Rule 17.-The popping-crease itself, it must be remembered, does not form part of the ground; the bat or part of the body must, therefore, be inside it; on it is not sufficient to meet the requirements of the rule: if the bat or some portion of the body be not on the ground inside the crease when the wickets are put down, the player is out.

Rule 20.-The striker may block or knock the ball away from his wicket after he has played it, if that be necessary to keep it from the stumps. The rule only forbids striking it a second time with intent to make runs.

Rule 2.- -"Hit before the bounds "means that the ball, after leaving the bat, must first touch the ground in front of the line marked by the two bounds, which line, by the way, is, like the popping-crease, supposed to extend illimitably either way. Single wicket is chiefly valuable in dearth of sufficient play. ers to form an adequate field at double wicket. It is so infe. rior in interest to double wicket, that it is hardly ever played unless when the latter is impracticable.

A good game at single wicket, though, where only a few players have met for practice, is far better, and infinitely more improving, than any amount of the desultory knocking about which is usual on such occasions For a player deficient in driv ing and forward hitting of all kinds the practice it affords is invaluable, and to such a good course of single wicket is strongly recommended

IMPLEMENTS. —A few words upon the choice of bats, balls gloves, etc. Too much pains cannot be taken by a cricketer in thus providing his outfit. None but experienced hands can estimate the vital importance of attention to all such details. that the bat is the right weight and size, and properly balanced; that the gloves, shoes, pads, etc., are perfect in their fit and appointments; in fine, that the player stands at the wicket or in the field fully equipped for the fray, yet in nowise impeded or hindered by ill-fitting garments, clumsy shoes, or cumbersome pads.

First, then, for the bat. This is limited in Rule 2 both no to length and width; but the thickness and weight are left to the fancy and capacity of the player. In a general way a tall man can use a heavier bat than a short one. About 2 pounds is a fair weight for a player of middle height and ordu « muscular development.

at

37 od

Although it is a great mistake to play with too hear -for nothing so cramps the style, and so entirely due with that beautiful wrist-play which is the ne plus untra oi batting, as attempting to play with a bat of a weight a. ve one's powers--yet extreme lightness is still more to be drềm cated: it is useless for hard hitting, and can therefore dead da in the way of run-getting against a good field, "shooters, too, will be apt to force their way past its impotent defense. The points most to be looked for in a bat are these. First, weight suited to the player. The young player should play with a heavier bat every year, until he attains to his full stat Don't let him think it "manly" to play with a full-sized bat before he is thoroughly up to the weight and size; it is much more manly to make a good score.

ure.

Secondly, good thickness of wood at the drive and lower end of the bat, ie., at the last six inches or so.

Thirdly, balance. Badly balanced bats give a sensation as of a weight attached to them when they are wielded, while a well-balanced one plays easily in the hand. Experience alone

can teach the right feel of a bat.

The outward appearance of a bat must not always be taken as a certain indication of its inherent merits. varnish and careful getting up may hide many a defect. There are many fancies, too, in favor of different grains: a good knot or two near the lower end is generally a good sign; but, after all, nothing but actual trial of each several "bit of willow" can decide its real merits or defects.

Last, but not least, the handle is a very important consider ation. Cane handles, pure and simple, or in composition with ash or other materials, are the best: some prefer oval handles, some round. The handle should, at least, be as thick as the player can well grasp : a thick handle greatly adds to the driving power of the bat; it is also naturally stronger, and therefore more lasting. A good youth's bat costs about eight shillings

It should be remembered that a good bat, like good wine, improves with keeping.

In purchasing balls, wickets, and other needful “plant," & will be found better economy to pay a little more in the e ginning and thus get a good article. With reasonable care such first-class goods will last out whole generations of ha more cheaply got-up articles, and prove more satisfactory throughout into the bargain

In choosing wickets, attention must be paid to two pointst first, that each stump be perfectly straight; and, secon that it be free from flaws or knots. The least weakness sure to be found out sooner or later.

Great attention should be paid to the bails, that they are exactly of the right size, especially that they are not too long. The least projection beyond the groove in the stump may make all the difference between "out" and "not out"-be tween, perhaps, winning a match and losing it.

Stumps and bails, with ordinary care, ought to last a very long time. The chief thing to guard against is their lying about in the wet, or being put away damp: moisture is very apt to warp them.

So that the gloves and pads fit, the player may be left pretty much to his own discretion in selecting a pattern. Vulcanized India-rubber is the best for gloves.

Spiked or nailed shoes are a necessity. The player may please himself in the vexed question of spikes v. nails. Many players keep two pairs of shoes-with spikes for wet and slippery ground, with nails for dry ground.

It is hardly worth while for a boy in the rapid-growing stage to set up a regularly built pair of cricketing-shoes. an admirable substitute may be found, though, in the ordinary canvas shoes, as used for rackets, etc., price half-a-crown; a few nails will make them answer all the purposes of the more legitimate article.

Parents and guardians may be informed that a proper costume of flannel and shoes is actually better economy than condemning a boy to play in his ordinary clothes, and for this reason-flannels are made to suit the exigencies of the game loose where they should be loose, and vice versa, without regard to the exigencies of fashion; they are cheaper and are nevertheless, more lasting, than ordinary cloth clothes; they never get shabby, will wash when dirty and will carry a darn or patch without detriment to their dignity, they are not injured by perspiration or wet, and above all, they are great preservatives against colds and other ailments

Shoes may put in much the same claim. Cricket is marvelously destructive to the ordinary walking-boot; is it not, then, better to substitute a cheaper and more durable article?

In choosing spikes, care should be taken to obtain good length and small diameter; a squat, clumsy spike is an awful nuisance. If nails be the choice, they should not be put much nearer than at intervals of an inch, otherwise they will be liable to clog.

If men play cricket, let that cricket be their very best; any little extra trouble at first will be more than repaid by the results. It is not given to every man to be a first-rate cricketer; but most men might play far better than they do, and many men, who now hardly deserve the name of players, might, with very little expenditure of trouble in their younger days have been now men of mark in the cricketing world.

Be it remembered, then, that there is a right way to perform each function of cricket, and a wrong way, or perhaps I should rather have said, innumerable wrong ways.

Now, this right way will hardly come of itself. cricket, by the light of nature only would be a prodigy indeed. The beginner must, therefore first ascertain what this right way is, and thenceforth strive continually to practice and perfect himself in it, whether it be in batting, bowling, or fielding, until habit has become a second nature.

And not only must the learner cultivate good habits, he must diligently eschew all bad ones, for bad habits are wonderfully easy of acquirement but once acquired, can hardly ever be completely shaken off.

It is all very well to say, "I know the right way, and that is enough," and then from sheer laziness or indifference, go

the wrong; but when it comes to the point of practical expe rience, it will be found that the bad habit will have an un comfortable knack of coming into play at critical moments, just when it is least desired.

For cricket, it should be remembered, is a series of surprises. Give a man time to think, and he can decide between the right way and the wrong; but time to think is just the very thing a man does not get at cricket: instant, unhesitat ing action is his only chance.

If he has habituated himself to one only method of action, he must, he can, only act in accordance with it, but if there be several conflicting habits, who shall say which shall be the one that comes first to hand in an emergency?

Let the young cricketer, then-and the old one, too, for the matter of that-make this his rule and study, to make every ball he bowls, he bats, or he fields, one link more in the chain of good habits, one step farther on the road to success.

W W., wickets; B., batsman; b., bowler; w.k., wicket-keeper; Zsf jong-stop; s.. slip; .s., long-slip; t... third man; . point, c cover-point, m.f., m.n., mid-wicket, off and on; 2., long-field or cover bowler; l.f. & l.n.. long-field, off and on; s./., square leg; s.s.i., shog square leg; 7.7., long leg ; d., draw or short leg

FOOTBALL.

JAVA VAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVAVA

HEORY OF THE GAME.-Football, like cricket, requires two opposing sides. It is played with a hollow ball, some eight or ten inches in diameter, of India-rubber (in former times a bladder) blown full of air, and protected by a leather

case.

The goals are placed at opposite ends of the field, each side defending its own, and trying to drive the ball through its opponents'.

It is a game only suitable for cold weather, as cricket is for

hot, for the exertion is not only very severe while it lasts, but

the intervals of rest in a well-contested game are few and far between.

RULES.

1. The length of the ground shall be not more than 150 yards. and the breadth 55 yards. The ground shall be marked out by posts two at each end. parallel with the goal-posts and 55 yards apart and by one at each side of the ground half-way between the side-posts.

2. The goal shall consist of two uprights 15 feet apart, with a cross-bar 8 feet from the ground

3. The choice of goal and kick-off shall be determined by tossing

4. In a match. when hal' the time agreed upon has elapsed the sides shall change goals the next time the ball is out of play In ordinary games the change shall be made after every goal.

5. The heads of sides shall have the sole management of the game

6. The ball shall be put in play as follows:

(a) At the commencement of the game, and after every goal. by a place-kick 25 yards in advance of the goal. by either side alternately, each party being arrayed on its own ground.

If the ball have been played behind the goal-line (1) by the opposite party, the side owning the goal shall have a place-kick from behind the goal-line at their discretion; (2) by the side owning the goal, whether

by kicking or guiding, the opposite party shall have a place-kick from a spot 25 yards in front of the goal, at their discretion.

c) If the ball have been played across the side-lines. the player first touching it with the hand shall have a place-kick from the point at which the ball crosssd the line.

7. In all the above cases the side starting the ball shall be out of play until one of the opposite side has played it. When a player has played the ball, any one of the same

DEFINITION OF
TERMS.

A place-kick is a kick at the ball while at rest on the

ground. The kicker may

claim a free space of 3 yards in front ot the ball. Ground. Each side claims as its own that portion of the ground which lies between its goal and the center,

Charging is bringing the body into collision with that of an opponent. The arms, and especially the elbows, must be kept well to the sides, not to violate Rule 10.

Hacking is kicking an adversary intentionally.

Tripping is throwing an adversary by placing the foot, leg, or any part of the body in the way of an adversary's legs, and thus causing aim to fall or stumble.

OWS are of two kinds. The self bow consists either of one piece of wood, or of two dovetailed together at the handle, in which latter case it is called a grafted bow; by far the best material for a self bow is yew, although a variety of other woods, such as lancewood, hickory, &c., are used. As it is but very rarely that we are able to obtain a piece of yew long enough for a bow of equal quality throughout, the grafted bow was invented, in order that the two limbs, being formed by splitting one piece of wood into two strips, may be of exactly the same

nature.

The backed bow consists of two or more strips of wood glued together longitudinally and compressed so as to insure perfect nion. The strips may be of the same or of different woods -for mstance, of yew backed with yew, yew with hickory, lancewood, &c.; but of all backed bows the yew-backed yew is far the best. It has been a great subject of controversy whether the self or the backed bow be the best for shooting purposes; we most unhesitatingly decide in favor of the self, although many good authorities prefer the backed.

HOW TO CHOOSE IT.

In purchasing a bow, it is always better to go to a good maker; the inferior makers, although they may sell their goods a trifle cheaper, are still not to be depended upon, and as a good deal concerning a bow has to be taken on truste. g.,whether the wood is properly seasoned, horns firmly fastened, &c.-a maker who has a reputation to loose always proves the cheapest in the end. Having selected a maker and determined on the price you are willing to give, you will proceed to see that the bow tapers gradually from the handle to the horns; that the wood is of straight, even grain, running Jongitudinally and free from knots and pins, or that, if there are any pins, they are rendered innocuous by having the wood left raised around them. The bow should be quite straight, O even follow the string (bend in the direction it will take when strung) a little. Beware of a bow which bends away from the string: it will jar your arms out of their sockets, and should the string break, there will be an end of it. See that both limbs are of equal strength, in which case they will describe equal curves. The handle should not be quite in the middle of the bow, but the upper edge of it should be about ar inch above the center, and above the handle a small piece of ivory or mother-of-pearl should be let in on the left side of the bow, in order to prevent the friction of the arrow wearing away the wood. See that there are no sharp edges to the

nocks on the horns of the bow, for if they are not properly rounded off they will be continually cutting your string. Lastly, make sure that your bow is not beyond your strengthin other words, that you are not overbowed. It is a very com mon thing for persons to choose very strong bows under the idea that it gives them the appearance of being perfect Sam sons; but their ungainly struggles to bend their weapon, and the utterly futile results of their endeavors, are, we think, anything but dignified. The weight of the bow should be such that it can be bent without straining, and held steadily during the time of taking aim. The strength of bows is calculated by their weight, which is stamped in pounds upon them, and which denotes the power which it takes to bend the bow until the center of the string is a certain distance (twenty-eight inches for a gentleman's, twenty-five inches for a lady's bow) from the handle. It is ascertained by suspending the bow by the handle from a steelyard whilst the string is drawn the required distance. Gentlemen's bows generally range from 48 lbs. to 56 lbs., and ladies' from 20 lbs. to 32 lbs.

HOW TO PRESERVE IT.

Many things will spoil a bow which a little care and atten tion would prevent. Amongst the most fatal enemies to the bow are chrysals, which, unless noticed in time, will surely end in a fracture. A chrysal should at once be tightly lapped with fine string saturated with glue; this, if neatly done and then varnished, will interfere but little with the appearance of the bow. Care should be taken not to scratch or bruise the bow. When shooting in damp weather, the bow, especially if a backed one, should be kept well wiped, and perfectly dried with a waxed cloth before putting away. A backed bow is always the better for a little lapping round each end just by the horn, which prevents the bow from breaking if by any chance the glue is softened by damp. A bow should always be kept as dry as possible; when going to shoot at a distance, a waterproof cover is advisable. Do not unstring the bow too often while shooting; once in every six double ends is quite enough, unless there are many shooters.

HOW TO CHOOSE IT.

The first thing to ascertain is whether it is quite straight, which is done by bringing the tips of the thumb and two first fingers of the left hand together and laying the arrow thereon, while it is turned round by the right hand. If it goes smoothly it is straight; but if it jerks at all it is crooked. Then make sure that it is stiff enough to stand the force of the bow without bending, as, if too weak, it will never fly straight. The pile or point should be what is called the square-shouldered pile; some prefer the sharp pile, but the other answers best

for all purposes.

The nock should be full and the notch

pretty deep; a piece of horn should be let in at the notch to prevent the string splitting the arrow. The feathers should be full sized, evenly and well cut, and inserted at equal distances from each other.

THE BOW-STRING.

The string should be not too thin, or it will not last long; in the selection of it, it is best to be guided by the size of the notch of your arrows. At one end of it a strong loop should be worked to go over the upper horn, the other end should be left free in order to be fixed on to the lower horn. When the lower end is fastened, the distance between it and the loop at the other end should be such, that when the loop is in its place (i.e., the bow strung) the string is, in a gentleman's bow, six inches, in a lady's five inches, from the center of the bow. The string should be lapped for an inch above the nocking point, and five inches below it, with waxed thread and this again with floss silk-to such a thickness that it completely fills the notch of the arrow, but without being too tight, or it may split it. Never trust a worn string; take it off and put on a new one-should it break, it will most probably snap your bow.

THE BRACER.

This is a guard for the left arm, to prevent its being abraded by the string when loosed; it also has another object, viz., to confine the sleeve and keep it out of the way. It consists of an oblong piece of smooth leather, and is fastened to the arm by straps,

The shooting-glove is used to protect the fingers of the right hand from abrasion by the string when loosing, and consists of three finger-guards, attached by strips of leather, passing down the back of the hand to a strap fastening round the wrist.

THE QUIVER.

The quiver is a tin case somewhat in the shape of the quiver usually represented as forming part of the equipment of Robin Hood and his band; it is not now, however, used as part of the personal equipment of the archer, but is employed simply for the purpose of protecting the spare arrows.

TARGETS.

A target is made of straw bound with string into an even rope, which is twisted upon itself until it forms a flat disc, and then covered on one side with canvas painted in five concentric rings, viz, gold or center, red, blue or inner white,

When an arrow strikes on the edge of two rings, the higher is counted, unless it is otherwise agreed upon. It is neces sary to have two targets, one at each extremity of the distance fixed upon-a -as it is not usual to shoot more than tres arrows at each "end," as it is called-walking over between each three to reclaim your arrows, and then shooting them back at the target you have just left. By this means a different set of muscles are called into play, those used in shooting are relaxed, and in addition, a great deal is added to the exercise which renders archery so healthy a pastime; for example, in shooting the national round the archer walks 3,920 yards, or nearly two miles and a quarter, between the ends. The stands for the targets are usually made of iron or wood, and somewhat resemble in shape an artist's easel. The legs should be padded or wrapped round with straw, otherwise arrows striking them will be apt to break.

STRINGING THE BOW.-In stringing the bow it is held by the handle in the right hand (flat part towards the body) with the lower horn resting on the ground against the hollow of the right foot. The left hand is then placed upon the upper part of the bow in such a manner that the base of the thumb rests upon the flat side of it, the thumb pointing upwards. The bow is then bent by the combined action of the two hands, the right pulling, the left pressing it; at the same time the loop of the string is slipped into its place by the left thumb and forefinger.

POSITION.-It is difficult to determine exactly what is the best position for the archer. Every one naturally subsides into that which is most easy to him; still there are certain funda mental rules, which are given in almost every book on archery, by attention to which in the first place the shooter ultimately falls into the best position for himself. The left foot should point rather to the right of the mark, the right foot being nearly at right angles to it, the heels six or eight inches apart, in a straight line from target to target, both feet flat on the ground, knees straight, body erect but not too stiff, face turned towards the mark. The body must be carried as easily as possible on the hips, not too stiffly upright nor yet bending forward. Nothing looks worse than a stiff, constrained at titude, except a loose, slouching one.

NOCKING. Having mastered the position, the next thing to be looked to is the nocking. The bow being held by the handle in the left hand, let the arrow be placed with the right (over the string, not under) on that part of the bow upon which it is to lie; the thumb of the left hand, being then gently placed over it, will serve to hold it perfectly under command, and the forefinger and thumb of the right hand can then take hold of the nock end of the arrow and manipulate it with the most perfect ease in any manner that may be required.