THE HUMORS OF CRICKET.

Press, Volume XLV, Issue 7194, 2 November 1888, Page 3

THE HUMORS OF CRICKET.

When the Prince of Walee first came to reside at Sandringham in the character of a country gentleman, cricket was a greac institution in the country of Norfolk, and the local magnates of the game conceived the idea that with a little management and humouring they might make a cricketer, or at least a cricket enthusiast, of the Prince, although, hitherto, he had shown no Inclination in that direction. The subject was therefore brought) forward on every available occasion, and the conspirators were so far successful that, after a little private tuition and practice, it was arranged that the Prince should make his dSbutln a match specially got up for his benefit at Sandringham. Mr Charles Wright, the captain of the opposing eleven, a man of the most imposing dignity and solemnity of manner, went ronna privately to all his men, ana put before each individual in the raps* impressive and serious fashion, the necessity for letting the Prince have a chance, and helping him to run up a nice little score, which might conduce to that self-satle-faction so essential to enthusiasm in any pursuit. All went well till the Prince came to take his innings, when Mr Wright, being the bowler, after all his elaborate cautions to others, either forgetting his rdle, os unable to resist the temptation to add to his fame, incontinently bowled him out the first ball, and so ended for ever the hopes of royal patronage for the cricketing: fraternity, for the Prince could never bo prevailed upon to play again. Mr Wright, when chaffed on the circumstance in after years, would shake his massive head in a melancholy and deprecatory manner, but never offer a word of explanation as to hie action in the matter. The report of the affair in the local paper was a masterpiece in its way : " The Prince took a position, at the wicket. Mr Wright delivered a ball. The Prince retired to the pavilion." It is related of Barlow, the Lancashire professional, that before he commencedhis career as a cricketer, he held a sltusation as porter at a small railway station in Lancashire, where only three or four trains stopped each day. Consequently Barlow had a good deal of spare tune, and this ho used to spend in playing cricket in a field., adjoining the station with the stationmaster, ticket-collector, and booking-clerk. It happened one day that a gentleman, who was waiting for a train, was chatting; with the station-master, and in the courso of his conversation chanced to ask him how he employed his spare time. " Well, sir," replied the station-master, " we go and play cricket in that field you see. down there, and generally we have very good games. But our porter, sir. , * he went on, " he's a very good player, and he's been batting now for the loot «i» weeks; and try as we will, we can't gefr him out." From this amusing fact the gentleman perceived that Barlow was something more than an ordinary cricketer, and so he used his influence with the result that Barlow was tried in a Colt's Match, and finally obtained a place in the County Eleven. A match was being played by two good local teams in the county of Northampton, when the ball rose and struck S. (a oats- ■ man) in the middle of the back, and the umpire gave him out lfcg-before-wicket» S. appealed, but the umpire was firm and would not yield, and S. returned to the tent in angry mood, and with a determination to be even with the umpire before> the game was finished. WhenS. proceeded to the wicket in the second innings he had a leg-guard fastened on his back, which caused such laughter at the expense of the umpire that he left the field in disgust. At a cricket match in the North of England, the fielding was remarkably bad, and several easy catches having been missed, one player remarked to another] " There's an epidemic about, but it iau't catching."