Cricket Witness No 6 - His Captain's Hand on His Shoulder Smote

26 The Origin; Tom Brown’s Schooldays develop its relationship with the top-class schools, makes an affable and smiling appearance as captain of the visitors. Johnson, Rugby’s leading bowler, is based on Arthur, later Baron Wrottesley, who became a Liberal politician; he took ten wickets in the actual encounter. But perhaps the most telling aspect of this classic cricket match is the discussion that takes place as Rugby are batting. Tom, the mild-mannered Arthur and ‘the young master’ are engaged in conversation. ‘What a noble game it is, too’ exclaims the young master. Tom responds, ‘yes, but it is more than a game. It is an institution’. Arthur then intervenes, describing cricket as ‘the birthright of British boys, old and young, as habeas corpus and trial by jury are of English men’. The young master adds ‘the discipline and reliance on one another it teaches is so valuable..(it is) an unselfish game. It merges the individual in the eleven; he doesn’t play that he may win, but that his side may’. Arthur’s affirmation is palpable nonsense and sheds little glory on the history teaching at Rugby. Cricket as a morally acceptable, let alone an educative, activity was barely a generation on from when it was being shouted down by churchmen as sinful and public schools were being denounced as bastions of devilment. The transformation had been marvellously precipitous. Nonetheless, the message was now loud and clear, all encapsulated in that final scene. Cricket commanded all the virtues; it was ineluctably the elexir of the ethical life – and as such should be played in all schools. By way of commentary, ‘the young master’ was George Cotton, destined to be headmaster of Marlborough, one of the new, specially built schools along with others such as Wellington and Cheltenham. He later became Bishop of Calcutta and was the dedicand – he preceded the author in the Marlborough headship – for Farrar’s ‘Eric’ fable. It is instructive, too, that, although a particular favourite of Thomas Arnold and one of his most devoted apostles, his planned marriage to Arnold’s daughter, Jane, was suddenly halted because Cotton’s mum was revealed as a heavy