Cricket 1911

R U G B Y F O O T B A L L AN D C R IC K ET*— N o v e m b e r 4 th , 1911. “ Together joined in Cricket’s manly toil.”— Byron. No. 8 8 8 . VOL. XXX . NOVEMBER, 1911. PRICE 2 d . A Chat with /VIr. Harold Torre. the present time, when arrangements are being made for the visit of an M.C.C. team, under the leadership [of Lord Hawke, to the Argentine Bepublic early in the New Year, the views and reminiscences of one who occupies a prominent place in that country’s cric­ ket should prove of interest to our readers. Mr. Torre is not only a very useful all­ round cricketer, who would undoubtedly have made hh mark if he could have played regularly in England, but also an enthusiast who is always willing to do his utmost for the benefit of the game and the comfort of others. That his judgment is valued is obvious from the fact that for the three last years he has been one of the three members of the Selection Committee of the South team, and Honorary Secretary of the Committee in charge of the arrangements for the Camps Cricket Week at Hurlingham and the North v. South match. When Mr. Torre was ap­ proached by a representative of this journal, and the reason of the intrusion had been explained to him, he said :— “ I am afraid as far as my personal doings in the cricket- field are concerned there is little to tell which will interest the readers of Cricket, as my enthusiasm and love for the game have always been far greater than my proficiency at it. Moreover, in common with most players born or educated in the Argentine, the lack of professional coaching forces us to rely entirely on our own Photo by] efforts, and any natural skill we possess can be brought out only by practice and supple­ mented by what we can pick up by watching the methods of good players.” “ Were you born in the Argentine ? ” “ N o : in London, in 1879, and I learnt the rudiments of the game at a preparatory school in Clapton, following my parents out to Buenos Aires in 1890. I remember the year well because a few Mr. HAROLD TORRE days after my arrival the revolution of ’90 broke out, and the exciting scenes during the fierce fighting which took place in the streets of Buenos Aires are engraved on my memory. Incredible as it may seem to those who imagine the Argentine inseparable from revolutions, that was the last outbreak of its kind in which fighting has occurred in Buenos Aires itself, although since then there have been a few minor uprisings in the Provinces. For some years I attended the English High School, where very little cricket is played. We had a few scratch matches and net practice, but an occa­ sional hint from a master as to how to hold the bat was all we received in the way of tuition.” “ When did you obtain your first experience of club cricket ?” “ That was with the Quilmes A.C., of which I was one of the founding members in 1896, the leading spirit being Mr. A. J. Symons, who is now in London and takes a keen in­ terest in the South American Bauks XI. My batting was always of a very primitive character, but I suppose I had some natural skill as a bowler for I generally had a fair crop of wickets to my credit. I stayed with Quilmes until the season of 1907-8 when, having removed to the suburb of San Isidro, I was elected captain of the local team and have played for them ever since.” “ What have been your best performances in League cricket in the Argentine?” “ Well, I suppose the best is a reccnt one which you were kind enough to give publicity [DeresM. to in Cricket, that being a double against Hurlingham in March last, when I scored 117 i and then took 8 wickets for 46 runs. In the season 1908-9 I took 13 wickets for 43 in a championship match against Quilmes— 8 for 12 in the first innings and 5 for 31 in the second. Curious to relate, San Isidro lost that match by 3 wickets. In the previous year, playing for Buenos Aires C.C. against the province of Entre Bios (12 a side), I captured 9 wickets for 39 runs. And