LAND & WATER.

Otago Witness, Issue 1756, 18 July 1885, Page 20

LAND & WATER.

The football match played at Tirnaru on Wednesday between Christchurch and Timaru High School boys resulted in a victory for the visitors by seven points to four.

According to the Western Star, there is a very widespread desire to see Harrington again matched against Hearn in local waters, and it is to be hoped that negotiations now in progress will terminate in a second contest.

The Otago hounds, under the charge of Mr Taggarfc, visited Balclutha and Milton on Thursday. At Balclutha the drizzling rain somewhat marred the attendance, and prevented some ladies who intended following the hounds from .doing so, but notwithstanding this there was a good turn out. At Milton some 20 horsemen followed, and though there were a few spills none of them were serious, and those who, followed enjoyed themselves thoroughly. These visits of the hounds are now eagerly looked for by country lovers of sport.

The last shipment of salmon ova to Tasmania appears to have been very successful. There are said to be 40,000 real salmon now hatched out, all looking healthy, beside^ which there are some 1200 of a previous consignment nearly 2ft long. The Californian salmon ova are also doing well, and some trout ova deposited in the ponds show signs of soon producing fish. There is to be an attempt made to utilise the shoals of a small fish, pronounced to be anchovies, whjch frequent the rivers of Tasmania, and make them into a marketable commodity.

The fourth annual exhibition of the South Canterbury Poultry, Pigeon, Canary, and Cat Association opened on Friday, and proved a great success. The number of entries in all classes was larger than on any previous year. The bulk of the prizes in the poultry classes were taken by local exhibitors. In canary classes most of the prizes were taken by Christchurch exhibitors. The exhibition closed on Saturday.

Harrington's friends, who are here (writes our Riverton correspondent) of course numbered by the hundred. • are jubilant at his recent victories over New South Welshmen, aud hope to soon see him flying much higher with equal success. At the time of the Hearn-Harrington jiaxcb last New Year, several good judges gave as their opinion that if Harrington were properly trained, he would be a wonderful sculler. He is evidently now getting into form, and if he should return to New Zealand, Mr Hearn will have to take a back seat.

Unless a man -lives in London, or Brighton, or at one or other of the universities, he has little or no chance of acquiring the real tennis stroke, and mastering the intricacies of the most artificial game in the world. It is a game that must be played with regularity and persistence, if a man is either to acquire expertness at it or to face his antagonist without a distinct trial of the flesh. The uninitiated looker-on would not guess the enormous tax upon the muscles which tennis imposes ; though, in this, as in other things, skill very often makes up for some inferiority of muscular tissue. — Standard

The annual billiard handicap, which has been in progress at the Victorian Club during the last 10 days, was brought to a conclusion on June 26. There were 48 acceptances, and the last three men were Messrs J. Coleman (receiving 40 points), G. Alderson (65), and T. Gregory (130), the latter having the bye. The game was 250 up, spot stroke limited to three consecutive hazards. Mr Coleman having defeated Mr Alderson by 16 points, he and Mr Gregory came together for the final game, the betting being 4tol on the latter at the start. A great change, however, occurred within a-quarter of an hour after the game began, Mr Coleman scoring 101 to his opponent's 139, when 5 to 4 was the ''best offer on Gregory. Subsequently Gregory showed good play, and scored 200 to Coleman's 136 — odds of 6 to 1 finding no response till the latter ran up to 192 to Gregory's 208, when the price dropped to 6 to 4, followed by 6 to 4 on Coleman, as his score became 202, or 11 behind only. From this Gregory went ahead again, and eventually won by 251 to 212, amid great applause. The first prize is a massive silver cup, while the second and third prizes are a gold bracelet and locket, presented by the American Hop Bitters Company and Mr W. Webb. The peculiarity of the tournament, so fai) as the finale was concerned, is the fact that Mr Gregory, hitherto unknown in the metropolitan district, was unwittingly handicapped with ihe big allowance of 130 points, and was backed from the start to win a good stake at 20 to 1 and 25 to 1.

A billiard match, 500 up, for £100 a side, between Messrs Joe Thompson and J. Darby, took place at the Victorian Club-rooms last week, and resulted in an easy victory for the veteran, who ran out over a hundred ahead of his opponent.

There was a fair attendance at the fourhanded billiard match which began at the Globe Hotel, Adelaide, on June 23. H. Evans and H. A. Albers were partners, their opponents being H. Grey and F. Lindrum, the latter pair receiving 30Q start in a game of 3000. The match was arranged to last over three nights. Play began punctually at 8 o'clock, and the feature of the evening was a break of 315 by Lindrum, who pocketed the red ball 105 times. Lindrum's break was remarkablefrom the fact that nearly all his hazards were made in the one pocket. He got his own ball placed about two inches behind the red, and playing with marvellous precision kept pocketing the object hall and screwing back to his original position until a claim for a foul was allowed against him by the marker. At the end of the first evening Evans and Albers had scored 782 to the ".boys' " score of 1204. On the second Grey ran up a break of 494. This is the highest break ever made in the Colonies, the "record" having been previously held by_ John Roberts, juu., who totalled 452 in a single innings when playing Mr Buckingham in Melbourne. Grey made his score in the same way as Lindrum. After putting together about a dozen he got behind the red, and kept potting it and screwing back for another hazard. He seldom got more than two inches away from the object ball. Albers and Evans played up well, though they made no very big breaks, Evans' highest being 194. At the end of the play the veterans' score was 1623 to the youngsters' 2101. On the third night Evans was in fine form from the start, and thanks to his efforts the scratch men once got within 200 of their opponents, but Lindrum then got on the spot and made 325. The next time he took up his cue he added 246, and, though Evans played a good up-hill game, these heavy breaks settled the matter in favour of the boys, who won by 303 points, or three more than their handicap. Lindrum showed very good form in working into position for the spot, and once there, he kept his place most tenaciously. Evans made breaks of 179, 167, 185, and 97. The following aro the individual scores of the four players during the game -.—Evans, 1997 ; Lindrum, 1569 ; Grey, 1131 ; Albers, 676.