Cricket 1913

CR I CK E T : A W E E K L Y RECORD OF THE GAME. December 1 7 , 1 9 1 3 . Cricket: A W E E K L Y R E C O R D O F T H E GAME . 25 , WH ITE STREET, M OOR LANE, E.C. W E D N E S D A Y , D E C EM B E R 17 , 1913 . pavilion Gossip. When red-nosed Winter takes the road, An icicle his walking-stick; When frost is on the woodman's load, And snow is fallin g fast and thick, Come, lusty youth and sapless eld, Let's make a circle round the blaze And talk of stumps. O f nasty bumps, That flew and came in sunny days.— N o r m a n G a le . T h i s is the last num ber o f C r i c k e t . N o t w ithou t so rrow is th a t statem en t p enn ed . F o r n ea rly th irty- two y e a rs has the p ap e r, w h ich M r. C . W . A lc o c k foun d ed in 1882, b ra ved the assau lts o f tim e. It has seen g o o d d a y s and d a y s not so g o o d ; it has lived th ro u g h y e a rs w hen the g am e w a s at the v e ry h e ig h t o f its p o p u la rity , and h a s uph eld the fla g th ro u g h season s w h en p u b lic interest seem ed to be on th e w ane. I t h a s stood s tu rd ily for th e r ig h t and fa ir th in g a lw a y s and e v eryw h ere . It h a s m ade m istakes, bu t has set down n o u g h t in m alice. It h a s p ro vided th irty tim es in each y e a r a fund o f interest to the real d evotees o f the g rea t g am e. N o c o r n e r o f the w o rld in w h ich th e gam e is p la y ed has been n eglected o f d e sig n b y tho se w ho h a ve been respon sib le for the p a p e r’s con tro l. T h a t som e quarters sh o u ld h ave had a better sh ow than oth ers w a s un a v o id ab le. S o m uch dep end s upon the k indn ess and th e zeal o f c o rre sp o n d e n ts; and it h a s happ ened th a t fa ir p rom ise in th is direction has fa iled o f redem p tion , and th a t new s w h ich w ou ld g la d ly h a v e been in clud ed h a s con sequ en tly been m issed . O f l a t e there can h a ve been little cau se for g rum b le s in th is d irection , h ow ever. S in c e the p resen t E d ito r took o ver con tro l the n ew s system , w h ich had been g r e a tly im p roved b y h is imm ediate p redecessor, has had d evoted to it m uch w o rk and m uch th o u gh t, and is now o rg an ise d as it has never been b efo re. In th e p a p e r’s e a rly d a y s the on ly cricket p la y ed ou tsid e th is c o u n try w h ich had an y interest fo r the a v e ra g e reader w a s th at in A u s tra lia . B u t s in c e then th e g am e h a s d eveloped am az­ in g ly , and n ow ad a y s new s from S o u th A frica , In d ia, N ew Z e a la n d , C e y lo n , th e U n ite d S tates, the W e s t In d ies, C an a d a , th e A rg e n tin e , and from m an y o th er quarters is g iv e n , and , as I h a v e reason to know , app reciated . L e r o i e s t m o r t ! V i v e l e r o i ! C r i c k e t in its old gu ise d isa p p e a rs; bu t from its ash es, phoen ix­ like, w ill arise T h e W o r l d o f C r i c k e t , th e first num ber o f w h ich w ill be pu b lish ed ea rly in J an u a ry . I t is o n ly after m uch carefu l deliberation th a t this ch an g e has been m ade. S om e o ld friend s w ill re­ gret it, I k n o w ; bu t I ask them not to let it alienate their affection s. N on e o f th e featu res w h ich h ave made and k ep t the o ld paper p o pu la r w ill be m is sin g from the new . S lig h t differen ces in sty le there must in e v ita b ly b e ; bu t these w ill not en tail a n y rad ical ch an g e . M r . A . C . M c L a r e n , w ho w ill be E d ito r o f T h e W o r l d o f C r i c k e t , w ith the p resen t w riter a s A s ­ sistan t E d ito r and M an a g er, needs no introduction to an y reader o f C r i c k e t . H is name is a hou sehold w ord w h erever the g am e is p la y e d . It o u g h t to b rin g us fresh support in m an y q u a rters; and I am confident th at it w ill do so. T h o s e w h o are good en ou gh to app reciate the w o rk th a t I p e rso n a lly h ave done m a y accep t th is assu ran ce th at I am g o ­ in g to w o rk a s hard and as lo y a lly for the paper as ever, and if a little less m atter o f m y ow n p e n n in g appears it w ill on ly be that room m a y be m ade for more va lu a b le co p y . T o t h o s e w ho h a ve g iv en me help and en cou r­ agem en t, m y heartiest th an k s ! T h e y are m an y , and I coun t them a ll as friend s. T o t h o s e w h o h a ve prom ised much an d done little— and th ey are not few— th is m essag e : there is time and scop e for am e n dm e n t! S h ow the zeal you talked o f now , and h elp m y c o lle a g u e and m y ­ self to m ake T h e W o r l d o f C r i c k e t an even more popu lar paper than C r i c k e t w a s. T o t h o s e whom I h ave d isappo in ted , ap o lo g ie s. T h ere are som e, I know . S p a ce is lim ited, b u t the man rea lly keen w ho look s for h is own sp ecial news and fa ils to find it does not a lw a y s con sider th is an adequate ex cu se. A n d , o f cou rse, lack o f sp a ce is not respon sib le for ev e ry error o f om ission . O v e r ­ work, o rig in a l sin , and o cca sio n a lly ill-h ealth have also p la yed their parts in the fa llin g short o f per­ fection w h ich I read ily adm it. T o a l l — g iv e us y o u r s u p p o r t! W e undertake to g iv e you a rea lly go od paper, and w e w an t ev ery real cricketer to read that paper— yes, and to b u y it. H alf-a-dozen readers to ev e ry c o p y is flatterin g , bu t unp rofitable. F o r fu rther p articu lars as to the new p ap e r, I must refer y o u to the advertisem en t on another pa g e, and to its first num ber, w h ich I trust not one o f you w ill fa il to see.