HALF-HOLIDAYS AND THE ATHLETIC REVIVAL.

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 9813, 24 August 1897, Page 6

HALF-HOLIDAYS AND THE ATHLETIC REVIVAL.

Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News.

In the interesting colletftkm of Mr Punch, from the pencil of John leech, is a representation of a volunteer regiment marching past a Frenchman and John Bull, the former remarking to his companion thai he always thought the Englishman was a great shopkeeper—the English have always been said to De a nation of shopkeepers. John Bull makes laconic reply, "So I am, Monsieur, and these are some of the young men who look after the Shop." One of the direct results of the half-holiday was to give «, great impetus to the volunteer movement, which, although it may be said to have begun in 1778, was fathered by Government io 1859.

The Imcrkask of Clubs.

It was not, of coarse, to be supposed that soldiering would satisfy all tastes, and in due course the athletic revival extended from schools, regiments, and universities, into our great commercial houses ; clubs were formed chiefly in the interests of shop assistants and in due course, as private undertakings, became increased in size, a single establishment was able to institute its own club or clubs. At the present time it is satisfactory to know that on every Saturday afternoon cricket, rowing, hockey, football, hare and hounds, and other amusements are indulged in far and wide; or if, for business reason, it is ound necessary for some - establishments to work long on Saturday, early closing takes plaoe on Thursday or, according to locality, on some other day of the week. One has only to take up certain newspapers to find a long list of challenges and vacant dates on behalf of cricket and football clubs (according to season) composed almost exclusively of shop-assist-ants. This, no one can help regarding as ft very healthy sign. It has long been said, and no doubt with truth, that our field sports have gone far to make Englishmen what they are ; but, alter all, the more expensive amusements are obviously confined to ihe fairly well-to-do classes. The hunting field* is necessarily an excellent school for many things, but it is closed to those of slender means, and to those who, living in towns, have leisure only in the afternoon. The Athletic Shop Assistant. The shop-assistant, therefore, has to fall baok on the various forms of athletics, with the result that the average shopman of today is not the coantar-skipper of forty years ago. He is frequently a competent cricketer, rows very well considering that he has not at hand coaches up to the University form, or can do a hundred yards or a mile in fair time. Not a few of the assistants are good musicians, amateur actors, conjurors, or artists; nor must it be left unsaid that in many of the great commercial establishments some of the employees are sufficiently skilful with the gloves to be able to undertake the datj of " chackei*-ouc," if the aid of such an official were required. In short, the physique of a class, members of which were once upon a time distinctly deficient in that respect, has greatly improved, and that may be set down to the joint effect of the athletic evival and the Saturday half-holiday; for ever since apprentices and others w.re not required to practice archery, it was too much the practice for young nun in the position of shop-assistants to resort too frequently to the billiard-room and public-house. Now, however, wbHt is virtually a club is provided in all the more important houses.

BOTB' GAMES DISAPPEARIKa.

One effect o£ tbe greater popu arity of athletics is that they have quite sent games out of fashion. Marbles, tops, and games, like prisoners' base, have long disappeared from all bnl the small schools, yet at the beginning of the Queen's reign they were common enough, except at plac-w like Eton, Harrow, and a few other schools. Indeed, the old-fashioned playground is now scarcely wanted at a high-class school, throwing a cricket ball about or kicking a football from one to another being good enough to fill up intervals not sufficiently long to admit of j cricket or football being played in formal fashion. Preparatory schools are now founded more and more on the lines of public schools, amusements and all, and so tradition is passed on. Under the newer regime boys are, except, perhaps, in the particulars with which the author of " Tom Brown's Schooldays " credited East—" grub and mischief " —less like boys than they were. According to some opinions, again, the publicity given to the accounts of school co„t*ptß has a bad effect on those tn statupupUUtri; but, if so, this is an evil which the rjohoolboY, sharein common with those of riper years, who are skilful enough to represent their university, county, regiment, or dab iv any CO-Ult. J.