Cricket 1909

72 CR ICK ET A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. A pr il 22, 1909. H. GRADIDGE And SONS, Manufacturers of all Requisites for Cricket, Lawn Tennis, Racquets, Hockey, Football, and all British Sports. Used by all the y Leading yA Players. ^ Made In Men a, Small Men s, or College, 6, 5, 4, dfc8 aizea. PATENTEES AND SOLE MAKERS OF THE P r i c e l . l s t a F r e e o n A p p l i c a t i o n . ° f a11 First-Class f* Outfitters n and Dealers. • Reblading a Speciality. Factory ; A r t ille r y Place. WOOLWICH. N O T I C E . With this issue of Cricket we present the Pictorial Supplement containing the list of County Fixtures for 1909, portraits of Haigli, Alan Marshal, Rev. F. H. Gillingham, and Mr. J. N. Crawford, photo-group of of the Kent County Team, and a view of the Adelaide Oval. Copies are on sale at Smith and Son’s Bookstalls and at all the chief newsagents. The subscription for the season, April 15tli to September 23rd, is 3s. post free to any part of the world. Money orders or postal orders (crossed London and County Bank) should be sent direct to the offices of Cricket, 168, Upper Thames St., London, E.C. C r i c k e t : A WEEKL V RECORD OF THE GAME. 168, UPPER THAMES STREET, LONDON E.C. THURSDAY, APRIL 22 nd , 1909. Pavilion Gossip. The abstract and brief chronicle of the time. T H e Orontes, with the Australians on board, left Port Said on Tuesday and is due at Naples to-morrow. Should the team come overland with the mails they should arrive in London on Sunday, but I believe they will not leave the boat until it reaches England to-morrow week. B e f o r e sailing for England, each member of the team received various presentations from cricket clubs and admiring friends. McAlister appears to have come in an easy first in this respect, although Hartigan, whose wedding almost synchronised with his departure, was the recipient of many tokens of regard. I notice that at the “ send-off” to Arm­ strong and Ransford in the Melbourne pavilion, W. Bruce expressed the opinion that the Australians would do best if the wickets were wet, whereas Hugh Trumble fancied them on dry wickets. As Shake- spere (or some-one else) once remarked— “ The truth lies somewhere, if we knew but where.” L ord D u d l e y , the Governor-General of Australia, entertained the Australian team at luncheon in Melbourne on March 22nd, prior to their departure for England. “ I t is fashionable to lament that bowlers like F. R. Spofforth and C. T. B. Turner are not now produced in Australia. But are they produced anywhere else ? ” asks “ Not Out” of the Sydney lieferee. “ Yet a few bowlers possessing natural powers comparable even with those of the great pair, have come, though they have not matured and figured in internationals. First to mind comes John Marsh, the aboriginal. He could do more with the ball in the air and after pitching than any other bowler one has ever seen. Marsh’s bowling had a flight puzzling and unique. He could curve away from a right-hand batsman, and make the ball drop with startling suddenness, and after curving away he could break back sharply from the off at a fast pace. As a rule he held the ball in the palm of his hand, with all the fingers round it. The question raised as to the fairness of his delivery knocked Marsh out of first-fclass cricket. But had it been otherwise, he might never have been given a place in an Australian team owing to an objection to his colour. Marsh was exemplary in his conduct while playing in Sydney. Those who travelled in an official capacity w'ith the team and his club-mates of Sydney Dis­ trict all speak highly of his conduct. That Marsh threw at times there can be no doubt, but, without transgressing at all, he could be, and was, a most danger­ ous bowler. Those who know what Marsh could do with the ball often won­ dered what kind of a sensation he might have produced at Lord’s had he been deemed eligible for Australia v. England. On English wickets, provided that his average delivery of the ball was approved, he would have been a wonder.” N o t h in g has yet transpired as to the captaincy of England in the Test matches. Everywhere the hope is expressed that the Hon. F. S. Jackson will be able and willing to lead the side, but from what I have heard privately there would appear to be little chance of it. Mac- Laren, it is said, has been practising frequently of late, and there can be little doubt that if he got back to his best form he would, failing Jackson, prove the most popular candidate for the post. In the event of neither of these being available the choice would appear to rest between Warner, Jones, Mason, Fry and Jessop. As the French say, “ We shall see.” T h e late Charles Payne, the Kent and Sussex cricketer, left estate to the value of £832. L o r d D a l m e n y , elder son of the Earl of Rosebery, was married to Miss Dorothy Grosvenor, younger daughter of Lord Henry Grosvenor, at St. Paul’s Church, Knightsbridge, on Thursday last. The honeymoon is being spent at. Lilleshall, Shropshire, lent by the Duke and Duchess of Sutherland. Among the many beautiful presents were a large double silver ink­ stand inscribed from the King to Lord Dalmeny, a pair of Georgian silver cruets from the Queen, a silver cigar case from the Prince and Princess of Wales, and a large clock from Princess Victoria. F r e d P a r r is , the old Sussex cricketer, has been appointed one of the umpires for the first Test match, which is to com­ mence at Edgbaston on May 27tli. This is the first time he has been chosen to stand in such an important match. D u r in g the season several good matches will be played on Mr. S. H. Cochrane's ground at Bray, which is fourteen and a- balf miles from Dublin. Hampshire, Cambridge University, Notts, and Hamp­ shire will be among the visiting teams and there is a possibility that the Australians also will be seen there. Among the good cricketers engaged on the ground are Vogler, Albert Baker (late of Surrey), and Steadman. U n d e r the heading “ Blazers,” Mr. John Murray gives the following in­ teresting information in Notes and Queries :— “ I do not remember to have seen the origin of this now common word, and it may be well to put it on record. In the late sixties, when flannel coats of club colours first began to be used, the coat adopted for Magdalen College, Oxford, both for the “ eight” and the “ eleven,” was scarlet, trimmed with blue silk. This naturally created some sensation for its conspicuous