THE COMING CRICKET SEASON at home.

Waikato Times, Volume XX, Issue 1707, 14 June 1883, Page 3

THE COMING CRICKET SEASON at home.

Wk take the following from au article in ;the Morning Post of March 24 on thu 'prospect? of the English cricket season, 1883 :- / After the excitement of last year, there is no doubt that the forthcoming cricket season will be rather a quiet one. Jt is better that it should be so. Time heals the many antagonisms and initations ' which are inseparable from a season like , that of ISS2, ciowded with gieat, exciting matches. We shall ha\e a fair chanco this year to enjoy the friendly rivalries of our leading counties and universities, to watch the development of cricket in what are -called the minor counties, and to delight in th'« play of ■ cricketers already famous, w hile we follow with interest the careers of the young men bi ought forwaid by the public 1 schools and the County Clubs. The piogramme of the chief matches of the season was published moic than three months ago, while recently we gave the list of the Marblebone Club fixtures. From these it will have been seen that, w lthout promising any great novelty, the season about to 1 commence should be of fully average interest. The most remarkable features of the year will no doubt be the rapid advance of the minor counties and the great increase in Surrey 'b list of fixtures. , There is, indeed, the no\ city of the system ot selecting umpires decided upon at the '. meeting of County Secretaries in Decoin ber. This system, which will be fully tried, is based upon the principle that no > man shall stand umpire in a nutch in which his own county is engaged. We undetstand that the suggestion by the County Secretanes to allow rolling the ground for ten minutes on each moiiiing * of a match is practically sure to become law ; and it is further stated on vei y good authority that the mooting of the M.C.C. Committee to sanction this proposed alteration might be a fitting occasion to re-ai range the laws of eiickct, define byes and leg l^es, and .supply several other omissions— all of which might be done ■without any altciation m the spirit of the law*. Anyone who reads carefully the laws of ciickut as they now stand, can hardly fail to be struck by the vagueness and obscurity of a great deal of the language used, and it -will be a matter for congratulation if the Marylobone ■mttce deckle upon the suggested On the question of unfair PJf, a gentleman of guwt e\peiienee, ng a prominent position in the cricket world, writes as follow^ :—": — " The question is a most difficult one. The law as it stands (Law 10) is as .stiong as language can make it, if only umpiics ■would carry it out." lie goes on to say, "Iha\e my own doubts w hethci the fast bowluis thiow. JC\ans I always thought fair, and I ha\e never i>een Grassland thiow ; but seveial of the slow bow lei s have been dehbeiatc throwcis. They are allowed because they hint no one. This new anangcnient of umpires will show whether throwing has obtained to any gieat extent or not." We heartily join in the hope hcie expressed that umpires will act up to their opinions in this matter, and stop a clats of bowling that is notoiiously unfair. Umpires will now bo independent, and they should use their independence to abolish a piactice w Inch is doing a real injuiy to the game.

WiTvMAM Wordsw okth. of the Stepping Stones, "Rj'd.il, Westmorland and Willow Brook, Eton, Windsor, the youngest and last suiviving son of the poet Woid&woith, died lecentlyat the age of 72. Fridl. — Crossing Sweeper (to Telegiaph 13oy, with contempt) :— " I ain't clothed by Govingnicnt I ain't. I pays foi n iy own duds, 1 does Yah !" Telegiaph Boy :— "Oil, do ye ? D'ye get em' all oi a lump, 01 a bit at a tune ?"' A ctrtain little Pliaiibcc, who was praying for his big hi other, had a good deal of human native m him, even if ho he was only six yuus old. He prayed, " 0 Lord, bless biothei Bill, and make him as good <i l>oy as I am." Tin: ilc.con's bou was telling the ministu' about the bees stinging his pa. Did they? Well, what did your pa Ray?" ".Step this way a moment," said the boy, "I lather whisper it to you." A oknti/cm \x basing occasion to call on Mr Joseph G , wnter, found him at home m his writing chamber. He lem.irked the great heat of the apaitment, and said— '• It was as hot as an oven." " >'o it ought to be," leplitd Mr G , •' for 'tis here I make my bicad." Fkcitkul Sw j\i". — A coiic-pondeiit of tho Lu'( iS/nr/t Jam mil states that a sow of the large white bleed, the piopeity of Mr S. Di\on, a (.'uinbeikind fanner, has just piodueed 23 pigs of which 1 1 sunn c. This sow has had, in fi\e litters, the enormous number of 93 pigs. At Chii-itinas about thitty swan« fiom the Thames wcic killed, of which the Queen had four, the Pi nice of Wales two, and the other members of the loyal family one each. There is little difuiencc between the fl.uour of swans and geese. I\ a single block in Philadelphia, cm)>idoing fi\e aeics, then die 1 .10 buildings with an aggiegate \alue of 0,000,000d015, wlkimj contents h.we .1 \i\luo of fiom 2."),000,0G0dols to 30,000.000d01s making the total v.ilue fiom % 25,000,000d01s to 33,000,000dols— insured piobably for about tin cc fourths of this amount, saj' 2."),000,000dols. Five millions, of insurable propel ty to the aci c. A Vi'LTi'Ri: has recently been "eon hovering over the city of London, occasionally pci ehing upon some of tiie tallest buildings. A member of the same tiibe was caught foity yeais ago near Coik Haibour, and in 152.1 one was shot on the shoies of the Biitish Channel. Tliese thiee vultuies aie, it is said, the only specimens known to ha\e \i«ited the British Isles for sevci.il cuntuiies. Tiik widow of Joseph Smith, the Moimon martyr, who was after his death ''scaled" to Biigham Tonne, is still living in fialt Lake City, vigoious and healthy at M3\enty-nine, and an ardent advocate of tho plurality of wises system. By the way, it is noted as a lcmarkable fact that all of Brigham Young's wives remain widows, and arc constant to his memory. Immigration to the United .States for the month of February aggregated 17,065, against 28,247 in the month of February. ISB2. The total for eight months ending Feb. 28, was 300,484, against 370,093 in the corresponding f" i a year ago. Of the immigrants ; there in February fiO44 came ermany, 2502 from England and 2564 fiom Canada. 1592 from md 1542 from Ireland. at oandrincham the Princess of Wales herself has taken up amusements with the impetuosity and ardour with -which she is constantly adopting new pursuits, or bringing back into favour and fashion obsolete games. She has had a bowling alley built out of her dining room, spend" ing most of her spare time in it, and playing after dinner with whoever has the honour of being the guest of the evening. A corporal of the Lifeguards of Frederick the Great, who had a great deal of \ jvnity. but at the same time was a brave fellow, wore a watoh chain, to which he affixed a musket bullet, instead of a watch, which he was unable to buy. The king being inclined one day to rally him, said, " A propox, corporal, you must have been very frugal to buy a watch ; it is six o'clock by mine : tell me what it is by yours ?" The soldier, who guessed the king's iutention, instantly drew the bullet from his fob, and said' " Sire, my watch neither neither marks five nor six o'clock : but jt $p}ls m,e every moment that it is my duty to die for your majesty." "Here, my friend," said the king, quite affected, " take this watch, that you may be able to tell the hour also," and gave him his watoh, which was adorned with brilliants,