South Canterbury Times, MONDAY, MAY 31, 1880.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2247, 31 May 1880, Page 2

South Canterbury Times, MONDAY, MAY 31, 1880.

“ Thebe was only a moderate attendance of the public, but the weather was fine throughout the day,”—such is; a portion of the message communicated by that somewhat eccentric recording angel “ Jieuter ” concerning the match that wa.s going on between the Atistralian Cricketers , and Eighteen of Rochdale and Lancashire. This intelligence must bo a sad blow to adventurous athletes in the colonies, whoso dispositions are migratory. On the ardour of young gentlemen who may"hare been looking forward to their proficiency in field exercises enabling them some day to make a profitable and cnjoyf.ble tour of England and America, it will probably operate like a cold moist blanket. “Beautiful weather, but moderate attendance” is a dismal combination of circumstances. It implies that the foraging expedition of the knights of the willow is not a success. It means that the people of Great Britain who are so warmly inclined towards ,the frozen joints of Australian carcases, have ceased to admire the supple joints of Australian showmen cricketer's. We do not suppose that it indicates any want of appreciation 'for the noble field sports invented centuries ago anc'. cultivated so earnestly to-day. Quite the contrary! Football, cricket, and athletic exercises were never more popular than they are at present. Out-of-door recreations, —so conducive to health and physical improvement—have grown immcnsly in favor. But the publichuve evidcntlyresolvedtlmttholino must bo drawn between the genuine amateur sportsman, who is animated by a pure love of the games in which he indulges, and the pitiful pseudo-mounte-bank, who discards honest, useful, and manly pursuits for the pleasures of boyhood, and seeks to degrade the bat and ball to the level of the pea and thimble.

Should this Australian cricketing- expedition turn out a lamentable failure pecuniarily, as it promises to dp, the friends of football, pricket, • and' other exercises in the colonics may fairly congratulate themselves. The result, in such a case, will discourage future expeditions of the kind, and it will save these pleasant recreations from degradation and scandal. Of all shocking examples of misapplied sinew, the worst is presented by the needy athlete who wields the bat when he ought to be handling the shovel. Marauding parties of colonial cricketers travelling round the towns of Great Britain and America, with the bat in one hand and the hat in the other, will neither elevate the games nor the prestige of the communities to which they belong in popular estimation. One expedition of the kind might be tolerated, but when the.doze comes to be repeated John Bull and Jonathan will very naturally button up their pockets. All the “ splendid bowling,” “ fine innings, and ‘‘ leg before wicket” that has ever been exhibited will not atone for the nauseating influence of the hat in the foreground! How very different is the attitude of Trickett, the champion, rower of Australia,and we may say, the world ! He is about to start for Groat Britain for the purpose of meeting America’s greatest

oarsman. His expedition is not for money making purposes. He travels .in his representative -capacity;• a$ a colonist, because.'his ‘•laurels ' tfye ■ premier sculler, of. the world are disputed. VjSuch being his mission we arc not surprised that the, peoplc. of Sydney have generously’ dipped .“their hands in their pockets’to defray his -expenses, and that in one night ,£,400 /..was subscribed. Such a noble response, is no more than worthy of the , occasion. •It will nerve the arm of this representivc'champion and -will’show tile people of the Qld Country that where merit asserts itself, the people of the Colonies are above mercenary considerations. With international contests of this kind we have every sympathy. A project is on.foot to despatch some of our best representative ploughmen to do battle on 'behalf of agricultural enterprise on the soil of England. But if such a match fakes place, the hat, we presume, will bo strictly excluded. What wc deem objectionable, is the way in which the good old game of cricket is'being degraded by young colonists (who should bo above such a thing) endeavoring by the aid of their bats and hats to stump their passages through the grand old country which gave birth to these grand field exercises.