WITHOUT BIAS

NZ Truth, Issue 1206, 10 January 1929, Page 4

WITHOUT BIAS

-I ( ■ - , Australian Bowler's Impressions (By a New South Wales Bowler).

1 God's Own Country !, That's what we're looking- for. | New Zealand, and the sweet atmosphere of Wellington, where 1; there's no. graft, and Royal Commissions are unknown. Bo will ers are great /travellers, /but not all good sailors, and for my I part you can have that "life" on the ocean wave" all on your 1 Patsy'. Hendreil..; '. . " : , . '■<'■.

THEY used to tell us< m, Sunny New 1 South Wares that' if you saw a man with a chronic hold on. his "lid" you could confidently conclude that he came from Wellington.- . Among other things, that's what we came to find out. - ' What we know already is that your bowlers have the. wind: well up what that "home on the rolling deep" I spoke of has left of us:George Wright, the British captain? and Walter Wake, his illustrious offsider, told us at the conclusion- of the great tour that the Dominion men were- the greatest bowlers on earth. That touched our pride, somewhat, so we decided to come across and dig ourselves m for a term. We have now come to the conclusion that there is something m the rumor,' to say the least. of it. , -•' ■ ". : ■;• We Australians were delighted- .to find that among 'civic affairs, here; bowls finds a place. . In 'Melbourne, the City Fathers all become inoculated with the Drake disease as a matter of course, but m Sydney the alderman, have been slow to reach that stage of civilisation. , ? :-, Judge Alex Thompson is a member of the visiting team. His Honor is no mean exponent of the Drakean art, but any enterprising. . pressman, who seeks to interview him should take my tip and not aßk him to talk "shop," though he ■ will, like a true disciple of' Jimmy Wall, and' Maxwell Walker, talk , bowls till he "drops* Another Sydneysider Wellingtonians will :,be' glad to meet is Frank Doherty; Managing Director of ; the Cunibei-land Paper Mills. Unfortu-

nately., Mr. Doherty is. somewhat handicapped by a width of waistcoat that prevents him doing his 100 yards undev ten seconds, but he says that if he can't beat his opponent m the singles, or rinks, he can at leasst fall on him. On one occasion, the 22 stone Vice of the New South Wales Bowling- Association toured the provinces, and managed to smash every automatic weighing device m the first town he came to. . At the ruilway. station a new machine had been installed that very afternoon, and as the big fellow stepped on to the platform, away went the | hands like a Midlands express. A crowd of small boys had gathered about, and as the indicator suddenly stopped at 7 stone, .one urchin piped: "Gor blime! The bloke's holler!" And so here's to Wellington and God's Own Country, and trfe greatest bowlers on earth!' When I return to Sunny New South Wales I will have much to tell Australians of 'this great country. In due course it will be our privilege and pleasure to reciprocate iii the direction of New Zealand's great hospitality. Though we have failed' to, beat the Dominion at bowls, we have at least an even money chance of holding our own at the festive game. We are delighted — -honored, indeed — to have met those great players who have made History for themselves and the best of all games. The Carswells,' the Maxwell Walkers, the Clarices and the Parsons don't grow on apple, trees, and who would wish to meet finer fellows? As Tom Schnackenberg, prince tof bowls Writers wouid have it, we have come, we have seen, and we : are satisfied. .'■ : ;'; ■■;.' -.■ •■. V. ■•."• ■ .;•■:■■ ■> '