226 
THE TROPICAL AGKlCUL'I'URlST 
[CcT. I, 1897. 
t'a/, (L)in" to llngliy, ilr. Marlin LeaEe had 
tiie advaniai'e in Ids later years there of the 
iiistructio?) of old William Jjillywhite and his son 
Jack. “Old Lilly,” as he was called, was the 
inventor of round-arm bowling, all bowlers before 
his time having delivered the hall underhand ; 
and for a time so destructive was the new style 
of bowling, that a rule was made that in 
delivering the hall the hand must not be raised 
above the sliouhler. Bowling under this limita- 
tion “ ( )ld Lilly ” succeeded by close and prolonged 
]iractice in aenuiring an accurticy of pitch 
f Continue'^.) 
In October, 1850, W. M. Leake went up to St. John's 
College, Cambiiclge, while his friends, Messrs. Beck 
and Gosclien, at the same date betook themselves to 
Oriel College, Oxford, where they both carried off 
high honours, their names appearing in 1854 in the 
First Class in Literis IJ umamoribus in the same 
list. Oriel men had not for some years previously 
shone in the schools, and so deliglited was the 
Collee at this unwonted double success, that a great 
feast gwas made to celebrate the event, whereat a 
silver punch-bowl that graced the board was pre- 
B nted to the two brilliant students. Both could not 
iiold this memento of their College days, so bv the 
tess of a coin it was decided that it should become the 
prope. t.’ of Mr. Beck. On his death, however, it was 
transferred to the hands of Mr. Goschen, to be lianded 
down doubtless as a treasured heirloom to his successors. 
The changes effected in Cambridge in the past 
halt century, though very striking both to the out- 
ward eye aud also iu the inner life, are probably 
hardlj' so great as those in the great Public Schools. 
In 1850 the studies of the University were almost 
confined to Mathematics and Classics, Mathematics 
still taking the precedence, as, for II nours a certain 
modicutn thereof was still indispensable. Cases still 
occurred of brilliant scholars being debarred, as was 
Lord Mmaulay, from their due place iu the Classical 
list owing to their failure in Mathematics. As with 
the studies, so with the athletics. These were con- 
fined to Cricket and Rowing. There was, it is true, 
one Tennis Court and one open Racket Court, but 
the plSy'ers at these games were perforce very few. 
Football, Lawn Tennis, the Rifle Corps, the Athletic 
Sports, all now so popular, were things as yet nn- 
kuown. The majority of reading men had to satisfy 
themselves with a constitutional of a couple of hours 
along the Trumpington road or elsewhere. 
In the interval there have sprung up on the one 
hand well-equipped Laboratories, Technical Schools 
and Workshops; on the other Football Grounds, 
Tennis and Racquet Courts, Running Tracks, Ac., 
Rifle R urges. Another case iu point is the Union : 
in 1850 the whole establishment was contained iu 
one small room in Green Street, formerly a chapel, 
with a gallery round, lined with shelves whereon 
the books were kept ; “ a very one-horse afiair ” 
so said James Pay u recently when writing on the 
subject in "Our Note Book” \n ihe Illustrated News. 
Now how changed is all this! The present noble 
range of buildings with its spacious hall for debate, 
its library, reading room, writing room, smoking 
room, Ac., affords to the members all the conve- 
niences of a West End Club. 
Another change noticeable by the undergraduate 
of the mid-century revisiting today his old University 
is in the style of dress. Top hats and black coats, 
which, m 1850, [were the everyday non-academioal 
costume, are now not to be seen. Light-coloured 
coats, straw hats, aud caps are worn by all ; no kind of 
free and easy garment is considered infra dig. 
To note the difference let any one, after a stay in 
the Cambridge of today, glance at Cuthbert Bede’s 
pictures in ‘‘ The Adventures of Mr. Verdant Green,”, 
book first published about 18.50. Even Mr. Charles Lar 
kyns and little Mr. Bouncer, the lively young gentlemen 
who took in hand Mr. Green on his arrival in Oxford as 
a Freshman, are depicted as riding aud driving 
arrayed in tall hats, while Verdant h'mself is to be 
eeeu aculling on the river in the tame headgear, 
that probably has never been excelled : not 
bowling very fast, but keeping always on the 
wicket and varying the pitch at will lie was an 
ideal practice bowler, while bis son Jack, also a 
fair bowler, was besides a dashing batsman who 
could teach the young player by example no less 
than by jirecept. Foriliree years INI r. \V. Martin 
Leake played in the Rugby .School Bileven, and 
on going up to Cambridge at once found a place 
in the University team. For the four years 
(1851 to 1854) he played in every match in which 
the University was engaged. In each of these 
years he played against Oxford at Lords. In 
the first year, 1851, when Canibridge won in one 
innings he had the fortune to make 66, the 
biggest score made iu tlie match by any Cantab 
up to that date. In 1827, the first match of 
the series, an Oxonian made 71, but up to 1851 
there was no other instance of a score over 60. 
Things are different in these days of centuries. 
The reasons are, no doubt:— (1) J lie better con- 
dition of the grounds. Tlie wickets at Lords in 
the early “lifties” would not be tolerated today 
by any fairly good country club. Playing against 
fast bowling, even at Lords, was then a service 
of real danger. The improvement in the grounds 
it was that later biought about the abolition 
of the rule forbidding tlie rai-^ing the hand in 
bowling. (2) The system of houtidaries which 
saves the breath of the batsman. In 1851 Mr. \V. 
Martin Leake had to run out every hit. ami iu the 
innings mentioned at Lords was ran out trying a 
tiftli lun. Boundaries, now rendered necessary by 
the attending crowds of spectators, had no place 
at a time when, even at the most important 
matches, a single row of movable benches gave 
full accommodation to all comers. The thin line 
of spectators jumped from their seats to let the 
ball and fielder pass and repass. During the 
present season it has often been remarked, when 
Mr. Jessop has been driving ball after ball at 
almost lightning pace to the boundary, how 
inadequate is an allowance of 4 runs for such 
mighty strokes. The comment is just only on 
the surface. Had Mr. Jessop been obliged to 
run out each bit, as of old, he might indeed 
have converted many of his fours into fives, 
sixes, or even sevens. But how about the next 
stroke? Under the present system he has been 
able to score a second and may be a third four 
without running a foot in a shorter time than 
would have been needed for running out the 
first big hit. To score at the rate of two or 
three runs a minute, as Mr. Jessop has often 
been doing, and to continue tlie ]ierformance 
for half an hour and more, would, withouc 
boundaries, be a suiierliuman task. 
To return from this digression. When Mr. 
W. Martin Leake went to live in Kandy in 1862, 
CRICKET WAS LITTLE PLAYED UPCOUNTRY : 
he lost no opportunity of encouraging the game. 
Organizing an eleven from among tlie ISiiperin- 
tendents in his Firm’s employment, he challenged 
the rest of the planters, and for several years this 
match was the occasion of a pleasant gathering in 
Kandy. On the opening of the Railway to 
Kandy in 1867, Colombo was promptly invited 
to bring up a team to play Upcountry. This, 
the first of very many succeeding contests, was 
a most exciting game, the visitors being defeated 
only by five or six runs. With Mr. T, E. B. 
Skinner, then Fiscal for the Central Province, 
Mr. W. Martin Leake about the same date 
started the Kandy A.B.C, (Athletics, Beating, 
Cricket) Club which, with the addition of one 
