The Story of the Britannia""

-A Decisive Victory-A Demon Bowler-Two Curious Innings-Sports and Regatta-The Rushworth Seal-The Editor is Sarcastic-His F

ird Eleven Scores-Seventeen Years' Athletics-Huddart Shows the Way-The Editor on "Stodge"-A Hot Run for the "Footmen"-Youthful Boxers-Glasgow to the Rescue-An Afternoon's Cricket-Splendid Playing Fiel

nly cricket and football, but some acc

itannia Magazine, which was started in 1884. There were cricket matches inserted in the local papers, as referr

e playing fields at Dartmouth has afforded them every opportunity for indulging their taste in this respect. Portland was, of course, a wretched place all round, for games

paid to these matters in all schools, except perhaps in the chief p

is views as to the physique and capabilities of the cadets at cricket, and it was there stated that the

tainly worth considering, and should turn the scale between two officers, c?teris paribus. Boys are all subject to seasons of slackness, and do not moreover always realise the value of games in promoting the mens sana in corpore sano, and the importance of the advice and co-operation of their superiors in these matters can scarcely be overrated. A little practice is worth a ton of precept, and when the lads find th

cricketers in the Britannia, nor must the En

magazine is Officers v. Cadets, on May 10t

ice

homas, r

c Johnson,

wden-Smith

tokes, b

c Johnson,

e, b Co

bridge, n

hwaite, b

Meakin, b

on, b N

ad, c and

tr

al

de

, b Me

s, b M

Bainbridge

n, b M

, b M

Bainbridge

, b Brai

on, b T

, not

owden-Smith

, b Me

al

made 146 between them out of 165. Cadet Nugent appears to have been a deadly bowler, and had the assurance to bowl his captain for a "duck." This feat, however, fades into insignificance compared w

of the Britannia. The professional Underwood, whose name appears so many times in the scoring sheet, was there for a long time, and did excellen

e among the chief mat

gineer Students: Britan

annia v. New

nck on this occasion carried his bat through th

nia v. Mr. Den

; Britannia, 156 (Lieut.

re was a very close and exciting ma

Naval

tone, c Thom

Arbuthnot,

lyard, c Brock

Donner, b

dinge, c Colli

, c and b U

nhope, b U

e, c Bainbridge

de Crespign

. Booth,

. Wells,

tr

al

tann

tinck, b

ridge, c Bo

ugent,

c Johnstone

n, c Johnsto

akin, b A

llins, b

homas, b

rock, b

oring,

ivian,

ras

al

, the other great "stand by," was still to go in. When he was bowled for 13 there was consternation indeed. The College team were generous i

tannia v. Ply

Britannia, 257 for seven wickets

y, as a Garrison team i

ganising both cricket and football contests among the cadets: Port Watch v. Starboard; the Admirers of Cambridge v. Oxford; Over

he earlier numbers of the magazine, but a

for the Overs. These heroes, however, received a lesson as to the folly of holding a foe too cheaply; for the Unders won by 7 goa

heir seniors, the Fourth, by one "corner" only; wh

sion; remarking that though the odds were against the Evens, they played even better than the Odds; that it was odd that they had not got even with them before, and so on. There is no saying what intricacies he might not have got entangled

r, who has been there ever since, and is now chief. For many years he was a tower of strength to the eleven; b

CKET PA

M. Crocket

eating Plymouth Garrison on May 6th; while a week later t

ontributed 206 between them; moreover, there was quite a record in extras-no less than

Britannia

ued, for on June 14th Torquay made 167 against Britannia's 37; they brought on a deadly fast bowle

m together; however, Britannia's star was again in the ascendant, their side

; it was diverted by a fieldsman (who made a grab at it) and hit the opposite wicket; the "runner" was out of his ground, of course. It is an extraordinary thing that if you have a man to run for y

ed 80, of which the "pro" made just three-fourths, leaving an average of two runs apiece among the remainder of the eleven. The Enginee

ason of 1885 resu

Won 11, lost

by no means the only one of

eams for a little while, in order to notice some of the other competitions, w

r a long time past to ho

lace in the autumn on a Wed

ing cutters-third and fourth term cadets only-

cket field on a Wednesday or Saturday

ms is held in Ju

the autumn term, and a racque

n takes place at the

: one for the best batting a

ach receive a priz

keen interest is taken in all

n twelve-oared cutters, for a silver cup, which is placed, after the regatta, on the port or starboard side of the messroom, according to the

in the regatta

igs (a race

s, with

le s

sses, each crew being disting

idshipman, who lost his life in a gallant attempt to save that of a seaman who fell overboard from H.M.S. Agincourt, in the Levant, in 1877. It is kept in the messroom, in a glass case, with a

ith the oar, and also to enjoy a little harmless recreation in the shape of dancing. The editor of the Britannia Magazine evide

y, the rain coming down heavily towards the e

as they are naturally interested in the performances of the cadets. As at present arranged, we thin

ag

rom the poop to the middle deck, and were enjoy

ng rain without the satisfaction of having their officers and the visitors in the "galler

, "If Wednesday be wet, the regatta will be postponed until Saturda

s from the shore, hired for the occasion. The officers of the ship will entertain the fair ones from the neighbourhood under a blazing sky, and the only difficulty will arise at the end, when the finish of the races usually bri

AT THE G

le & Son,

sport for spectators who do not look on, has soured our feelings, and we

ance with sailors are not spared. The note of exclamation above is not the editor's

rts include the

han

handicap (

-mile h

rds ha

le r

k r

race (s

h j

g j

e j

the cri

of

d as "open," or "under five feet

Britannia Magazine says, however: "The 100 yards was won by Cadet Field, two others being almost neck and

or lads like these, who do not presuma

hes, which is not remarkable;

good; and the half-mile was won in 2 mins. 35 secs., Cadet Field, the

orial comment appears in r

ord was second, a foot behind him. Willia

ringly obvious statement; on the other hand, the editor, who found it n

1886 nineteen matches w

lost, 6;

professional: 100·9 for 18 innings; the next to him was 15·8! He made 174 not out against the

ummer, nearly every match came off, re

53. These are small scores for such redoubtable teams, and the Marines determined that theirs, at least, should be larger in the return match, in which they

g was played

tann

, c Carr,

s, c Gervi

mbe, st Arun

land, c Deni

owe, hit wk

ms, b

illett,

, c Arunde

on, c Shru

alter,

r, c Sim,

tr

ta

nbri

w, b Un

, b T

elacombe, b

n, run

, not

derwood, b

b Unde

b Sho

ll, ab

n, b Und

b Unde

tr

al

LVE-OARED CUTTER

le & Son,

was decidedly of a processional character, Sim won easily off his own bat. It wi

m; perhaps they discounted their adversaries too freely, but it may have been a

tann

d, b Rob

acombe, b

tson, b

, c Ellis,

c Bearne,

and, c Deniso

nslowe,

c Rendell,

llett, n

c Robinson

lter, b

tr

al

nbri

e, c and b

l b w, b

n, c Underwo

r, c Tims,

son, b T

n, c Gillett,

er, c Evans,

ll, st, b U

b, b Und

enison,

, not

tr

al

yed some matches, and

the season

on, 10; lost,

888 was remarka

on, 12; lost,

e reason, there are no scores inserted in the Britannia Magazine for this season; it is m

al for comment, the cricket number for

event, however, h

the team was captained by no less a person than "W. G." himself. Unfortunately, he

ptember

not go for the first. As the match at Bristol was not over, I did not get to Dartmouth until late in the evening of the first day's play. My friend Abdy was just leaving the Britannia, as he had been ordered off to the man?uvres, so took no part in the second day's cricket. Lieutenant de Robeck was deputed to look after me, which I need not say he did right well. You will see by the enclosed score that I was absent the first inn

me, your

. Gr

61 against 156. They did better in their "second venture" (as the "da

D ROWING TROPHIES, AN

assell &

. v. H.M.S.

outh, July 17th

C.

ngs. Secon

es, c and b

, b Taylor 47 c De

b Taylor 0

leston, b U

. E., n

Warner, b

, W., b

ner, b Un

e, absent

, absent

ent 0 c Underw

, 3 11 l b, 1;

156 To

"Brit

ngs. Secon

b Mycroft 7

ycroft 0 b

, c and b Chatte

n out 6 c Grace

es, b Chatterton 3

aylor, b Mycroft 12

n, b Mycroft 2

G. Warner, b Chatt

t out 12 st We

b w, b Mycroft

c Dykes, b Chatt

b, 1; l

61 Tot

n by seve

two wickets. "W. G." made 48 before he was bowled by Mr. Taylor

ckets before time was called;

ely does the Britannia justice. Their second innings was not at all a bad performance against the bowling of Myc

ne against Torquay, in which Britannia made over 200, and got Torquay

me fatherly advice

the wicket, by far the greater number of cadets seem to think it is a good opportunity for a slog. By all means p

with faint praise," and finally certain cadets "who take a delight in playing the fool" at the nets are recomm

sions have produced the desired effect. There was a very close race for the Rushworth Seal in the single sculls, Cadet Prentis just pulling it off, probably because he was a trifle fre

l matches are on recor

gb

Tiverton, Britann

neers' College,

ool, Britannia los

was more s

School, Britannia

Britannia wo

hool won by

ith Plymout

School won by

ier team than schoolboys, Lieutenant de Robeck and Dr. South p

89: OPPONENTS OF

le & Son,

the professional. He says-"The form and confidence displayed now is quite different from that of twelve years ago. The bowling is much improved, but it is a bit wild at times, from the very mistaken idea of trying

the summer appeared to commence in April, and went right through to September, so th

for batsmen, and Britann

l themselves of run-getting weather, being all out for 49. Mannamead School and Plymouth Cricket Club were also handsomely beaten, while South Devon

Paignton School were beaten by 203 to 74, and

ling analysis, the former getting 26, and the latte

hing to say about fo

s this? We have heard that beagling is considered by some of the senior boys to be 'bad form.' Now, we ask you cadets who are sportsmen, are you to be choked off your sport because so

st in regard to the winter games; but some brilliant work was done at cricket when the summer came roun

ignton, and got them out for 120. Against the Royal Marines-also without the p

NNIA" RU

le & Son,

4 against the Royal Marines, and 109, not ou

: Won, 6; los

re inserted in the magazine, for

udes to show how you could play an imaginary pitched up or short

, say it was the worst ball ever bowl

ur hair or grovelling in the dust; save another run by throwing the ball in as quickly

you give a chance off your glove, rub your elbow: it is

son for getting out, varied it on one occasion, when a "bailer" had him first ball. He put on a judicially satisfied air, and rem

st eleven matches were playe

drawn, 2 (both in

the third eleven, playing "foreign" mat

hope to display greater keenness about cricket,

t Mannamead School, in which o

tann

atorex, b

mbert, b

ter, b Wi

well, b W

nson, b W

son, b Wi

gne, c Knowl

n, c Tothill

holson, n

hant, b Wi

, c Ching, b

tr

al

nam

Master, b

b Grea

s, b A

, b A

, b Fi

on, b F

ill, b

s, b A

run

not

, b A

ras

al

oring-three in the fortie

owl, or, at any rate, he achieved no success; but in the following effusion he seem

he style of a well-known poet; they are very clever imitations, and probably the author is not a cadet, t

g the cricket

ded heights b

nia's champi

peful, though

Then, because the

put on Bed

thus: "Take this

traight into t

orer watch wit

oest, and deftl

fared, the b

Bedivel his c

dubbed him Bedi

te flannel, so

eful aim, he h

yes were dazzle

ng, dividing

ipe. But at

k it and to sa

te: the yorker

he captain t

formed the ord

hast seen? What

made the bo

ll forth, aiming

tump prostrate

but Sir Bedivel also. There is a footnote appended in the original: "Probably the same who was afte

by two remarkable performances of th

termed "making a holy show" of Totnes; and it argues also a very widely spread proficiency among the cadets, for, even paying both sides the poor complimen

chool-amalgamated into one establishment; only cadets took part in the match,

record is an

-Won, 11; los

ven.-Won,

mitted to stand still-there is no

ll matches was in full swing, both

am won four out

School won,

School won,

llege won,

chool lost,

chool won,

nia, and only nine against, which is an instr

IA" ASSOCI

le & Son,

a regular piece of marine buffoonery; of course, the oars are very much handicapped by the crowd, but, nevertheless, two or three

en wrongly deprived of his place. It is certainly astonishingly good time for a boy, if correct, the pace being nearly 11? miles an hour. In view of the doubt-possibly attributable, as on a former occasion, to the unduly excited condition of the timekeeper-the alternative record is held by Cadet Huddart, who s

YEARS' A

g j

8 1

9 1

0 1

1 1

3 1

4 1

6 1

8 1

9 1

0 1

1 1

2 1

3 1

4 1

5 1

6 1

7 1

rd Ballantyne,

n) ? mile (

8 6

9 6

0 6

1 7

3 6

65?

6 6

8 6

9 6

0 6

1 6

2 5

603

...

692/5

613/5

621/5

hichester, 58? sec

en) High jump

4·3

4·4

4·2

4·5

4·5

4·8

4·3

4·8

4·5

4·1

4·8

4·8

4·6

4·8

4·9

4·11?

4·6

le, 4 ft. 11? in. D

g crick

78

79

80

81

83

84

86

88

89

90

91

92

93

94

95

96

97

ulet, 89? yds., wit

i

78

9 5

80

81

83

84

86

88

9 5

0 5

91

2 5

93

4 5

5 5

6 5

5·3

te, 5 min. 8 sec. (i

5 min.

en) 100 yards

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

121/5

3 1

121/5

124/5

112/5

12?

Collard, 11 sec.

n) Hurdles (

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

202/5

164/5

183/5

ibbs, 164/5 sec. B

of

78

79

80

81

83

84

86

88

89

90

91

92

3 P

4 S

5 P

6 P

7 P

of Re

NG C

le & Son,

Rugby; the following remarks of the editor on the subject o

lay a match-a match, mind you-with his mouth full of jam, or some mess or other. He wonders, after a time,

f the sinister Custom House of

ain, though they'r

ng score at cricket, in spite of "stodge," and that of the most wind-destroying c

unted to 17? couples, with some puppies coming on. The beagles started a fox on one occasion, and ran it for nearly two hours. The distance is sta

of hockey matches: Cadet Captains v. Ship

in July and December; the summer meeting is he

led, including the "human pyramid"; a display with dumb bells; poles, etc.; and contests with glove

tly be devoted to it, and the boxing frequently has a strong spice of the "hammer and tongs" business about it. Still, there are some who shape very well; and, at any rate, a few system

dream. The editor of the Britannia Magazine would either pass it over in silence or dip his pen in gall and administer such a rating as would,

EAGLE

M. Crocket

, however, as the followin

8

-Won, 10; los

-Won, 13; lost

en.-Won, 1

8

-Won, 10; los

-Won, 10; lost

9

-Won, 7; lost

von Wanderers; Lord is the Britannia professional, a left-hander,

der

ton, b

Smith,

y, b Gl

, b Gla

Whetham, b

s, b Gl

b Gl

on, b

l b w, b

ead, b

way, n

tr

al

tann

rdt, b A

bie, c Hasting

l b w, b

od, b Arl

c Deer, b

s, l b w, b

Hastings,

ish, b Ar

Royse, n

tham, b H

sgow, b A

tr

al

x runs still wanted when Glasgow came in. He had taken six wickets, and now he came to the rescue

iday. For the benefit of readers who have not enjoyed the privilege of being present on such an occasion, let us pay a visit in spirit to the Britannia on a

ICKET

le & Son,

overshadowed by trees, which lend a welcome shade, but do not prevent one getting pretty hot during the ascent. At length the last flight is surmounted, and a broad, well-kept path, still under trees, leads on past the beagle kennels, where a loud and inquisitive chorus greets a stranger, to the lower ground. Play is already in progress, so we dutifully keep to the right behind the white screen, and passing across the end of the cricket ground, mount to the upper ground, which is separated from the lower one by a steep grassy bank some 12 or 15 feet high, with several f

vens are playing matches on the lower, and the second eleven on the upper groun

such surroundings, we take up a commanding posi

and her eleven only contains two cadets, while the "pro" is included as a matter of course. The remaining eight comprises two lieutenants, two

several wickets are down, and the score is small. The deliveries of Lord, the professional, and Mr. Warner, the s

on the north and north-east; indeed,

xtremely good riddance, for he is a doughty bat; a left hander, with a s

, both to the science master; and th

advantage in the strong sunlight, comes along with a joyous

rse, strong partisans of Britannia, we rejoice with

the captain strolls up, with two or three children and a happy dog; officers' wives, and

ns neglected at the Engineers' Training College; and these two gentlemen, whose duty it is to look after the engines of the tenders attached

e on," one is able to see what a good length the left hander keeps: shoots unp

lves at first with a snick or two through the slips, or a "pull" of moderate dimensions. But the left hander is begi

a wild grab, but fails to reach it. Away it goes, the man behind the bowler tearing after it, without the remotest chance of catching it, until the little dark speck disappears from view over the gentle slope on

fierce a driver as his companion, but his wrist play t

is one at last. Lieutenant Benn is caught, for an innings of 69, thoroug

form with the bat, the latter scoring 17; then Dr. Bobardt and the "pro" get together and play out time. The doctor is a left hander, and smites very hard when he gets his opportunity; mid-on has oc

match, it was in reality a victory by ten wickets, Dr. Bobar

; Lieutenant Chetwode plays with them, as a set off against the mast

ally long score, 22; total, 221. Towards the end of the innings Montpelier's bowling was very slack, and Cadet Powell displayed good capa

him company very long, and it looked like a certain victory for Britannia when the ninth wicket fell with some time to spare. However,

" of the victory was much more pronounced, Britannia scoring 283 to their opponents' 60

markable scoring together, actually compiling 103 runs off the first nine ov

ral exodus from the fields, cadets and officers streaming off in groups down the steps, discussing the play

, and Britannia, going in first, scored freely, declaring at 244 for eight wickets. There was time to disp

s' umpire announced, as he came up to the wicket, "Last over." Everyone who had a watch on looked at it, and saw that it was only 6.20; the large clock fixed on the base of the flagstaff

orn, and time was fleeting. Luckily, however, the visitors' captain, who was changing in the pavilion, was a sportsman of different kidney; and he immediately decreed, upon being appealed to, that, time or no time, the innings should be played out. So the recalcitrant umpire, and the batsmen, who had taken off their pads, had to come back again, and one of

our ground cl

a most successful one, as th

9: won, 15; drawn, 3; l

yed, 22: won, 14;

yed, 12: won, 9;

two consecutive overs; that Lieutenant de Burgh made what is believed to be the record score for Britannia of 229 not out (he also scored on another occasion 177 not

ramme of the Britannia, and with what keenness and uniform success they are pursued. As the editor remarks, in the openi

een spared in the matter, the Admiralty possibly holding the view that if, as was said by a great soldier, British military victories are won on the playing fields at Eton, they are not going to give the Navy any excuse for not winning victories on the score of inefficient playing fields! Certainly, money so expended is money well spent. Since the early days of the Britannia a comple

M THE NE

le & Son,