BOWLING.

Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 29, 4 February 1925, Page 9

BOWLING.

DUTIES OF AN UMPIRE. I EXPERIENCES AT WELLINGTON I (By TRUNDLL-R.) The incident that occurred in the recent Domini,,,, tournament in Wellington, in the final u f _,_.,__ , p __ irs e l larap } on . ship, when the umpire cautioned the singles champion of 1!)-J2 for standing in front- of the jack, in order to indicate to his skip where a block xvas xvanted, again shows in xvhat an unsatisfactoryslate are the rules of bowling, while their administration is usually even worst. The Wellington committee made an honest attempt to get the rules observed, erring probably in the direction of leniency, rather than harshness, but apparently they found the same difficulty that is alxvays cropping up. In the first "place very few umpires .seem to knoxv the rules, while most, com-It-titors knoxv them still less, and this very human weakness will probably alxvays be a trouble. In the second place, nobody seems to have a copy of the rules, to which he can refer when a disputed question crops up. Fortunately this can noxv be remedied, for the xvriter has located a little bundle of rules, and anyone who cares to see. the exact text, instead of entering into an argument, may have i. copy on application. In the third place most of the rules are so delightfully vague that it is usually possible to drive through them with a coach and four, so that there is little wonder that each umpire puts his own interpretation on most of them. Hut it is rather surprising to find an umpire going to the other extreme, and invoking a rule which docs not exist. There is nothing in the authorised "Laxvs of the flame," to prevent a director from standing in front of the jack. Tie can stand where he likes, but he must not put bis hat or his rag on the ground, to indicate xvherc be xvanta a boxvl, although be can hold it over the place. The rule relating to where a director can stand is aimed at something far xvorse than standing in front of the jack, the exact words being: "As soon as a howl is greened, the director shall retire at least (! feet from the jack," and this is one of the few rules xvhere the reason is given, "i„ order that his opponents may witness the play." It is therefore quite clear that Rigby could stanl xvhere he liked, but it just shoxvs how little the rule is understood when it is mentioned that nobody seems to know whether he slaved then- or not. Probably there is no rule so frequently broken in Auckland as this one about hinging oxer the head xvhi'e a bowl i'"- coming up. This is a distinct breach. , Width incurs on every green, and ill cv-ry tournament, and yet never once has tin umpire bothered to stop it, provoking though it is to the opponents. .'•. 1; ir assumption is that the 'V-dling- : t"it umpire thoroughly understood the rule and that he did no' caution the famou.- North-Kast VnU-v champ'on lor Islanding in front of !\.. jack, whiih he is pcrt'.crty entitled t.i -I i. Lilt for staying there while the howl came up, which is a very different thing, and which the rule distinctly forbids. Umpiring in Singles. In spite of the cure that xx.is taken at tbe meeting of umpires in Wellington to secure uniformity in administering the roles, a certain amount of eoni fusion remained, and on one green thoy 1 had to ring up headquarters before it I was settled xvhat the markers had to | do. At Ibis meeting of umpires if, xvas decided that the markers should only I measure, and score on the board when j requested. This decision appears to he in strict accordance with the rule whir li provides that "the skips shall 'be the judges of all disputed points, but if unable to agree. Ihe dispute shall be settled by an umpire," but that role is consistently broken in every lournament in Aucklaml, where il is customary for the measurers to call in the umpire, anil not Ihe skips. Nobody seems to trouble about getting tbe rule altered. although I his xvould appear to be the correct procedure; it is simply broken, as if il did not exist. Hut the Wellington decision is not quite in accordance with Auckland ideas, for the custom here is for the murker always to say who is lying shot, even without being asked, while it is fairly generally accepted that the marker may ansxver any question whatever, except xvhat shot to play. The principle underlying the Auckland custom appears to have developed from the idea that although the marker may not give instructions he may give any information whatever, in order to save the delay that would otherwise 'be alxvays occurring through the competitors having to go up to have a look at the head. This has gradually become so general that it is quite usual to ask hoxv much a bowl is short or over, whether it is jack-high, xvhether two bowls are actually touching, xvhat a particular boxvl is '"worth," and all that kind of thing. Of course different clubs have different xvays of giving the chief item of information, who is lying [ the shot, but they had such an example lof the pandemonium that reigned dur-

ing the Dominion tournament in Auckland txvo years afro that they have all abandoned' t tic system of calling out "Jim shot." "Harry two down." and the general custom noxv is to hold (infers up or down, in the usual bowline; system. Even this causes confusion, as there is doubt as to xvhieli competitor the signal refers to. At the Auckland preen the custom is supposed to be fo give the signal as to tho man actually on the mat, and yet the other day one of their most, experienced members dropped into the older custom of indicating the position to the man xvho had just played, irre.spectix-e of xvho stood on the "mat. This is probably a lietter system, for the incongruity of the order ia seen when a man puts a toucher on the .jack, and the marker holds txvo fingers down, just because the player has already vacated the mat. Uniformity Very Desirable. But whatever is done there should lie absolute uniformity, for many v match has been lost, through mistaking the signal and playing quite a different shot to the one that would have been played if the position xvere known. j in the meantime, and until somebody ' can suggest a better basis from which ito start, it xvould probably ansxver the j purpose to frame a rule requiring the | marker to alxvays indicate xvho xvas I slu.t. when asked, xvhieli in actual prflCi Lice xvill mean every time the position jis changed, and. further, to answer [ every question except which shot to j play. Most clubs are now interested in j the" remaining rounds of their singles championships, so that they have a good opportunity to try out this suggestion. Willi the experience gained the way would be clear to carry out a definite experiment at the champion of champions tournament next month, and then Auckland could put in a remit to the next meeting of the P.8.A., and get a proper rule incorporated.