Bowling.

Free Lance, Volume II, Issue 81, 18 January 1902, Page 19

Bowling.

They ran a Parliamentary bowling green over m Melbourne, and when the jaw-makers of the nation are not indulging in "language" in the 'Ouse, you may find them trundling bowls on the turf. One of the Parliamentary experts at bowls is Gregor McGregor, from South Australia, who leads the Labour Party in the Federal Senate. His sight is dim and therefore a white handkerchief is placed round the "jack" whenever he comes to play. And he gets there just the same. "Pair auld Scotland'" Tackled the World on Saturday afternoon at the Wellington green, and, in a seven-rink match, got put down by 116 to 104. Nothing strange in that, were it not that one excited Scot has rushed into anonymous print to let the World know the defeat was all owing to some excellent music being discoursed on the grammaphone. Poor beggar' As a matter of fact, Mr. Chas. Hill, with his customary good nature, arranged for the grammophone selections. The instrument is really splendid, the music it produced — both vocal and instrumental — was by first-class artists, and was given forth with a realism that was truly marvellous. Such a treat was never before heard on the green. Churchward, I notice, had a liffht infantry team — Hill, KnaDp, and Allen — but he knocked the stuffing out of such veterans as Morris, Duthie, Mentiplay, and Lockie. Score: 18 to 11. The scores all through were rather on the small side, Maudsley's 24 to Lindsays 15 being the biesrest. Russell and Gibbes made the closest fiffht in the general engagement, the educational knight scoring 15 to the vice-president's 13. Newtown proudly wears the Diamond Buckles once more. Bary and Sid. Lambert went up to Wordsworth-street on a war foray on Saturday. Harry Smith and Norrie Bell were waiting for them, but the Newtownards buckled them up, and bore off the trophies just as Scotland was making its last rally against the World. Score 16 to 10. Hiorejmbottom and McComiskey made a tie of it m a full rink match at Newtown on Saturday ; 21 all. There were no "beg pardons" about the game. Champion Brightwell, of Newtown, seems to be in good -•'•wing form, and ought to be heard from in next week's tourney. Skipped his rink on Saturda against D'Emden for 31 to 16. Gooder, who, by-the-by, is skipping one of Victoria's tournament rinks, had all he could do on Saturday afternoon to hold the Hamerton Badges on the Victoria green. Mack only bowed himself out in the last head — 18-17. Gooder's defeat of Page on the previous Saturday was only by a small majority. Two juniors — France and Bagerett — made a good attempt to annex the Townsend Buckles, but Dixon and Brackenridge, jun. (playing substitute for Schultz) came at the finish, and won fairly comfortably. 26-18. All the other games on the Victoria Green were of a one-sided nature. Hueston defeated Townsend (of Loyalty fame) by 34 to 13 ; and McGowan smashed up A very by 26 noints (34 to 8). Joe stuck at 4 from the 7th to the 18th head, and only scored altogether in five heads. Braokenridge, sen., paid out Paore for annexing the Hamerton Badges several weeks ago. Put him through by 30 to 17, his score including a six on the 10th head. About £300 has been raised in Wellington towards the expenses of the 4s sociation tournament. It will all he needed. Mr. A. Holmes, who played No. 2 for the Newmarket Club, when they won the Champion Fours three years ago, is tiow a member of the Dannevirke Club. Dr. W. G. Grace, the darling of the English cricket field, also the famous jatsman W. L Murdoch, have both

thrown over the bat and taken to bowls. In. W. G.s case it is said he has attained to such aldermanic proportions that racing between two wickets is now absolutely out of the question Mr. J. A. Haslett, the well-known chemist of Auckland, and vice-president of the Auckland Bowling Glub, was presented with a purse of sovereigns the other day on the eve of his departure for San Francisco, to study medicine. One of Wellington's tournament rinks has solved the skip problem by dividing the honours. One day Sample will load, and Churchward play second, while Bell plays third, and Ballinger skipp. Next day, Ballinger will lead and Bell play second, while Churchward plays third and Sample skips. Playing in the first-named position on Tuesday night, the team of "alternate skips" tried their skill on an emergency combination, consisting of Berry, Waddell, Veitch and Mentiplay (skip). They were not equal to the emergency, however, for it produced a boil-over bv 23 bo 18 Next week Wellington will be overrun with bowlers from all points of the compass, and every corner of the Island. Blazers of the most startling hues and gaudy patterns will beautify the landscape and adorn "the block. For the ladies who care to look in at the various bowling greens, it will be one long picnic as "afternoon" tea will be on tap from early morn to deiw eve, and bowlers, you know, are the most gallant of mortals. The fair seix axe always made free to these tournament festivi ties. No less than twenty-two clubs are entered for the tournament (two rinks each). They are — Napier, Feilding. Wellinrton, Victoria, Thorndon, Newtown. PaJmerston North Wanganui, Car<-erton, Ponsonby, Gisborne. Newmarket, Auckland, Masterton, Bluff Hill, Petone. Remuera, Mount Eden, Waverley, Hasting, New Plymouth, and Dunedin. Newmarket holds the champion banner. The smoke concert ought to be Al, seeing that the musical programme is in the capable hands of Mr. Charles Hill. As the pairs and singles are to start simultaneously with the rink matches, players in one match will not be able to play in the others. This will enable a larger number to take part. Longton's team, up at Thorndon. are busy putting up a record with those Edwin Feathers. A Petone team, comprisino- Henry, Kirk, Austin, and Johnston (skip) made a try for them on Saturday. They went home with flatten-ed-out hopes — 16 to 30 was their mournful story.