Cricket 1913

M ay 24, 1913. CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 215 Cr icke t ; A W E E K L Y RECORD OF TH E GAM E . 125 , STRAND, LONDON, W.C. S A T U R D A Y , M A Y 24 , 1913 . Letters for the Editor should be addressed to M e . J. N. P en telow , Malvern, Steyning, Sussex. Advertisements, Subscriptions, &e., should be sent to : The Manager of C ricket, 1 25 , Strand, W.C. The following are the subscription rates :— United Kingdom. Abroad. One Y e a r ............. ... 6s. 3 d. ... 7 s. 6d. The 24 Summer Numbers 5 s. Od. ... 6s. Od. The 6 Winter Numters ... Is. 3 d. ... Is. 6d. [Pavilion (Sossip. This is the word that year by year, While in her place the School is set, Every one of her sons must hear, And none that hears it dare forget. This they all with a joyful mind, Bear through life like a torch in flame, And falling fling to the host behind— “ Play up ! play up ! and play the game ! " H e n r y N ew bo lt . I h a v e an announcement to make th is week that should give pleasan t anticipations to many readers. It is that Mr. A C . M acL aren has prom ised to write for me somt special articles fo r schoolboy cricketers. A l o n g ta lk w ith the o ld E n g la n d captain— “ the best captain E n g la n d ever h a d , and the u n lu ck iest,” said a man who has p la yed under him both in E n glan d and A ustralia— le ft me g rea tly impressed b y the keenness o f his interest in the crick et o f the risin g generation. H e appears to care very m uch more fo r schoolboy cn ck et than fo r any other phase o f the great gam e in these days. Th e hero o f a hundred fights. M acLaren has h ad his till o f th e glories o f b is cricket. H e m ade m any cen­ turies in his tim e ; he m ight have m ade m any more i f he had p layed fo r his own hand, recking little fo r his side, as do some men. H e cou ld still make centuries if he c h o se ; and it is quite lik e ly th at h e m ay be seen in some first-class matches this season. B u t he has a strong fee lin g th at he can do no better w ork in th e cause o f cricket than to give practical, easily understood instructions to the boy cricketer at the stage when his m ind is most receptive to impression. H e does not consider th at anything yet done in that direction is quite the thing needed. He often receives letters from boys at the pu blic schools askin g his advice as to how to im prove their p la y in various direc­ tions ; and he answers th em ; and I fa n cy it is la rgely the sequel to those answers th at has induced him to take up -such work on more general lines. “ I h a v e done as you told me, and it works no end well ” — to that effect run a number o f letters he has had. “ I t ’s no use w ritin g instructions as to how to p la y cricket that leave you w ondering by the tim e you reach the third p age whether th e m an’ s ta lk in g about astronomy or m etaphysics.” says M r. M cL aren , with characteristic outspokenness. “ I t isn ’t, fine flowers o f speech a boy " ’ants, or philosophical trea tises; w h at he w ants is to be told p la in ly how to do i t .” I had not m ade u p my m ind before th is to attempt any special caterin g fo r the schools this year. F ra n k ly , last y e ar’s results ini th at direction were disappointing. F ew school secretaries sent a lon g news regu larly, and fo rt­ n ight-old stuff is useless. I have one treasured memory connected w ith the Sch ools’ p a g e last year, however. S e v er a l p u b lic school cap ta in s w ere ap p lied to for their portraits fo r reproduction. Some sent th em ; some did not. One ingenuous youn g gentlem an— I am not going to give aw ay his iden tity by even as much as a hint— sent his. T h ree or fo u r weeks later, as it had not appeared, he w rote to m e a very im patient letter. I f I cou ld not return it to him at once, h e must h ave the sum o f tw o sh illin gs for it, as he needed it and cou ld not afford to pay fo r another. O r, it appeared, to w ait another w eek or tw o ! I did not keep him w aitin g longer. I returned it. T h u s C r ic k e t lost an adornment th at it m ight have had. B ut one has to bear up under these “ bludgeonings o f fa te .” D e r b y sh ir e ’ s first tw o matches o f th e season won, and won in fine style, too ! D id ever such a thing happen before ? M em o r y being silent on th e subject, I h ad recourse to Wisden and the Derbyshire History. T h e re is a p a rallel, I fin d ; but it is rather an ancient one. In 1888, the season in which the P e a k C ou n ty h ad to ta k e its p la ce in the second class, the first tw o m atches w ere against the M .C .C . and Essex* and D erb ysh ire won both. In 1877 the county sid e opened its cam p aign b y beatin g Lan cash ire and H am pshire. A n d in 1874 the first tw o matches w ere also won, bu t then D erb ysh ire p la yed 16 men against Nottingham shire in the op en in g game. C a pt a in R . R . B ag g a ll a y has the good w ishes o f every true cricketer in his arduous task. S kip p erin g a county side dow n on its lu ck is a long w a y from an ideal job. B u t the ga lla n t cap tain has m ade a splendid s ta r t; and he has set the best o f examples to his men, both at the w ickets and in th e field. T he new D erbyshire cap tain is in his tw enty-eighth year. H e was born in L o n don on M ay 4th, 1884, and was educated at S t. D a v id ’s, R eigate, and at M a rl­ borough, but did n ot get his colours at th e great W iltsh ire school. H e has p layed fo r M C .C ., the Z in gari, F re e F oresters, and W oodbrook. M . E . C . B a g g a lla y , thei C am b rid ge blu e o f 1 9 1 1 , is h is younger b roth er; and an o ld Surrey amateur, T . W . B a g g a lla y (now B ag g alla y - W eeding) is a cousin o f his. C u rio u sly enough, all three o f these gentlemen are or w ere cap a b le w icket-keepers. F or these particulars I am indebted to the Derbyshirt Cricket Guide, which contains a good m any other items o f interest. -------------- U l st e r m ay fight. I should not care to express an opinion as to whether U lster w ill. B u t D erbyshire, N ortham ptonshire, and the rest o f “ th e five ” w ill not need to do so— at an y rate— fo r the present. T hreats o f w ar, indign ation m eetings, forebodings, m isgivings— all are at an end. R eform ers must turn th eir attention elsewhere!. Thie C ou n ty Cham pionship w ill g o on as at present until 19 17 , and 19 17 is a long w ay ahead yet.