If our England XCis no better to-day than it was twenty years bick, we have now ten gond cricketers to one in the pst, or very nearly so; in the sume way there are more coaches at the zame, so much being taught now that each player had to find out for himself in days gone by; this I feel sure isa pity, and I should say that if there is one quality our players of to-day possess in-n loseer degree to men of the bast, it is hat of "headwork," which may perhaps be accounted for owing to the groat amount of eoxching, good. had of indifferent, that is to be had to-day. It is no exazgora tion ty say that there are boys at school in their first XI who don't. bother about half thinking out their cricket but are quite content to do exactly as they are told and often become most. mechanical players, They are ty be seen in almost every school XI to-day, and when their days of coaching are over they either have not the ability or won't be troubled to find out things for themselves. In the old days I should say mechanical batsman was seldom if ever seen; there were not the professionals there are now and consequently one had to do a bit of bowling at practice before one got sri innings; now all that is changed, for there are to-day an many as twenty professionals engaged on some county grounds and an am-atour is not often seen having a how!; consequently our amateur bowlers, at least the class ones, cxn be counted on one hand, In the cub matches that take ple in the north, the bowling is almost entirely professional, which seems a great pity. Nut so long ago batsmen had to have their eyes open for shooters, and although round arm bowling was once only allowed Texpect more balls flew over the batsmen's head then than now; thus it was a good mau who got a century in those times, nerve, quickness of eye and hand being essential to success; and the sleepy lackadaisical bat of to-day that one very ocean sionally sees batting on a billiard table wicket, would have been all abroad under the former conditions, since the wickets were not then nearly So good as those of to-day.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.