Football.

Wairarapa Standard, Volume XVIII, Issue 1694, 15 June 1885, Page 3

Football.

Jo Per v, <>j til,- Stn-iaai' I. S:r., —I ti.iUK I had beta reading a loiter ic your papar U; i tbEi iu (rreytown, an-1 pooq after Kurt 1 l" rest, and at Hint tiin-j of t;.u u;ciU v a ■;) i ben filMh upon nicß. I h,d v;-. 7%f^. ;. ; . . { Lid ]USt .Vnivt •. ■■■ .1 : „ :li i i 5 .,., v L!i ! CiimeLs. a,; . . I, wi.n.ixg then .vay t'juaav ud t , u -i< til,, .-atikiiii <.t the t-.-.vt:, u . u, ‘ i v,ul ’ : fc' ti.o 'hr,-uy. I soon found tn-.-re wisto bo a f,. p. match upon a K'l-oUUj ,>tlci ,n .V p, 1 be the citizumana a spiC-udt i .-loin. i it appeared to bo. liar Imm not much time to look aioliml mu as tilu _ lLl!u IlaO JU.-t t ■ UltlleUCed, blit 1 .--oil . "•* l aat um {•tingipa. interest wasceuteie.i iu n.tuui; y, iujy men v.hr, ?u uniform \va = iuj. nod i, a.-K. and well their townsmen iu at i.*w proud i i them, for every one was s>. o.aiE.f form, .-upple (,i the vtrv | ;i:t..rc of ticaltli an i strength, and I noted oith wniut itHeit-st to,- cl io-, o watched the f.me, ;md now tl.t-y swayed tot ward ami b.uk, as toe trie .-f friendly b »tile t bbc-d aud dywud, amt !■■/. at times, us witii one voice, timv.-ef me i to eno.it some magic word which seemed like <ir ytowu. and at this Word these fitteen young me;; would spuing fotward with i ecu Wei ip n, and bearing ail before them obtaiLi tne enctuiy. Lot heie a change came over my vision : nie-tiwoght I saw the samigronnd, but u..,v deserted save by a Email Im uriiful 11 >i l u.-si'.n, winch wended its wre to what appiaud to be an open grave. I saw that c«cu one <-urri«-1 u football suit. and the two foremost tw.- g ml poets, upon which veue two f m-tini-ii-, and upi-u arriving at the P'lu'e tiny puic.d the whole ilown at its ritupest putt : It;: I noticed they diii not till it up and looking around I saw another small me.urniiil pr.icusscm, approaching tire grave, each heating a white fbiniitl suit aud gay t'm.oed caps, In frx>iit trey In.re cricket I ats. ■.vb-kets, hulls, leg guards, and gloves - , the while they deposited in the giaye, and tided in tiie earth ; and 1 saw that one had planted awe epmg willow at tlio i,ca>i ol the grave, and drawing nr.a I enquired hove these 1 grand 1 id Liigush gair.es hud died, and lie toi i me the young men cf the town Lad It come so etxcminatc they were afraid to play football, and tiny woe too lazy to practise either that or cricket, so they had been beaten to death. Ac,on a change catce over my vision ; twuity vtars hud gone by. I seemed to see that giouiiii again, now very much smaller, houses a.l m. Lind it and in the middle a large wi bay tiie in.d grown Two tine stalwart men were Lt Cu itn it. at, J I heard uno say. This is whore we bur-:J them, and I saw them look with Contempt up..;,n some spiiidit-shanLed, scraggy, y. -mg men wi... were i laving croquet, aud at ( ti.ri s playing iavrij tennis, and some I saw p,ay lug marbles iut Ihe.-e wore gloves ; they v i-r<- afraid to dirty their huger- ; and I heard i.y staiw.irt uiatiiv iookiug fiit-nds sav, N e waat imugs they hate come to through giving up out i id maniy games, aud they turned swav in disgust. There my vision ended, and I only ask can these things be true ? I am, Otc., Citizen - .