Cricket 1909

J u n e 24, 1909. CR ICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 217 The catch by means of which he dis­ missed Bowell on Saturday was worth going miles to see. The ball appeared likely to travel fast over his head to the boundary, but Jessop, springing into the air, knocked it up and caught it with one hand as it was falling. It was quite remarkable that the two men whose absence from the Lord’s match occasioned such comment everywhere should have performed with such effect immediately after that historic game had been lost. A c o r r e sp o n d e n t of the Yorkshire Evening Post recalls an unusual incident in connection with a match at Chickenley in 1863 between Batley and Chickenley. “ Batley,” he says, “ came with a man short. The player they got to make the team up, with a tremendous hit, sent the ball down the chimney-pot of one of the houses adjoining the field. When we went round to the house the door was locked, so consequently the ball was burned, and a new ball had to be got to finish the match.” 1845, blocked away till his party, the North Devon, won the match, chiefly by byes and wide-balls. And he adds, “ Such men might have turned their powers to much better account.” ' Strictly defensive play is at times excusable, and even commendable, but at others it is as out of place as a dolphin in a sentry-box. O n Saturday at Horsham, for instance, when Sussex were set 397 to win and had almost a whole day in front of them, Vine’s cautious methods, though not attractive, could be understood and appreciated. When he had been in a couple of hours, and the total had reached 113, he had made only 29, and the fact that he then astonished everybody by hitting Hitch for 17 in an over does not tend in the least to prove that his defen­ sive tactics were a mistake. At St.-Mary-at-Hill, the Monument, E.C., on Sunday evening the topic for the sermon was “ England’s collapse at Lord’s.” cricketers would be pleased to see him making runs again for the County. C o m m e n t in g on the fact that the Cricket Conference has approved of a Triangular Tournament for 1912 in England, the Observer remarks:— “ More Tests mean more professionalism. The real Amateurs will be steadily driven from important cricket; they will seek still more, as they have of late so much sought, the more gentle atmosphere of club and house games; the big grounds will be surrendered to gladiatorialism and ‘ gate.’ ” I n the match at Lord’s between Essex and Middlesex in 1905 Perrin scored 140 in his first innings and 103 not out in his second. When the two sides met on the same ground last week he was disposed of twice without a run. S u c h “ glorious uncertainty ” recalls the unexpected victory gained by Nor­ thamptonshire on Saturday at Trent THE HORSHAM GROUND. H. D. G. LEVESON-GOWER AND MARSHAL BATTING. Photoby] 1“ Cricket.'' T h e old Eton, Cambridge and Sussex cricketer, Mr. Herbert Whitfeld, whose death was announced recently in Cricket, left estate of the value of ,£34,419. Mr. E. P. Jobson, of Worcestershire, left i93,600, with net personalty .£76,093. I t is difficult to account for Mr. Hartley’s defensive tactics in Lancashire’s second innings at Tonbridge on Friday, for when he went in the side was practi­ cally safe from defeat, and one would have thought that, bearing in mind the unsettled weather we have been experien­ cing of late, a little more enterprise than usual would have been more appropriate to the occasion. The nature of his dis­ play can be gauged from the fact that he took two hours and a-quarter to make his first 25 runs, and that as many of that number as 19 were obtained in singles. It recalls Mr. Pycroft’s dictum that “ Mere stopping balls and poking about in the blockhole is not Cricket, however successful.” The same authority tells how a friend, in a match at Exeter in I t is a pity that Capt. T. W. Sheppard, who made 22 and 14 for Worcestershire against Oxford University, has not been able to play more frequently in good-class cricket, for he is a very sound batsman who needed only the opportunity in order to make a name for himself. In South Africa he played many large innings, including one of 265 for the Bamblers at Bloemfontein in 1900-1, which ranks as one of the largest individual scores ever made in the country. It was whilst playing for Garrison against Civilians, at Bloemfontein on November 9th, 1901, that he carried his bat through an innings of 160, which included three extras, for 140. The next highest score in the com­ pleted innings was 9. When he reached three-figures the total of the side was 113 for nine wickets. H. C a r p e n t e r , who made such ex­ cellent scores for Essex a few seasons ago, played a not-out innings of 101 on the Leyton ground on Friday for Essex Club and Ground against Finchley. All Bridge. Earlier in the week they had given Surrey a very close game, which, combined with their win over Notts by so large a margin as 159 runs, should prove of benefit to them by causing an increase in the membership of the County Club. It is always a pleasure to hear of the lowly-placed sides doing well, especially when, as in this case, success was in no way due to luck. The com­ pletion by Smith of his qualification for Northants has increased the strength of the side to a very great extent, not only by providing new and welcome talent, but by lightening the burden of Thompson, Wells and East. P l a y in g for his native village, Southborough, against the United Banks, at Tunbridge Wells on Saturday, K. L. Hutchings scored 138 in 45 minutes. M o r e than a passing word of praise deserves to be given to Board for the excellent cricket he showed in the recent match with Hampshire. In addition to