of meetings, although nobody ever says anything when the meetings are assembled—we elected a captain and a com­ mittee, with power to add to their number, and fixed the annual subscription at one shilling. A committee sat to consider the question of purchasing the “ tackle,” as we call hats and balls and the like, for several hours, and an animated debate was carried on, the dehators, for the most part, not having the remotest idea what ought to be paid for them. Eventually the captain and I were deputed to make up our own list, and the ‘ ‘ tackle ’ ’ was ordered at cur discretion. Before it came a steam­ roller weighing 15 tonsimproved the pitch vastly in the course of an afternoon, but when the “ tackle” came trouble began at once Some half-grown hoys who hadpaidtheir sub­ scriptions, took it out on a wet evening and were immediately dis­ possessed by louts who had not paid. Hearing this the nextmorning, I went down that evening to act policeman and found the louts, or most of them, quite willing to pay if they could find a trustworthy recip­ ient of their shillings. Such a one was found in the village carpenter, and a practice game began at once. But the village idea of practice was that batting was not had fun, though none of them could bat at all; that bowling was better sport—and most of them could bowl rather well; but that fielding was the last thing to be thought of. Very small hoys might long-stop in pads, bowlers some­ times wore them, but nobody ever batted in them, and nobody would field. The other players, both sides alike—for sides were always picked—and a few footworn specta­ tors, lay on the ground and smoked about the spot where short slip would stand in the ordinary course of things. Remonstrance and example were both wasted on them (as they always are wasted in our village), and