BOWLING NOTES THE PASTIME AND ITS PLAYERS

Gisborne Times, Volume LIII, Issue 5533, 15 July 1920, Page 3

BOWLING NOTES THE PASTIME AND ITS PLAYERS

Annual Meetings. The annual meetings of the local clubs are now on the tapis. Kahutia holds its annual meeting this week, while the Gisborne Club's annual meeting takes place on the 28th of the month. I understand the year of both clubs has been very successful, and interesting meetings may be looked forward to.

Winter Season. The committee of the Gisborne Club has decided to close its green for winter play ,on July 31. This was decided on in order to get. the green top-dressed so as to liave the rinks in the best of order for the Burton Cup tourney this coming season. The green, I understand, had not been top-dressed in the season for the past two years in order to permit of winter, play. Tlie committee has, therefore, decided to forego revenue from its winter green this year in order .to provide for the tourney, at which a large number of visitors are expected from Hawke’s Bay.

As Seen by the Secretary. The worthy editor of this journal has asked me, as a club secretary, to let him have an article on bowling and bowlers as it, and they, appear Hie “chief of staff.” Having undertaken this task of criticising the critics, I suppose I must “get into it.” As most club secretaries, however, become more or less popular (usually the latter), especially after a year or two of office, and as an article of this nature is calculated to land this one into more tribulation, you will please excuse him if lie does not put. the position as forcible as you would like it put. Well, to commence with the game itself. As a pastime of recreation, bowling is simply “just it,” You see, it. takes you on to a perfect playing- area, amidst perfect surroundings, and brings you into contact with a perfectly O.K. set of follows to take part in a perfect game. (Please note: All “perfects” are actually “more-or-less” ones.) Now, what more can a man. wishing to get away for a spell from the “firm draws.” the ‘‘'running shots” and “the drives” of his daily tasks, with all their accompanying “wicks” and “rubs.” what more, I say, can a man want then, titan to join a bowling club? “He” joins one, usually becoming initiated in the gentle art by being put to play No. 2 in a rink containing, if they can’t avoid it. his proposer and seconder.

“The Fellows are Simply Splendid.” 1 How well you old experienced hands know what happens then ! How you do enjoy such games! 'How pleased you are to make his acquaintance (seeing that his sub. helps the club along), and so on! How you, when lie says lie knows he made "an awful rotten mess of it.” “must have spo.led your afternoon’s pleasure,” etc., etc., deny the facts as lie has stated them, and say, “Oh, dear. no. uot at all!” “You get along tip-top,” etc., etc., and go away, you old experienced bowlers, without feeling a prick of your conscience. “Me” goes home to wifev and says. ‘‘By jove! Bowls is a great game, and the fellows uji at the c-lub are simply splendid.”

The Scene Changes. So' far, so good. Then the scene begins to change and the “perfectness” of the whole thing shows signs of becoming of the earth, earthly. After “He” has been playing bowls for two or three months, and has got past the stage of putting most of h s bowls either only half-way up the rink, into the ditch, or into the adjoining rink, thp club secretary notices that “He” is losing his “backward ness-in-eoming-for ward ness.” When “He” first joined be Usually was very diffident about ‘poking in,’ but now he may be seen to close up casually to where the best players of the club are making up a rink for the afternoon. "lie” is not, of course, hoping that ha will be invited to join in—oh. clear, no! —but having heard “that it is always advisable to ph® with better players than yourself” (if possible), he doesn’t object to “make one.”

Succumbs to tba Microbe. Let it. please he understood that the “He” I have so far dealt with is the typical new member. You see. even in beginners at bowls there are exceptions arid just here I want to refer to one of the exceptions. Let me instance Big Tommy Till of the Illington Club and little Cock Sparrow of Oldtown. ns fair samples of this variety. They know more about the game in all its aspects after the first week or two than our best bowlers are ever 1 likely to know. From what I’ve seen and heard you meet, specimens of their kind in all clubs. But to revert to the typical “He.” He gradually succumbs to that particular microbe that devotes its energies to disturbing the minds of men as bowlers. Having become well infected witn, shall f call it. the “bacillus advocates diaboli,” he becomes a good average specimen of the “genus bowleni” after the first or second season. ' Symptoms: He is usually quite satisfied that his merits as a player are not adequately appreciated in the club and least of all by that assi.ninc portion of it called the selection committee. He doesn’t: complain to' them or us directly, as does big Tommy Till or little Cock Sparrow, but you see or hear of him presiding at indignation meetings wherein the only item on the order paper is, “Why was Demuey . Flute chosen to play in those matches when 1 wasn’t?” “Why should Ihe out of this game and Yankee Doodle be in again when in the last game we played in I had a toucher nearly every head and he couldn’t hold a blessed shot —the other skip got all over him?” And so on. Bright Light in the Picture.

Some of the other varieties the club secretary lias to do with must now be mentioned. F’rstly. let me introduce as a bright light in tin’s generally drab picture, those members who settle down into a state of placidity. Thev come into the pavilion, say “good-dav” to everybody about, put on . their gear and are quite hanpy as long as they have a roll-up with somebody. They never worry the match committee, secretary. nr anybody, and it must: be mentioned also that they usually are amongst, the very first to pay thei*: subs. May this type increase and multiply in bowling clubs.

Bowlers Who Hava Kinks. Now for the members who have “kinks.” or as some say. “rats in their attic,” on some subject, or other. “The grass is never cut correctly.” or “The green surface is wearing badly for want of water” (on the day after if had been watered). “The green is as heavy as lead,” or, “The caretaker doesn’t know the first thing about preparing a green,” arc the chief topics of their complaint. (N.B.—This class of critic is usually engaged in office work.) Then the club secretary has to try and pacify those members whose speciality is finding fault with the way the pavilion is kept,.or the way the afternoon ten is prepared. Then, again, the club secretary comes regularly into contact with another curious section, i.e., those players who don’t believe in giving match games the best greens except when they happen themselves to be playing matches.

High Financiers. And then I come to the high financiers. They are authorities oil such important, questions as to how to increase the club’s already over-burdened expenditure without increasing • its all too small revenue. But, they can never be persuaded to run the risk of putting their excellent theories into practice by getting elected to the management committee. ’ ' , Another variety who add to the troubles of the secretary are those members who persistently advocate the holding of regular social evenings during the winter recess —“To keep the members

By Toucher 1

together, you know”—and then never attend them when they are held. 'J.’he only other class I propose to mention are those ever-present enthusiasts who declare that “The bally secretary d well runs the show,” yet. who raise the most noise if things do not go right when the secretary doesn’t happen to be there, and as loudly declare that “The B.S. doesn’t attend to his duties like he ought.”

Have You Lost the Ideal? Now. bowlers all, am J not right I 1 Haven’t you developed into one of other of the types I’ve mentioned ? Have you not allowed the blight of selfishness or of an exaggerated sense of your own ability as a bowler to cause you to lose sight of the ideal that caused you to join your first club? Have you not allowed yourself, by becoming a “growler,” or by encouraging others to be so by listening to them, to carry the Tinpleasantnesses and the petty jealousies of everyday existence into the association of your fellow men that you hacl hoped would be. should be, and ‘could be, a refuge therefrom. You were quite satisfied when you first became a member of the bowling fraternity that bowling was “just the thing.” So it is if you would be satisfied to bowl and grouse less. Remember that the officials of your club are of your own choosing.

Remember I Remember that bowling clubs are not banks. Remember that your club’s officers pay their subs, the same as you do (or should) and that, they devote a lot of their time to providing you with play and pleasure that they do not get themselves. Bear in mind always that they carry on the onerous duties of managing your club’s business free of cost to you. Remember that you are one of a large number of men who have to be considered, and do not kick if your chances to "shine” are fewer than you think they should be. even if you are the best player in the club. Do not encourage “cliquism.’’ and sit down bard on the Tmuhi Tills aiul the Cock Sparrows in your Club.

The Secretary. As for that usually much discussed individual, your secretary. Don’t forget that he has practically all the executive business of your club to do besides having the responsibility of being the connecting link between the Club’s executive and yourselves—and the bigger the club is the more the work. Dont try to treat him as if he were the paid servant of each and all of you—he also pays his sub., you know. Don’t worry him with trivialities if you can avoid it: don’t expect him to be quite infallible: and, above all. don’t dampen bis enthusiasm for his work by accusing him of "running ihe show’ when he is doing his best for the club whose interest, he surely has at heart. Were it. otherwise he would certainly not take on the duties. I’m sure.

The Japanese Match. On the green the other day a bowler was seen in an earnest endeavor to light his pipe and pay devotion to My Ladv Nicotine. But strike as he might, the match would not respond to his entreaties. One after another was tried and I watched until I heard an awful word come from the devotee’s lips and blessings on the forefathers of the “Japanese dagoes” were showered in curse words. He had a box of Japanese matches.

Blaze, blaze blaze. On thy Japanese stem. O match! And I would that, my tongue could utter The swears that will not hatch ! O well for the Profiteer That he lights up his Henry Clay! O well for the merchant wide Indenting from far away! And the luckless consumer strikes on With anathema all unchecked; But O for a solid Government. And a Tariff that will protect! Blaze, blaze, blaze, On thy Japanese stick. O match! But the tender grace of a. smoke that is lost Is one that I never will catch!

Some Austraiian Items. The going away from Sydney of the Victorians and Queenslanders has left a void in the New South Wales bowling world. Whether they had visited Sydney or not at this time of year (lie void would have been there, but not so noticeably.* Bowling in that Slate falls off a good deal after Easter. In other sections of the Commonwealth it closes down altogether. But in the present year of grace the New South Wales pennant competition has been prolonged beyond the usual period, consequently they have something still to interest them and there ai'e other important things to follow. In the closing stages of the Victorian Bowling Association’s ehamp bn rink competitions, the matches were played on St. Hilda green. In the chief event South Melbourne made a fine recovery and won from Armadale by seven points. The B competition went to North Fitzro’y. who beat Coburg rather easily, and the C competition was won by Ivanlioe. The rink championship of Queensland was decided the other day. when South Brisbane, skipped by Jeffrey, beat- Toowoomba by one point—2l to 23. Woonona Bowling Club (N.S.W.) has offered a trophy valued at £ls 15s to the team of three rinks defeating them by the greatest margin of points in a game of 21 ends. All matches to be played on Woonona green. The first match for this trophy took place on a recent Saturday. Three rinks fi’om Parramatta, defeated Woonona by 5 points. ' An incident, happened at Fairfield recently in a pennant match that goes .to illustrate how little supervision exists as far as the Victoria Bowling Association is concerned. Middle Park was being pushed, and W'lke drove hard at the “kitty,.’ and- to use a Middle Park player’s words: “We lay everything at the back.” It is said that the bank is only a few inches higher than the level of the green, and the “kitty” went, over the top. The end was dead, of course. 33ut Middle Park cluln i \van t. the end to he dead, they wanted the “kitty” in the ditch, and they assert that a strong dr ve would land it over tlie bank every time. If this lie the case, it is a very serious defect, and should be remedied without delay.

! Bowls at Home. | The bowls season in the Homeland | promises to be one of thq most successI ful in the history of the Nottingham j and District Association. In addition Ito the 34 clubs, which were affiliated ! last year, and have renewed their memi bership this season, ’ three new clubs I have been admitted, viz., Lenton I Unionists, J. B. Lcr.vis and Son and | Player and Sons. Bowlers who are j keen on competitions and the winning 1 of honors will have little cause to comI plain, in view of the fact that the ns- : sociation is to offer a new trophy, the Portland Vase, in addition to the four ! _Sir Jesse Boot Shield, the Coronation Cup, Captain Albert. Ball, V.C.. Memorial Bowl, and the Victory Shield—comi peted for last season. These tournaments. as well as those of the ordinary <£uto variety, should tend to keep the interest of players very much alive throughout the season. The Nottingham City Club is the largest in the district., having HO members, and as j they have reached their limit are rei fusing applications for membership.