New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1885-10-04
SPORTS IN THE OPEN AIR
LAWN TENNIS FOR THE YEAR.
PLAYERS THAT HAVE GONE UP AND down
RESULTS OF TIE SEASON.

-kESJL]N Of HE SEASDN
When about nine years ago some cntcrprlsing toy
dealers advertised widely the new game of lawn
tennis which Dr. James Dwight had recently i'm
ported from England. they thought it was a social
yaue for ladies' aud gentlemen and an amsuIng
substitute for cr0quct. Such under the Old rules
the game continued. There were several English
men then in the country who PLAYED well, srcL as
Rankin, Hemoutn and Woodhonse. Grey of
Boston PLAYED we'll for that day, but Dwight and
his pupl Sears showed from the first the superiority
that they retain to-day. The chIngc in the play of
the game began with the FIRST championship tourna-
ment ut Newport in 1851. which Sears won. The
evol itIon has continued. until to-day it IL thor
ouyhly hard sport for men only. and croquet is
regaining the place which it deserves as social
pa~tIme
The Newport Tournament in 1sst. occurring
shortly after the return of Sears and Dwight from
Europe showed the greatest Improvement over any
prev Gus year Sears, ever. was easily ~ the
top He had been playing for eight years, aud his
disposition well suited 10 the game had placed
him certainly ahead of Dir. Dwight. if there
was little difference in mere technical skill In
general Taylor the intercollegiate champion. who
won the All-Comes tournament that year. aud J. s.
Clark who won second Ilace. were considered
.upetIor 10 Dwight The latters skill WAS
acknowledged. but his physical and mental
Nervousness hndcrel him greatly IN hard match
such as he had with Taylor at Orange in the fall OF
1854 TAYLOR was little superior n j. $. Clark
The ranking of the PLAYERS at the close OF 1881 was
usually IN ale ~ follows: :. Sears; 2. Taylor; g.
Clark: I. Dwight; D and q, knapp and Thorn. tho
Yale champions; !. BrlncY. Of Trinity. and Co..
over Van Rensselaer, aud Becckman. all uncertain
PLAYERS would ill mp tue first ten. Tho year closed
with the intercollegiate tournament ia which
Sears WIS defeated Ivy Knapp in a way totally his
own fault and TAYLOR spraned his wrist when
playng Brinlcv. 1t was q complete disaster for
Harvard which hal held the intercocrate cham
pionship II that date. Yale then won. but it now
looks as If this fall Yale would yield 10 Brney, Of
TRINITY.
The season of 1855 opened with the st. George
tournament. Sears and Taylor came from Boston
aud j. 5 Clark from Philadelphia to meet Cairns
tho English crack" Cairns did not appear. much
to Sears, disgust. The latter wished 10 wipe out
his defeat of five years previous. and would no
doubt have done so. The players all said that they
w.ic PLAYING woi hut miserable tournament
ansued Sears wOu after not extremely brilliant
vlay and TAYLOR tOnk second place, because j. s.
Clark Bceckmln aud Glynn seemed 10 play worse
than he did. This, however. was Taylor's sole
achievement Tor the year On account of his wrist
or something else, he speedily became third-rato
playcr and the prophets of variou, sorts of year
preypns who had watched his rapid ght up we're
enabled To his no less rapid descent.
Soon after this X. l.. Beeckman won the Orange
and Far-an Near tournaments defeating some
excellent players. He had not played well for two
years but at last seemed to he reganng his old
game and the knowing ones pointed to him as the
winner of tho AI-COmers. HIS specially was, how
%, c, play or clay courts, aud by his endeavOrs TO
p"rfect his play on both grass and clay he did not
sustain his rise, lie should have done. Tonrna
men,s went ON through July, bnt a general meeting
of tho good players dId not again take place tiii
August 4. at Wright and Ditson's annual Went
worth tournament. THIS was u succession of
surprises. In the first ronLd Brnley wpel out his
defeat Mt last years intercollegiate match by beat
ing Knapp 60, 90. Mansfield ~ the same round
defeated Socum. Both these mcu were Old players,
bat showed claims for the first time to belong To the
top ranks. Slocnm had only lately recovered iron
water on the knee aud Mansfield be fore that could
| not be persuaded to play beforc large asscmblage
snch az assembled at the Went Brinlsy
followed up IN the next round by victory over
TAYLOR. while Beeckman proved himself slightly
superior tO Mansfield. Again Bruey proved the
victor. beating Beeckmam to the snrprIIse of the
spectators. Then people waggcd their heads and
thought that they knew the winner OF the Al,
Corners. so they did, but before Brinley reached
that place at Newport his stock went down so low
that 1t did not get la * TIL tie last stroke there
| AGAINST KNAPP, and even then people would not
| believe it All this was because the next day
Brinley snccumbed uneX pcctedly aud disastrousy
| TO Walter Berry, who proved himself then and
later the best player in tho country for 1885 after
! Sears and Dwight.
reach aud returns lobbsd" balls swiftly. There ~
only one way TO beat hiin. Place a ball low over
the net ana down size llne, ana no is pOWcTlchs
| All other play is fatal Berry, however. is not
| strong in health. Brinley beat him at Newport in
! the que tournament Of tho year which ho lost
simply account of the heat OF tho day, when ms
ength GA ont completely. Br nley has better
style aud 1t times plays far better than Berry, bat
on the other hand he is easily discouraged II his
opponent does something unexpected he has no
resources. His lobhing' IL remarkably good He
has a good reach and his drives from tho back of
the court arc good. but much force il wasted. He
should play slower ana more accurately. If
PLAYER feels that placing is useless and fnrce every
thing let him look at the standing of Post Patton
and Dc GarmendIa to-day. Brinley fell so far at
| the Wentworth that he allowed L. s. Sears. the
| Younger brother of the champion. to beat him.
Sears is fifteen behind Driuley at present. LhOngh
| he and his twin brother H. NJ. Sears will in two
years he well az the top.
Men now went ~ work for Newport with will
| BrinlcY Turnnatel sadly in the White Mountains
and Taylor, under Ton Pettits charge, tried to fix