Bowling Notes

Free Lance, Volume VI, Issue 290, 20 January 1906, Page 16

Bowling Notes

By "Wrong Bias.

THE glorious weather of last week with which the tournament opened persisted to the very end. Not ordy were the days surpassingly fine, but even the wind was on its best behaviour. Needless to say, the visitors were charmed, and l departed full of compliments for the tournament of 1906. • * * There was a goodl deal of in-anct-out play about the semi-finals on Friday, between th© winning clubs of the three sections: Southland, Newtown, Victoria, and Gisborne. Gisborne, being runner-up to Southland, could mot compete for the first prize, but, owing to Southland being an unaflUiated club, it took its place in the contest for the champion banner. In the first round, Gisborne beat NewtoiTO, after a close struggle, by the narrow margin of a pomt — 45 to 44. The match between Victoria and Southland was still more exciting, and certainly produced a greater surprise. On the last head Victoria wanted two to tie and three to win. Snaddomgot them. With bis first bowl hie knocked up one of his own, and! lay two shots, and with his second bowl he drew the required third shot. The result was received with cheers. Newtown then met Victoria, and won rather easily. Price put up 25 to Snaddon's 8, and Prince went down before Hueston — 20 to 28. The issue of these three matches left things pretty much as they were, and another round was entered! on. In this, Southland beat Newtown by 5 points. McLaren was 9 up against Prince, and Ham was 4 down againsb Price. For the champion banner and shield Gisborne, Newtown, and! Victoria were still left in. Victoria started well by Sitting Gisborne through by 46 to 35. ueston's rink was the principal factor in the win, scoring 27 to Gaudin's 18, while Snaddon got two ahead of Poni&ford—l9 to 17. The concluding games came off on thei Wellington green on Saturday, and drew a large crowd of spectators. Southland beat Victoria easily — 50 to 21 — and thus established its right to the first prize : sets of silver-mounted bowls or gold medals at the option of the winners themselves. * • ♦ For the champion banner and shield, Newtown, Victoria, and Gisborne continued' their triangular duel. Gisborne was the first to go down. It had lost to Victoria the previous day, and now Newtown inflicted a crushing defeat— s7 to 34. Pnnoe crumpled up Gaudin by 32 to 14, and Price notched 25 to Ponsford's 20. In the final go, between Newtown and Victoria, Newtown cam© out on top by 47 to 36, and thus takes over the champion banner and shield from the Wellington Club, and ranges next to Southland in securing the second prize bowls. Prince's team practically won the event by scoring 29 against Snaddon's 12. Price's rink was beaten by Hueston's 18 to 24. Vice-President Haybittle's special prize for the highest points scored outside the prize-winners went to the Hastings dub, which; had the honour of being the firet to down the crack Southlanders. "Southland" they caled themselves, but it was really a team, of schoolteachers from five different places. Two years ago they agreed to organise, but last year one of them was unable to travel. This year their little plan came off, and succeeded to perfection. Dunedin contributed three players, Invercargill two, and Waimate, Lawrence, and New Plymouth one each. • » ♦ The finals for pairs and singles were fought out on Thursday afternoon, on the Wellington green, and proved a great "draw." The Brackenridges, father and eon, of course, were hot favourites for the Pairs, but Wilding and Bennefield, of Wanganui, made tihe finish decidedly interesting. It looked like a very runaway event at first for the Brackenridges — 21 to 6 for 11 heads. After this the Wanganni pair began to come up hand-over-fist, and, with nineteen heads gone, were only a point behind. It was a tight go for tine last two heads, but they finished two points down.

Victoria also won the Singles, with Baiy, and only needed to get the banner and shield, for which it was run-nei-up, in order to sweep the board. Bravo, Victoria! Still, ot the Wellington Club played a leally fine game, and locked aM over a winner until the very last bowl went up. Bavy played with great heart, and it says much for his nerve and grit that, with three to. or e t on the' last head to win, he got them. * * * The scoiing dispute between, Still ■and the younger Braokenridge, in an earlier game, was unfortunate, but both players acted in a perfectly bona fide manner. On the nineteenth head it was found that the board gave Brackenridge 3 for the loth head, and the card (kept by Brunski'l up to that point) only 'two. Naturally, Still claimed, and was sustained 1 in the claim, the card as the authoritative record, and, on the strength of that, he tied, and won. in the play off. • * ■* Hill, Brunskill, H. Smith, and Bell (Wellington Club) pulled off the "Moonlight Sonata," with its £20 worth of trophies, in the final set-to with Brackenridige, jun., McFarlane (Wanganui), Bary, and Harry Price, who skipped on behalf of Braekenrddge, sen., as Jamie was leaving earfy for Dunedin. Harry Price had made a tie of it by drawing the shot with his last bowl, on the twentieth head, and to Brunsikill and Harry Smith belongi the honours of putting up the two draws that won the match. These, bowls lay undisturbed by either of the skips. • • • The meeting of bowlers in St. Peter's schoolroom last week made one thing quite obvious : the feeling in favour of popularising the programme by playing, tournament rinks and pairs on the Southern principle of "Let 'em all come" is rapidly on the increase. In a meeting full of the picked eights, the reform resolution was only lost by 42 to 38. Six months ago, when that absurdly vague circular was sent out to the clubs, seven to one were against the thing, because they didn't understand it. As before, Secretary Mentdplay was the leader of the opposition to any change. But if his argument® are the best that can, be used' to stave off a change, the conservative cause is siok indeed. Could anything be more puerile than to argue that if the banner were to go to the best rink, there would be more of the personal and less of the club element in the tournament? Yet, that was the main argument against a change. lam quite sure the bowlers to a man would indignantly repudiate the implied taunt. The single rink will play quite as ardently for the honour of its club as will the two-rink team. Human nature is just the same in either case. If each rink battles for its own hand, however, it will be a case of the survival of the fittest, whereas in the case of the tworink team the spectacle is frequently presented — especially with teams from country club» — of on!© utronig rink penalised out of the race by being coupled with a weak one. However, it is the old story : prejudice dies hard, and' persists in shouting ' Whatever is, is bjest." Meanwhile, the Northern bowlers continue to go South in increasing numbers to play in the popular tournaments of the Southern Association. It shows wlhich way the wind of popular favour blows. * * * At least six rinks are leaving this week for the Dunedin tournament. Three of them are from the Wellington Club, viz., Haybittle, Veitch, H. Smith, and Bell (skip); Geddis, Bush, Thompson, and Moult (skip) ; Scott, Remington, Webb, andl Hamilton (skip). Two from the Victoria Club Hemingway, Baiy, H. Price, and J. Brackenridge (skip); Geo. ,Godber, Mackay, Fred Townsend, and Snaddion (sbjp)- One from Newtown, to defend its championship Wylie, Underwood, J. J. Roberts, and Prince (skip). Here's luck to them. # * • The Southern bowlers entertained some of the local bowlers — as many as they could run in — at the Commercial Travellers' Club before leaving. Pre>sident Charlie Payne presided, the fizz flowed, the tongues wagged, and "Auld Lang Syne " with arms crossed, cemented the warm feeling that has grown up between our Southern brethren and ourselves. It was a very cordial meeting, you can tate it from me. • » * Says "The Ditcher," in the Auckland "Observer" : — "The two-team plan is a mistake. Why mot adopt the South Island idea? — let as many teams, from as many clubs as wish, take part each on its dead own, and pay 10s for the right? This provides for the financial difficulty, and there is no trouble as to money and men. The Northern Association should give the scheme a trial. I am sure they would be more than pleased with the result."

Here is a local hit from the same bowling scribe: — "The braw Scots from Victoria Club, who rejoice in the name of Brackenmdge, are scratched for the foui\> at the big tournament in Wellington. They will have to leg-rope 'Jimmy' to keep him on the bank during the oig week." * * * Mr, W. F. Shortt, the well-known auctioneer, is the pioneer of bowls at the charming seaside suburb of Muritai. He has had a fine four or fiverink green constructed) in the grounds of his residence, and during the recent holidays a good many games came offIn one of these events, Donald MoLean, of the. Wellington Club, and W. F. Shortt chalked up 19 against 7 compiled by Oapt. Dixon and H. W. Shortt. Bert, by the way, is coming on fast, and played a sound leading game for his sire m the Association Pairs at Petone. * * * I owe an apology to the Kelburne Bowling Club for turning their victory over Feilding, in the inter-club matches, into a defeat in my last week's notes. Instead of Feilding passing Kelburne through the mangle, 10 ahead, it was exactly the other way about. I hasten to make the amende honorable to the victors over Dunedin. * * » The Wellington Club's rink matches for President's and Vice-Pfesident's trophies terminated this week in favour of Stanley Brown, Osborne, Morris, and Ballinger, who, in the final go, beat Geo. Evans, Grundy, Remington, and H. Smith, by 22 to 10. Stanley Brown has started well by winning a trophy in his first season at bowls. Kia or a.

Mi-. Eddie Geach has lost his sister, Miss Edwma Geaeh, wlio died in Sydney. Everyone on this side will be sorry. Walter Fuller, in charge of the Ohristchurch end of the business-, cuts adrift temporarily, to holiday m Australia, and to boil down a bit. Gerald Branson, of Dunedin, went away to study music in Australia the other day. He is back with the Stephemson people. He's a quick learner. » • * Every year Harry Rickards gives a great free banquet to the destitute of Sydney, in the Town Hall. This year 950 of these poor souls partook of the genial Harry's hospitality. ♦ * "Professor Madame Janeen" sounds a good line. Anyhow, the lady with the splendid contralto voice is to be a professor of music at Melbourne University Conservatoire. Madame Janson, who has left <f or the colonies, gave a. farewell spree to colonials in London. ♦ • • The manager of the small theatre had just placed! a wreath on the distinguished actor's grave. There was a card attached, "From the Booimsdeay Theatre." He looked at it critically Then he drew a pencil, and, in large letters, added, "Every evening at 8." # Shareholders in the London Gaiety Theatre have been weeping becaiuse the past season has been the worst for years. The poor creatures only got al5 per cent, dividend. Mr. George Edwardes remarked that such a miserable return hadn't been known for years. The dividend 1 usually works out at 20 per oent. « • Nervousness is not the sort of thing that one usually associates with Mr. George Lauri, but, nevertheless, the first night of any new piece finds him invariably a prey to mixed emotions, in which apprehension that has part will not be successful has a large share. He is too good an artist to allow his inner feelings to be apparent from the front, and the thousands of playgoers who have laughed with him and at him never have the slightest suspicion that he is all the time undergoing a severe mental strain.

Wirths looper of the death trap, Cheialo, is a Chilian. It is natural, therefore, that his> act should make the b.ood run cold. • • A rather quaint criticism: "Mr. McNaughton's vocal style suggests the intoning of a curate .suddenly stracken with a sense of (humour." "The London public wants legs, not brains," is a dlamaging reflection on. the said public by a playwright, who, of course, has brains and nio legs. • » • Miss Mabel Morgan played underitudy for Miss May Beatty at Duinedun successfully. Everybody says she is a coming cLreumstance in comic opera. • • • West's Pictures are fading from view in New Zealand. Eddie Geaoh grasps them as soon as they touch Australia, and totes tnem through the great lone land. « • • I learn with interest that clever Rose Musgrove employs her spare time between "calls" in making frilly- tihdngs, and is most expert with the needle. She can even darn a sock, so an affecting writer says. A well-dollared oonoern in New York plans to build a great theatre in which only the purest English shall be spoken, and only ten plays produced a year. But why are they going to taboo Amurrikan actresses and actors? • • • The Chronophone, the ingenious combination- of phonograph and biograph, recently patented by a Parisian inventor, will be secured for Mr. B. G. Knowles entertainment, , 'Trifles that Trouble the Traveller," which will be presented to New Zealand audience® some time soon. • • • The Royal Comic Opera Company will remain at Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney, for nearly four months this time, "Veronique" and "The Spring Chicken" constituting the new attractions for the early part of the season. Later on it is probable that one or more of the latest pieces secured from 1 London,, by Mr. J. C. Williamson will be produced, so that Sydneysiders have an interesting period on the lyric stage to look forward to.

Mrs. Langtry reckons she is getting £50u a-week for a vaudeville "turn" in. America. This is the top-notch price ever earned! at the business. Many w ell-known actresses are superstitious. Miss Ellen, Terry does not care a jot for the so-called bad luck of '"thirteen" or Friday, but she stands in pea-feet awe of the number "three." She will not sit three at a table, nor enter the third stage door of a theatre. Mrs. Brown-Potter has only one superstition worth mentioning, and that is faith in the unconscious power of red-headed persons to bring good luck.