East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1859-11-24
Doesticks on a Cricket Match.

game requiring the greatest possible
quickness of eye, and activity of limb
and | have heretofore looked upon it as
glorious sport, full of intense though
inocuous excitement. In my lamb-likc
innocence / have always, until yesterday,
supposed "criclIet" to be diversion, an
amusement, pastime, holiday recrea-
ton, and nothing but ocular demonstra-
tion could ever have convinced me of my
great mistake. Two famous "Elevens
were to play match at Hoboken-cracb
men on both sides-heavy bets-sporting
world all prophesying great things--re-
solved to go-did go-am disappointed,
and / may say, disgusted. Cricket is
not game, it is popular fallacy to
suppose it is, but it is solemn ceremony
periodically performed with the greatest
seriousness by delu led Englishmcd who
think they're having fun. Fun A
cricketer has no more appreciation of
genuine fun than dead jackass has of
fancy hornpipe. Grim are the cricket
ers, and desponding smileless, detected,
forlorn and bilious. The Pilgrim Faith
crs holding an out door evening prayer
meeting on side hill in four feet of
snow, in the middle Of February, were a
CAV set of jolly dogs compared to these
rueful cricketing Englishmen out for a
days pleasure. A New York murder
trial or a Kentucky hanging match,
would be roaring farce by the sportive
tragedy of these two crack "Elevens. -
The Ghost of Hamlet's father, and the
spectre of the murdered Banquo talking
over their private affairs at midnight by
the light of blue fire, would be a gay and
festive scene when likened to the Hobo
ken cricket ground, with a match in pro-
gress. Cricket? we'll hereafter when |
want a synonym for all that is intolcrably
dull and stupid, | shall say, Cricket
When | want TO express a grand climax
of spiritless detection, l shall remark,
Cricket. When | desire to say of some
man against whom / have a mortal
grudge, that he is grim visaged, jaundiced
mcancholic, dismal and fiat, i shall sim
ply call him cricketer, and then shall
dodge. And if any man accuse me in
like manner, shall take out a warrant
for defamation of character, and sue him
for malciously damaging my reputation
to huge extent
| WON'T 80 uoboho With Danip'rJVl,
who although an Americans is criclleter
IL hope Damphool may be forgiven,
and indeed | think there is salvation in
store for him, provided he speedily re
pents Of Cricket and takes TO base ball.
Damphool told me | would see great
sport-got to the ground-bestowed my
self under tree while Damphool went
} to the Club House to attire himself
presently he appeared again, dressed III
white flannel from head to foot-he had
Jockey cap on his head and buckslin
|. slippers on his feet. Just before the
game commenced, he tied bedquilt on
each leg, and put on some leather gloves
then the people took their paces--thc
: men who were not bowling, all took the
same position, with their hands on their
, knees, and their chins elevated at al
! angle of 45 degrees-then the umpire
called out "play"-then the bowler, a dis
heartened looking man, took up the ball
which was as hard as brick and threw
it with all his might at a lugubrious in
dividual with a two handed pudding sticl
in his grasp, who stood in front of some
little sticks which were stuck in The
ground like an unfinished hen coop.
There were two melancholy bowlers
two dropping batsmor and two unfinished
hen coops - when the detected man saw
the ball coming, he made a poke at i
with his pudding stick, but didn't hit il
then he sadly rested from his labors
while number Of doleful men on tn
f other side wearily sought for the ball
IT then the other bowler with sad counte
}, }, nance threw the ball at the other gloom
ID batsman, who made another dispirite
poke at it with his pudding stick; thi
time he hit it--then he ran towards tn
other hen coop, while the man at tha
end ran to his hen coop then the maj
ker put down one mark for his side
D, then they all rested in Responding silenc
for five minutes, during which time every
body religiously kept mournfully still
/ expected to hear some one lead in pra,
er, or begin an exhortation, or commenC
r. reading the funeral service, or some il
spiriting thing of that kind, but no OF
volunteered any amusement, and prctt
soon the downcast players resumed Il
w. mysteries of cricket-thcre was mo-
throwing at the hencoops, and prett
soon one was knocked down-then Il
st, batsman who ought to have stood befo
III, rn it and stopped the ball with the bedquil
on his legs was declared to be "out"-
then he retired discounted vile the re
cir of his eleven set up dismal groan.
Then Damphool went in and took {
pudding-stick = then the grave m
. threw the ball at Damphool-Damphc
poked it manfully = then he run for t
other hencoop, and the man who pres
cen ed at the other pudding stick ran for
of hencoop-the bedquilts on Damphoc
lily legs intcrfered with his speed, and
ers' % didn't get along very fast : so the m
ap- pcnsively took the ball and knocked do
his Damphoops hencoop- then Damph
was ont. They persevered in this jo
larity until sunset, at which time
and funeral state of things came to an end
wer then the eleven whose pudding-stick N
uni. had made the most journeys between
rent hencoops was declared to be the winn
re- thon tho,, ,,nt;aI Tho boInu;1te from ~,