Cricket 1908

D e c . 24, 19 0 8 . CR ICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. O w in g to continued indisposition M r. J. W . Logan has decided to resign his position as President of the Leicestershire County C.C. T h e Rev. Prebendary Wickham pre­ sided at the Annual General Meeting of the Somerset County C.C. at Taunton on the 5th inst., in the absence of Sir Spencer l’onsonby-Fane, with whom sympathy was expressed in his bereave­ ment through the death of his brother, the H on. Gerald Ponsonby. The financial statement, presented by Mr. Gerald Fowler, the honorary treasurer, showed a loss o f £400 on the year, this deficit being cleared off by a call upon the guarantors. Mr. Fowler said that but for the fact that the Australians were coming over next year he thought it would have been their duty to consider seriously whether they should not wind up the Club. He hoped they were not in a moribund condition, but they were certainly in a parlous state, and unless they secured more financial support they would have to give up the Club. Sir Spencer Ponsonby-Fane was re-elected President, Mr. J. Daniell captain, and Mr. Gerald Fowler honorary treasurer. Mr. Murray-Anderdon, the honorary secre­ tary, withdrew his resignation and was re-elected. TAYLOR.—A t Hawkhills, Chapel Allerton, Leeds, the infant son of T. L. and B. R. Taylor. Born November 10th, died November 25th, 190S. T h e captains of the first-class counties met at L ord’s on Monday the 7th inst. to select the umpires for county cricket next season. Thirteen of the sixteen leading clubs were represented, the exceptions being Hampshire, Somerset, and War­ wickshire. The following twenty umpires were selected to officiate :— A. J. Atfield (Gloucestershire), H. Bagshaw (Derbyshire), H. Baldwin (Hampshire), J. Carlin (Notts), C. E. Dench (Notts), W. Flowers (Notts), G. P. Harrison (Yorkshire), A. Millward (Worcester­ shire), J. Moss (Notts), F. Parris (Sussex), W. Richards (Warwickshire), F. G. Roberts (Gloucester­ shire), J. E. West (Middlesex), W. A. J. West (North­ amptonshire), A. A. White (Sussex) B. W. Mason, A. E. Street, J. Blake, O. Frith, and T. Cornwall. Fifteen o f the above umpired last year, when Blake and Frith were on the re­ serve list and Cornwall and Mason were second-class county umpires. Street is the old Surrey player. Barlow, owing to his appointment as ground-manager at Old Trafford, drops out with T. Brown, A. Law, F. W . Marlow, and B. C. Smith. Three reserve umpires were chosen, viz., J. Gregory, in the Second Division last year, W . Vining, of Salisbury, and G. Webb, o f Tonbridge. A t the same meeting it was decided that the Board of Control be recommended to invite Messrs. H . D. G. Leveson- Gower and H. K. Foster and Lord Hawke to serve on the Selection Committee next season. They recommended also that the Selection Committee appointed by the Board o f Control should choose, not only the English team for Test matches, but also the sides for Gentlemen v. Players both at Lord’s and the Oval and the England team to meet the Champion County on the latter ground at the end of the season. In order to be sure what importance should be attached to the above “ recommendations ” it would first be necessary to know whether the cap­ tains’ views coincided with those of their Committee or whether they acted merely on their own initiative. N e w s o f the sudden death of Lord Petre on the 7th inst. reminds me that several years ago many good-class matches were played at the family seat, Thorndon Hall, Essex. It was there that, on July 5th, 1870, Alfred Shaw, playing for M.C.C. and Ground v. Thorndon Hall, took eighteen of the twenty wickets for 52 runs : one man was run out and one hit his wicket to Price’s bowling, so Shaw actually claimed eighteen of the nineteen wickets credited to the attack. Lord Petre, who succeeded to the title only a few months ago, was interested in the game but never made a name for himself as a player. A t the autumn meeting of the Kent County C.C. Committee on December 7th at the Grand Hotel, Charing Cross, Viscount Hardinge (the President of the Club) in the chair, it was announced that financially the past season was not so successful as those immediately preced­ ing, the general account showing an in­ crease of only .£790, against 1975 in 1907. Still, the position was very satis­ factory, the falling-off being entirely due to rain during the Canterbury and Tun­ bridge Wells Weeks. Mr. E . W . Dillon had accepted the captaincy of the Eleven in succession to Mr. C. H. B. Marsham. An annexe to the pavilion at Canterbury, accommodating 600 people, was being built, and will be completed in February. Blythe had been given the second match of the Canterbury Week—with Hamp­ shire— for his benefit, and will, in accord­ ance with the usual Kent custom, receive an amount calculated on the average receipts o f the match for the five previous years. ---------- I u n d e r s t a n d that a sum of over .£1,100 has been subscribed to the A. O. Jones Testimonial Fund. This, however, falls considerably short of the .£ 2,0 0 0 the Committee are anxious to secure, and in consequence an appeal has becn^ made to those who have not yet contributed to do so. The Fund will close on the 31st *ns*)- ------------- ’. In opening the meeting of the County Secretaries at Lord’s on the 8 th inst. Mr. F. E . Lacey referred to the proposals for the Triangular Scheme. He thought a large proportion of those present hoped the scheme would come into existence. They knew as much about the history of its failure as he did, and it would be- improper for him to comment upon it ; but it might interest them to know that he had received authority from the Com­ mittee of the Marylebone Club to try to bring about in the summer a conference composed of the representatives ^ of England, Australia, and South Africa, to discuss and, if possible, come to an understanding with regard to future con. tests. It was hoped that this conference would tend to promote mutual confidence and respect, and that some scheme would come out of it whereby the interests of those concerned would be duly considered and observed. T h e South African Cricket Association has invited the M.C.C. to send out a team to South Africa at the conclusion of the season of 1909. T h e Association is also conducting negotiations with the Austra­ lian Board of Control with a view to a South African team visiting Australia in 1 9 1 0 - 1 1 . ---------- The Australian Board of Control, which has decided to invite a South African team to visit them in 1909-10, wish to take all the Australians’ share of the profits of the tour in England next summer, and, after deducting 5 per cent, of the first .£ 6,00 0 and 1 2 1 per cent, of the remainder, to divide the surplus equally among the members of the team. Hill and Noble, however, have stated that they will not make the trip unless better terms are offered to the players. A l l the way from Manila comes the following note from a Cricket subscriber: “ Readers of your paper who are looking for coincidences may have been struck by the fact that in the averages given in the issue o f September 17th of the 1 London S cottish ' not a single ‘ Mac ’ appears, either amongst the batsmen or the bowlers. ‘ Stands Scotland where it did ? ’ ” ---------- In memory of her son, Lieut. H . T. Stanley, the Somerset cricketer who was killed during the Boer War, the Hon. Mrs. Stanley, elder surviving daughter of the first (and last) Lord Taunton, has placed a stained-glass window in the parish church of St. Mary at Over, Stowey. In a case heard before Mr. Justice Darling in the King’s Bench Court on the 1 1 th inst., his lordship, in summing up, said he could imagine many reasons why defendant’s son should at an early age have taken the name of Charles instead of that of Petrzywalski. English people, although as mixed a race as ever inhabited an island, were perhaps dis­ trustful in business of people having foreign-sounding names. I f you wanted to play cricket, and be appreciated, and your name ended in “ ski,” it would be better to call yourself “ Smith.” D d r in g the season I had occasion to refer, and more than once if m y memory does not deceive me, to the run-getting performances of G. A. Stevens, ot the Norwich Grammar School X I. He not only made huge scores for the School but more than justified his inclusion in the Norfolk side when he was able to spare the time for county cricket. In all matches in which he appeared during the season he scored 2,822 runs with an average o f 6 8 , playing thirteen three- figure innings. His future performances will certainly be followed with the greatest interest.