NOTES BY LONG SLIP.

Otago Witness, Issue 2892, 18 August 1909, Page 62

NOTES BY LONG SLIP.

The recent wet season in England is responsible for reviving the story of the umpire who went to inspect the wicket, and fell in. As ho rose to the surface for the third time he announced: "No play before lunch!"

Ar C. Bannennann has keen retired, from the New South Wales Government Printing Office, with which he was associated for over 30 years. In the winter months lie suffers a great deal from one of his l«ge, wiucn puffs and weakens as a result of a blow ironi a cricket ball many years ago. It has prevented him carrying out his duties this .winter In the summer months A. C. B. is as active as ever. It is suggested that the once famous etonewaller should be en.£&g«d as coach by the New South Wales Cricket Association. Wiry not by the Otago Cricket Association? ' II has been decided that amateurs invited to pilay for England in test matches should be granted the sum of 30s per day on account of expenses 'and in addition to the railway fares.

Tho official use of the * ern l "amateur" in connection with cricket i« unfortunate, and unnecessary, inasmuch as the old word "gentleman" is in every way preferable. .There is no amateur definition in Cricket, and it would be practically impossible to frame one to differentiate between persons who make their livelihood, or a portion of it, by playing the game while acting in different capacities as the employees of cricket clubs. t If it is intended to imply that a cricketer who demands more than 30s per diem _ for a particular occasion le not an amateur, and thus to set up a kind of definition, the attempt to graduatethe position of players can only appear most feeble and unsatisfactory. Whether or not there exist "gentlemen" who demand a full professional fee, there certainly are, or will be, others to whom it would be profitable, as -ireill as honourable, to play tfor England without direct remuneration. The precise amount to be offeree* under the name of expenses is, therefore," immaterial.

In the early matches of the season many j of the batsmen ofs the rising generation j (remarks the Field) showed!- a tendency to dabble with the off ball with a strokes which j <w*B not quite a cut, nor, indeed, a hit of 1 any kind, but merely an attempt to find the ball. It was curious to see how often 'disaster was avoided by the mere failure of the' striker to effect his ostensible object. Already the stroke is falling out of fashion, although one or two of the Australians still cling to it, and the tendency of the present day ie to replace it with forward 1 play. This is not quits like the forward' stroke of 30 years a-go, but is a promising effort .to smother a puzzling ball. Many good judges of the game were struck by the way in which se-veral of the YorkshLremen at Bradford on Monday- effectively met Armstrong and other bowlers with a mode of defence with- which, they had previously shown little acquaintance, although Rhodes bas always' had it in his repertory. The first Australian team of cricketers that visited England in the late sixties was made up solely of the aboriginals of the island continent. They had been taught the game by Lawrence, an old Surrey playfiT, who brought them to England on an exhibition tour, in which they put up some good games against the M.C.C. and country teams. Mullagh in particular wes a punishing batsman, and one hit of his out. of the Bramall lane ground and over tiv/i streets is still remembered and quoted in Sheffield. Bullocky »ac also a good bat, and Dick-a-Dick, a fine wicket-keeper, while [Red Cap was presented with a silver cup for brilliant play.

In ihe v. Notts match as many as eight men (or, to be quite precise, eeven end one of them twice) were leg before iwioket, and seven were caught by the wicket-keeper. The great cricket mortality nowadays caused by the popular books £ixml le^ g-lanees is perhaps indiea±iv.© of a depraved style of batting, while it suggests the question of what would happen if the party that would amend the law of leg before wicket in the bowler'e favour had its wilL Of course, it is open to the champions of cricket reform to plead that a in danger of peing dismissed by a>i>y ball that might strike ~his pads on its way towards the stumps would seduously refrain from leg play. On- the other hand, it might b© argued tha* if It is 60 difficult at present to avoid being lbw to a ball pitched between the wickets, which, except iwhen delivered by a left-handed bowler round the wicket, does not necessarily require the interposition of the pa-ds, Low much more co would it be to escape a legbreak bowler on a caked pitch? In fact, there would "be days when one would be safer in front of the wicket than elsewhere. K. H. Spooaer'g £uceet» against tb.e Aub-

tralians must be very gratifying to Englishmen,'seeing that he is oxue of the most brilliant of the younger men. He apparently (possesses the temperament necessary for high success in international" cricket, as in 1905 he was a thorn in the Australian side. He then played in, the last two matches only, and scored 52, 0, and 79. Efjrly this season Spooner dad not appear in tii© Lancashire Eleven owing to his absence from England. But ifcwo weeks ago it was cabled thait he made 113 against Essex at Ijeyton. Robert Reif (a brother to A. E.) at <the 6a.me time scored 273 not out for Sussex against Worcestershire. Commenting on the fact (that the Cricket Conference has approved of a triangular tournament for 1912 in England, -:he_ Observer remarks: "More tests im«an more professionalism. The real amateurs, will -be steadily driven from important cricket; they will seek still more, as they have of late bo much sougQat, the more gentle atmosphere of club and house games ; the big grounds will be surrendered ; to £rladia£o<rialism amd ' gate.' " -■ A correspondent of the Yorkshire Even- | ing- Post recalls an unusual incident in con- . neotrion with a match at Ghickenley in 1863 between Baitley and Chiokenley. <r ßatley, : ' he E&ys, "came with a man short. The j player they got to make the team up, with a tremendous < hit, sent the ball down the ohinmey-pot of one of the houses adjoining the field. Whetn we went round to the house the door was locked, so consequently tbs ball was burned, and «. new ball had to be got to fimch the match." The Imperial Cricket OonfereAce suggests that each country {Australia, England, South Africa) shall visit and be /visited by each other country every four yeans, ro ootmtry to pay visits in two successive seasons. - The conference proposes that the first triang-ukx test contest should be in ldl2,\England, Australia, and South Africa each playing six test matches in England, each meeting the others thrice, and taking half the gross gates of the- matches in which it participates.

A meeting of the representatives of JEngland, Australia, and South Africa was held in the .pavilion at Lord's on June 15. It was proposed by Mr--G. W. HiUard (South Africa 4,7 seconded by Br L. O. S. Poidevin (Australia), and unanimously agreed: "That the principle of triangular contests is a-p-proved"; with the following rider, which was also " unanimously approved : "TKat, having- regard to the following arrangements having been mads — i.e., for England to visit South Afrjea in 1909-10 and South Africa to visit Australia in 1910-11, an effort should be made to have the first trikngtuar cricket contests in England in ,1912, subject to South Africa waiving it# claim to come alone in that year, and to further this object England pledges itself to visit Australia, iv 1911-12.

At a. meeting of tie South African. Cricket Association details in connection with the forthcoming visit of the Marylebone team were arranged. The team wiil leave England in the midle s& November, and will consist of .six amateurs and eight professionals. Only 11 aside matches will be played. Three test matches are to be play-ad at Johannesburg, one at Durban, and one at Cape Town. The guarantee was fixed at £4000. If Rhodesia is able to provide the necessary guarantee Marylebone will play a couple o^f marches- there. The tour will start at Gape Town on December 4, and will end on March 9.

\ A correspondent, writing from England ; about the first of the Australia v. Yorkshire matches, says a. word ie due about Hirst's 14. Cotter went on as soon as the famous all-rounder arrived, and he came face to face with the express at his second bail. It was a yard outside the off-stump, and Hirst pulled it to long-on rather squareThe third he pulled, and it was fielded; the fourth and sixth were likewise pulled, and banged up against the boundary wall. Next over Cotter had his revenge. The fielding was posfcively grand, and Ransford saved fully 30 rum. by some quick piefcin," up and returning. He was cheered, and a /Yorkshire crowd 1 can cheer good cricket, with a vengeance. Macartney also oa-mo in for gome kindly recognition, while Carter's work at the wiek«t was nothing short of marvellous. Cotter was more than usually erratic, and several wide balls on the leg made Carter jump 'to get them. Seldom has a wicket-keeper met wiih warmer and more continued applause.