157. Badminton Court.158. Badminton Net.
157. Badminton Court.158. Badminton Net.
157. Badminton Court.158. Badminton Net.
Badminton.—A level bit of turf is the most pleasant ground, though any level surface will do. The dimensions may be varied according to the number playing on each side, and to whether a shuttlecock or a ball is used, the latter not requiring so small a ground as the former. The sizes recommended vary from 40 ft. long by 20 ft. broad, to 30 ft. long by 15 ft. broad. The ground is divided into courts, as in Fig. 157, which represents the full-size.
The boundaries should be clearly defined by a white line; chalk or whiting and water, laid on with a straight-edge and brush, makes the best line. At the spots marked “pole,” which are just half-way from the boundaries taken lengthways, and 2½ ft. within the boundary measured across, poles should be erected, about 7 ft. high, to hang the net to. This, of course, is for the outdoor game; indoors, the net may be suspended from nails, or hung to any convenient projection. The net should be tightly stretched across from pole to pole, at a height of 5 ft. from the ground. The depth of the net varies from 9 in. to 3 ft., but the best is a medium depth, 12-15 in. The poles should be supported with guy ropes. When the net and poles are fixed, they present the appearance shown in Fig 158. If shuttlecocks are used, the ordinary toy ones do verywell for indoors; but for outdoors a loaded shuttlecock is not so much disturbed by the wind, and can be made to fly farther. Common battledores will answer indoors; for outdoor games small racquet bats are preferred, about 2 ft. long, with a widish face, and rather more elliptical in the handle than the full-sized bat. Balls for the outdoor game should be made of hollow indiarubber, about the size of a tennis ball.
The outdoor game by 4 persons, played with a ball, is with slight modifications the same as lawn tennis. The courts being marked out, the players take their stand one in each court, and toss for first “service.” The player winning the toss has choice of courts, and places himself in the right-hand court of his side and serves first. Serving is done by holding the ball in the left hand, the bat in the right, and then, when in the act of dropping the ball from the hand, but without allowing it to touch the ground, driving it with the bat diagonally clean over the net into the opposite right-hand court. When serving, the player may stand in any part of his court he pleases, but he must have both feet within the boundary line. The “servee” (i.e. the player served), who stands in the opposite right-hand court, has to “take the service,” i.e. he has to hit the ball back clean over the net, either before it touches the ground or on its first bound. If he succeeds in doing either, his adversaries have to return the ball again, clean over the net, and so on alternately forwards and backwards until one side fails to comply with the necessary conditions, when that round is over, and certain scores accrue, as will be explained. After the first service in each round, no distinction is made between right and left courts, nor as to the player who may take the ball. On the first return the ball may be sent into either court of the opposite side, and taken by either player of that side, and so on in all subsequent returns of that round.
If the ball touches the boundary line, it is out of the court. If the conditions are complied with, it is a “good” service, and if the servee fails to return the ball clean over the net, the server’s side scores one point, called an “ace.” If the conditions are not complied with, and the servee takes or attempts to take the serve, it counts as a good service. But if the server does not comply with the conditions, and the servee does not attempt to take the serve, the server’s “hand is out.” There is, however, one exception to this, viz. if the ball falls on the neutral ground short of the court, in which case it is a “let”—that is, the server is let or allowed to have another serve. Two consecutive lets put the server’s hand out. Some players consider it a let if the ball is served into the wrong court. This is perhaps the best rule for beginners, but for more experienced performers serving into the wrong court should put the server’s hand out. The server’s hand is also out if after the first return either he or his partner fails to return the ball again clean over the net by hitting it once only, or returns it so that it does not fall into one of the opposite courts. If, however, the opponents attempt to return the ball, notwithstanding that it falls out of the court, the return is “good,” and it counts just the same as though the ball had fallen within the court.
When the server’s hand is out, the opponents commence serving from their right-hand court. This rule only applies to the first service in every game, and for this reason: It is a considerable advantage to serve first, as skilful players serve in such a manner as to render it difficult for the opponent to take the service. Also the side serving cannot lose an ace until their hand is out, and the opponents have the serve. If, as before remarked, the servee’s side fail to take a good service, or to return the ball clean over the net at any subsequent stroke by hitting it once only, they lose an ace. The original server then serves again, but this time from the left-hand court, and so on alternately, and his side scores an ace each time the opponents fail to return a good service clean over the net, and so that it falls into one of the opposite courts. After the first service in each game, the side which serves has “two hands in,” i.e. as soon as the server’s hand is out, his partner serves as before. He commences to serve from the right or left hand court as the case may be, following the rule of changing courts after every service. Thus, A served last from the right court; A’s hand is now out; B (A’spartner) now serves from the left court into the opposite left court, and so on alternately until B’s hand is out, when both hands being out, the right of serving goes to the opponents, who commence serving from the right-hand court of their side; the player who originally stood in that court serving first to the player who originally stood in the diagonally opposite court. Once in the game the players may change courts for the purpose of taking serves; thus A (right court) serves to C (opposite right court). A’s hand is put out, and presently A’s side are hand in again. When this happens A must commence the round of his side by serving from his right court to C in the opposite right court, but once in the game C and D (partners) may change courts to take the service, when A would serve to D instead of to C. The game proceeds thus until one side gains 15 aces, when the game is won by that side. If the game arrives at 13-all it may be “set” to 5-all, or at 14-all it may be set to 3-all. After a set, the game continues until one side scores 5 or 3, as the case may be. After a game, the sides change courts. A match or rubber is the best of 3 games.
Cricket.Forming a Ground.—The field should be as near level as possible; a fall of 1 in. to the yd. is not an insurmountable objection; 240 yd. each way is a nice size. In the centre of this there must be at least 42 yd. square of drained or naturally dry land, laid nearly level, and, if possible, of poor, tough, and wiry grass and sod. This piece should be highest in the centre, and with a fall of ½ in. in the yd. all round, that the ground may dry quicker after rain. With a dry subsoil, you can at once make a cricket ground, without the expense of any drainage. If an open loose subsoil, sand, gravel, peat, and wet, it must be made dry; in subsoils of this kind one deep and large drain will frequently effectually cure a large field. Until the subsoil is dry you cannot put soil and sod on it that will be good and safe to play cricket upon. As to clay subsoil, there is no other way to dry this kind of ground except by drainage. Drains must be near together, and deep enough to take away the water sufficiently low down to prevent the earth from sucking it up to the surface: 3 ft. 6 in. to 4 ft. deep, and 4-5 yd. apart, 3 in. tiles, and a fall of not less than ½ in. to the yd., will make this subsoil dry enough to put on a cricket surface. These drains should be filled with broken stone, coarse gravel, or rough cinders to within 12-18 in. of the surface of the ground. The tiles of main drain should be larger than the 3 in. pipes of which branch drains are made, and larger in proportion to the number of branches it has to receive. The opposite ends of branch drains to the main drain should be connected by an air drain, one end of which should be open to the air; for in dry weather, when drains are making no water, a draught of air through and under the ground may cause the seams in the ground to open and crack, and so prepare it for more effectual and quick drainage when wet weather comes. The first thing to be done is to take up the sod: 1½ in. is about the thickness. Wheel them to one side of the piece you intend to take up, and stack them 5 or 6 cartloads together; this presses them, and causes the old rough coarse grass to rot off. When the sods are off is the best time to drain. If chalk is handy, it is the best possible foundation. Not more than 1½-2 in. of mould is required between the turf and the chalk; or dig out some 6-7 in. of the soil, and replace with cinder-ashes procured from a furnace, if chalk cannot be obtained. Pass the ashes through a coarse riddle, and put the rough at the bottom, the fine at the top, ramming it well down; return the sod, and make firm by rolling with the heaviest roller at command—daily rolling for an hour or two; mow when necessary, and that by a machine.
Renovating a Ground.—Before applying any stimulant to encourage growth, first of all get the bare patches filled up with plants of the finest kinds of grass. For 70 yd. by 40, 1 bush. fine lawn grass mixture, obtained from some trustworthy seed establishment, should be sown at once and covered with finely sifted soil of a gritty character, such as road scrapings; when dry enough, run a light roller over it, and repeat the rolling frequently. As soon as the young seedling grasses appear, a dressing of soot and lime should be given to keep slugs in check, and also to act as a stimulant.When the young grass gets any way long, it should be cut with a scythe; the mowing machine should not be used until it has become well established, and sheep be kept off during periods of drought. After many years’ wear and tear it would be advisable to relay the ground with fresh turf, for when once it begins to get patchy and worn, any other remedial measures are seldom entirely satisfactory. Guano sown during showery weather, about 2 lb. mixed with wood ashes, and sprinkled evenly over the surface, will impart verdure to the grass and otherwise help it, for where it is kept closely mown, the soil soon gets exhausted.
Playing on Coconut Matting.—The matting must be well stretched and pegged down lightly; spikes will be found to damage the matting and trip up the wearer. The thing to see to is that the ground (whatever it be) below the matting is quite smooth, as, if there are any inequalities in it, the ball will bump off the matting just as it would off an ordinary pitch. In India they remove what grass there is, so as to have a perfectly smooth surface; this is watered and rolled and kept hard, and on it the mat is pegged down. The result is a very good and fast pitch.
Football.Association.—The following memoranda have been drawn up by the committee of the Football Association for guidance.
(1) Calling attention to two points in Law 2 of the game—First, that the kick-off must be in the direction of the opposite goal line, and, therefore, all back kicking is illegal; and, secondly, that the other side shall not approach within 10 yd. of the ball until it is kicked off.
(2) Law 4 enacts that “a goal shall be won when the ball has passed between the goal posts.” A goal, therefore, cannot be scored until the whole ball has passed over the goal line. The ball is also in play until the whole ball has passed over the touch line.
(3) Law 6 commences thus:—“When a player kicks the ball, or it is thrown out of touch, any one of the same side who at such moment of kicking or throwing is nearer to the opponents’ goal line is out of play.” This is plain enough. All players of the same side as the player kicking the ball are off-side if they are in front of but not if they are behind the ball. If players would always remember that when they are behind the ball, at the moment of kicking or throwing, they cannot be off-side, but when they are in front of the ball they are always liable to be off-side, it would simplify the reading of this Rule very much.
Briefly then, (1) A player is always off-side if he is in front of the ball at the time of kicking unless there are 3 or more of his opponents nearer the goal line than himself. (2) A player is never off-side if there are 3 or more of his opponents nearer their goal line than himself at the moment the ball was last played. (3) A player cannot be off-side if the ball was last played (i.e. touched, kicked, or thrown) by one of his opponents or by one of his own side who at the time of kicking is nearer his opponents’ goal than himself.
Law 6 further enacts that a player being off-side shall not in any way whatever interfere with any other player.
(4) By Law 8 a goal-keeper “is allowed to use his hands in defence of his goal.” The committee do not consider a goal-keeper to be in defence of his own goal when he is in his opponents’ half of the ground.
(5) Rule 11, which reads as follows, should be strictly carried out by the umpires and referees in all matches. “No player shall wear any nails, excepting such as have their heads driven in flush with the leather, or iron plates, or gutta-percha on the soles or heels of his boots or on his shin guards. Any player discovered infringing this Rule shall be prohibited from taking further part in the game.”
The attention of referees is particularly called to the following new Challenge Cup Rule, which should be rigidly enforced in all matches in the competition. “If bars or studs on the soles of the boots are used they shall not project more than ½ in., andshall have all their fastenings driven in flush with the leather, and in no case shall they be conical or pointed. Any infringement of this Rule shall lead to the disqualification of the player, and the referee shall prohibit him from taking any part in the game.” It is not necessary for a referee to have an appeal made to him before putting this Rule in force.
(6) Rule 13, “In the event of an appeal for any supposed infringement of the Rules, the ball shall be in play until a decision has been given.” Umpires should remember how very important it is for the proper working of this Rule that their decisions should be given as quickly as possible, and if a claim is made and one umpire allows it, the referee, if he agrees with him, should instantly sound his whistle, without waiting to ascertain the opinion of the other umpire, it being understood that the umpires should allow an appeal by holding up a stick, and the referee by sounding a whistle.
(7) A ball touching an umpire or referee is not dead.
(8) It is the duty of the referee to see that all free kicks, kicks off from goal, and corner kicks are properly taken, and it is not necessary for him to wait for an appeal in the event of any infringement of the Rules referring to those points. In the case, though, of a throw-in from touch, where a penalty is attached, an appeal is necessary before he can give a decision.
(9) Umpires should bear in mind that it is entirely against the spirit of the Rules to give any advice to or make any claim on behalf of either side, and should be careful to ascertain that a claim is made by one of the players and not by a spectator. Also that they are bound to give a decision one way or the other when appealed to. In cases where an umpire is so placed as to be doubtful about a claim, he should decide in favour of the side appealed against.
Rugby.—The referee must not interfere except on an appeal to the umpires otherwise than in the following cases, and then only on a claim by the opposite side:—
(a) At “kick off,” when it shall be his duty to see that the players on the side which has the “kick off” are not in front of the ball when it is kicked off.
(b) At “kick out,” when it shall be his duty to see that the kicker’s side are behind the ball when kicked out.
(c) In the case of a “fair catch,” when it shall be his duty to see that the kicker’s side are behind the ball when it is kicked. In the event of players (in his opinion) breaking the law on any of these points, he shall, on a claim by the opposite side, order a scrummage to be formed in the case of “kick off” in the centre of the ground, and in case of “kick out” at a spot 23 yd. from the kicker’s goal line, and equidistant from both the touch lines, and in the case of a “fair catch” at the spot where the “fair catch” was made.
(d) In the case of a try at goal, if any of the defending side charge before the ball touches the ground, he may, provided the kicker has not taken his kick, on a claim by the opposite side, disallow the charge.
When a player is down in a scrummage, and the referee considers it dangerous for the game to proceed, it shall be his duty to order the game to stop until he thinks the danger is over.
The ball is dead whenever it touches an umpire or referee, and a scrummage shall be formed forthwith at the spot where the touching occurs.
In the case of an appeal to an umpire play shall not cease pending a decision.
A player who is off-side may, nevertheless, run until an opponent actually has the ball, but must stop directly he has it.
159. Hockey Field.
159. Hockey Field.
159. Hockey Field.
Hockey.—Fig. 159 shows the ground properly marked out. The lines must be marked with white, as in lawn tennis, and not cut, as it has been proved that the ball mis-bounds as it is dribbled past the striking circle if the line has been cut in the turf.
The cricket ball must be painted white with ordinary oil paint.
A player is off-side unless there are 3 of his opponents nearer their own goal line, and when off-side he must not prevent his opponent in any way whatever from playing the ball. If, where a player is off-side, the ball is hit by one of his own side, he is still off-side, unless the players have moved sufficiently to place 3 of his opponents between him and their goal line.
The ball must be played from right to left, but a player, by twisting his stick so as to present the playing side of it to the ball, may poke or hit the ball in any direction, except that when hitting behind him it must pass to his left-hand side. If the ball passes between his legs, and the right foot is on the ground, it is a fair stroke.
Lacrosse.—The following notes are taken from a couple of letters which appeared in theFieldsome time since.
Where the checking is patient and sure, the man who holds the ball, instead of passing it on, merely delays the game for just so long as he detains the ball; his chance of scoring is nil. When the ball is thus held it is usually done by a player who is being kept by a defence player some 30 yd. or more from the goal. Carrying his crosse on the far side of him, he is endeavouring, by running in wide circles and suddenly doubling back, &c., to get on the inside of the checker, or to induce another opponent to molest him, and so leave another of his side uncovered. This manœuvre in good matches is pure waste of time. The checker simply moves with his man, keeping his eye steadily on his body, and no more regarding the ball than if it were not there. As the checker is inside the attacker, he is moving in smaller circles, and so finds it very easy to keep between the latter and the goal, whilst nothing is more remote than the possibility of a second checker, who is looking after another home man, leaving that man so long as the holder of the ball is taken care of. In the end the ball is merely lobbed on the goal, as it might have been in first instance, when a far greater chance would have existed of the defenders being out of position. In lacrosse, all movements should be as rapid and as unexpected as possible. Given the defenders all in position, scoring becomes exceedingly difficult, and the defence show their knowledge of this fact by their extreme reluctance to leave their posts to follow roving opponents. The evil worked by the man who holds the ball is in the fact that he gives the opposing defence ample opportunity for quietly arranging themselves in position, and when the ball does come it finds them prepared and cool, instead of flustered by the rapidity of its arrival.
One cause of this phase of weak play is the want of confidence in homes of their throwing power. In Canada, a home devotes himself assiduously to the art of throwing the ball at express speed at goal the instant it touches his crosse. If he be only 30 yd. from goal he is able to put in a shot which will take some stopping. We are not saying that, as they throw now, English homes should throw 25-30 yd., but that they should practise assiduously until they make their shots dangerous at that distance. Any one desirous of perfecting his throwing at goal can do so by the simple aid of a wall. Upon the wall mark out a goal, and then, standing 25 yd. away, commence peppering, the ball always being thrown as soon as possible after it is received upon the crosse. Nothing could be more simple or satisfactory, as the ball is always returned to the thrower by therebound. It is better to have 2 men throwing at once, as one can toss the ball to the other, and so more nearly approach the conditions met with in the field; whilst, of course, the instant the practice can be obtained against a goal-keeper, the wall should be discarded. In thus practising the thrower should be careful to make the ball pitch some 6 ft. in front of the goal. A ground shot, which touches only once, and that a few feet only in front of the goal keeper, is the most deadly.
The attack player’s task is far harder, since his object is not attained unless he directs the ball at a space only 6 ft. square, and that in such a manner as to elude the vigilance of a person stationed there for the special purpose of guarding it. Of the defence men pure and simple, i.e. the 3 men out from goal, point, cover-point, and third man, it is only demanded that they shall throw the ball as hard as they can to the other end of the field, so soon as they come into possession of it. The more directly they can throw towards their opponents’ goal the better undoubtedly; but, as a matter of fact, the whole breadth of the field is open to them; and, if they throw wide, they are not throwing a chance away, as is a man shooting at goal and missing it, although they undoubtedly give the homes a lot of unnecessary work.
Yet, simple as this feat of getting rid of the ball to some kind of advantage is, it is astonishing how extremely difficult some contrive to make it for themselves. A powerful defence man, capable of throwing the ball 120 yd. with ease, shall have the missile upon his crosse, with nothing to do but to cast it from him into the air, and yet unable to do so because a small but nimble antagonist watches every movement, and meets it with a counter one. The reason for all this trouble is that defence men learn to throw in one way only, and that way generally a very bad one. The long throw, which is the easiest to check, is the one made low down past the side, with the face turned nearly full towards the direction in which the ball is thrown; and yet this is the throw which the majority of players who do not throw overhand are adopting. When this throw is employed, it is impossible to keep the bend, from whence the ball invariably quits the crosse, out of range of the crosse of the checking opponent, who can either actually arrest the ball itself before it has travelled a yard through the air, or, what is both easier and safer, he can always interfere with the throwing crosse sufficiently to spoil the throw. The low underhand throw is bad, for two reasons. First, it is more easily checked than any other; and, secondly, the greatest distance for the power expended is not attained, whilst the ball travels with a large amount of spin upon it, which renders it extremely difficult of capture by those for whom it is intended at the other end of the field of play. In this throw the ball, whilst upon the crosse, is made to descend from a height, to a lower one, from whence it again rises, to quit the crosse. Hence the spin put upon the ball, and the loss of power sustained.
Players do not seem to grasp the fact that, to make the ball travel smoothly, i.e. without spin, and with the least expenditure of force, the crosse must travel, as it were, on even keel. Between the points at which the throw is commenced and finished, the crosse must not describe the least curve, but move in a perfectly straight line. When this is done the ball can be transmitted to a considerable distance at the expenditure of a surprisingly small amount of power. But it is impossible of accomplishment if the thrower place himself so as to almost face the direction in which the ball is thrown, as then the crosse, in order to attain directness, must be brought close past the body of the thrower, with the bend describing a segment of a circle, and nearly, if not actually, as is often the case, striking the ground at its lowest point. All this would be avoided if the thrower were to turn away from the object aimed at, so as to almost turn his back upon it, and throw, more round than past himself, over the left shoulder. It is a good plan to commence by throwing the ball straight backwards over the head, and then by degrees bring the crosse lower towards the left shoulder, with succceding throws. The first gain is that the ball travels evenly, and the second that, owing to the high point at which the ball leaves the crosse, it is very difficult to check it. It may be taken as a standardrule that the closer one is checked the more perpendicularly should the throw be made, so as to keep the bend as high out of reach as possible. But there is another very important advantage gained in assuming this recommended attitude. It is that the thrower is enabled to change his throw instantly from the underhand one over the left shoulder, backwards, to the overhand throw from the left shoulder, whilst facing the direction thrown to. If a player be facing his opponent’s goal, and about to make the underhand forward scoop, and he is checked on his throwing side, his only tactic is to suspend the operation of throwing, turn round so as to bring his crosse out of the checker’s reach, and run and dodge until he succeeds in getting the latter on the wrong side of him. If the checker is good, as in good matches he would be, he will take care always to keep on the throwing side, and the trouble he thereby causes may be imagined. Now, if the thrower would only learn the left shoulder shot as well as the underhand throw over the left shoulder, and would condescend to take a wrinkle and stand as above directed, he would find matters greatly simplified. Standing almost with his back towards the foe, with his left leg well to the rear, all he has to do on being checked on the throwing side is to lower the crosse (keeping it nearly horizontal), turn the left hand under with the knuckles up, in preparation for the shoulder shot, and bring the left leg a yard or so further round to the right. All this can be done in one movement, and in an instant, and the ball is propelled on the side of the player opposite to that intended. The cause of all the trouble introductorily alluded to is this want of ability to throw from corresponding sides. There are plenty of men who throw from the right shoulder overhand and pass the left side underhand, and vice versâ, but there is no assistance derivable from these accomplishments, since the check which frustrates a right-hand shoulder throw is equally successful in the case of an underhand throw past the left.
The crowning fault of all English players is, that they trust so much more to their legs than to dexterity with the “stick.” The beauty of the game lies in the ability with which the crosse is handled.
Lawn Bowls.—The players arrange themselves in sides, usually of 4 each, and each player is provided with 2 bowls. These bowls, instead of being the large lignum-vitæ bowls of 6-8 in. in diameter, are but little bigger than a tennis ball, easily held in the hand, and are enamelled with ornamental colours and various designs, looking bright and pretty on the green turf. A white ball is first thrown to one end of the lawn, and the aim of the players, who stand at the other end, is so to send their bowls that they may lie as near as possible to the white ball. The side whose bowls are nearest the white ball reckon one point for each bowl so placed—7, 14, 21, or 31 make game, according to mutual arrangement beforehand. It requires a little practice to send the bowls straight. The game also has the advantage of not taking up much room, and may be played in some quiet corner of the garden, provided the ground be level, and the grass short and well mown.
Lawn Skittles.—This game may be played in the shade, even under the branches of a tree; it does not occupy much space, and any number of players, if divided into two equal sides, may be pressed into the service. The apparatus consists of a pole firmly fixed in the ground, and to which is attached a rope, from whose end a heavy ball is suspended. Two square slabs of stone are let into the ground at opposite sides, and at certain distances from the pole. On one of these stands the player, and on the other are ranged 9 pyramids, resembling large ninepins. The player takes the ball in his hand, and, swinging it round the pole, aims at knocking down the ninepins. He is allowed 6 chances, and then another player takes his turn. This sounds easy enough, but is far more difficult than would be imagined, as it requires a good player to swing the ball round the pole before letting it fly at the men or ninepins. Before commencing, the number which is to be considered game is agreed upon.
Lawn Tennis.—Grass Courts.—The following ways of making lawn-tennis groundssuggest themselves: (a) The adaptation of an existing field or lawn; (b) laying down turf to form a lawn; (c) making a lawn by sowing grass seeds.
(a) Having determined upon the particular portion of the field, the first work to be done will be to roll it as soon after rain as may be, with a heavy smooth agricultural roller. This will generally level the lawn sufficiently, at least as a first process. This done 2 or 3 times will show if there are any serious uprisings or tumps, or, on the other hand, hollows or depressions. If the latter, let the turf be lifted from such sunken parts, which should be filled up with some good garden soil. This should be rolled down to a smaller extent by a somewhat heavy garden roller, and when pretty firm the farm implement may be applied, as it will perhaps smooth down the hillocks to a level with the mended-up depressions; if not, it may be that the turf should be lifted beneath these slight hillocks, some of the earth removed, and the turf pressed into place. In operations of this kind, wherever the turf has been cut, it is well to sift some fine mould over the parts before the rolling is performed—at least for the first time the roller is used. The rolling will soon show if there be any hard-rooted tussocky kind of grass or other plants interfering; if so they should be removed, and the same finely-sifted earth restored, and a very small quantity of fine grass seeds sown on the bare spots before the roller be used.
(b) In laying down turves, care has to be taken to make the base as level and solid as possible; this is done by filling up and paring down, while the turves are being got ready from some nice even and fine grass, cut of uniform size and thickness, laid and stamped down with the utmost care, and when laid, fine rich mould should be sifted over the whole, especially over the joints. This, if dry weather supervenes, should be watered. At first light rollers should be used, to be succeeded by heavier ones. If well done, it is the quickest and most efficacious way of planting a lawn.
(c) Lawns may be well made by preparing the soil, then levelling, and sowing with grass seeds, which should be well rolled down. If only a temporary lawn is required, the best grass to sow will bePoa annua(annual meadow grass). This should be sown somewhat thickly; it comes up quickly, bears clipping well, and, if not allowed to flower, it will become almost a permanent grass. If the lawn, as is mostly the case, is to be permanent, less of thePoashould be used; but its quantity should be made up with the following proportions:Poa annua(annual meadow), 1 lb.;Poa pratensis(smooth meadow), 1 lb.;Festuca duriuscula(hard fescue), 2 lb.;Lolium perenne Devoniensis, (Devon ever), 4 lb. With this mixture thePoa annuawill soon be lost, unless the grasses be seeded, which would not be good for the lawn; but the other three species, which grow well together, will soon form a good lawn. Lawns to be kept even and smooth want to be frequently mown and rolled; but, if the soil be poor, the constant mowing and removal of the grass will damage the turf. Injury of this kind may be prevented by a dressing of superphosphate in autumn, and of soot soon after the breaking up of frost.
Marking Grass Courts.—The following plan might be very useful to those who do not wish to disfigure a lawn with whiting, and do not object to some expense. The webbing ought to be 1½ in. wide, and if strained tight should be rather bare of the true measurements. Purchase 75 yd. webbing at 1¾d.a yard, being sufficient to go round a court 78 ft. by 30 ft. and allow for splicing and corners as follows (the webbing is that used in the manufacture of chairs): Take 5 rings nearly 3 in. in diameter; curtain rings would answer the purpose. Sew the first ring to the end of the webbing with saddlers’ needle and twine, lapping the webbing once through the ring. At 78 ft. farther cut the webbing and sew it to one side of a second ring; on the other side of the same ring again sew on the webbing, and you have turned the first corner of the court. The next corners, at distances of 30 ft., 78 ft., and 30 ft. are treated in the same way, except that the 2 ends should not be joined. Then, for convenience of painting, wind the webbing perpendicularly over a door or a gate; or a sort of tambour frame, made of4 poles tied together to the shape of an Oxford picture frame, answers the purpose. Paint the webbing with 2 coats of white paint on one side, and one coat on the other. It will take a boy 2 long days, and consume about 3 kettles of paint. Make 4 hoops, about 3 in. high, and 1½ in. wide, of iron wire, nearly as thick as croquet hoop wire. Peg the webbing down by the corner rings with these hoops, putting as heavy a strain as possible on each piece before pegging. The 2 end rings will be pegged by the fourth hoop. Webbing so treated does not trip the players, only requires the above 4 hoops or pegs, is too heavy to be moved by wind, does not twist and kink like tape, and is practically indestructible. A light drum or winch, 16 in. diameter, 6 in. flange, and 5 in. wide, much facilitates carriage of the webbing to and from the courts, and keeps it stored in small compass. (D. W.)
Waterproof Net.—The nets dressed with gutta-percha by the Manchester Cotton Twine Spinning Company, Corporation Street, Manchester, are impervious to wet, are not affected by the sun, and may be left out in all weathers without injury.
Asphalte Courts.—(a) The probable cost ought not to exceed 10l.if laid down by own workpeople, and less if tar has not to be purchased. It is pleasanter to play on than real asphalte, having more elasticity, and the colour is excellent for seeing the balls, which are not blackened or worn out quickly, as is the case on cinder courts. Mix thoroughly well sand and gas tar, in the proportions of 1 cub. yd. sand to 24 gal. tar (the more it is mixed the better). About 8⅓ cub. yd. sand and 200 gal. tar will make a court. This quantity is to be made into a heap 3 days before laying down. Keep turning the heap every day, and, immediately before putting down, add 5 or 6 shovelfuls of dry lime to each cub. yd., and 24 gal. tar. For foundation, 6 in. of small broken stone or brick rubbish, on which put some fine gravel, or, better still, coal cinders, to give a smooth surface; bring this to a level with straight-edge and spirit level, and press down with a heavy roller. The mixture of sand and tar should be laid on 1 in. thick, and should be rolled well with a roller having round edges, sprinkling fine sand on it all the time to prevent the roller sticking to it. The court should have a slight fall of 4 in. from centre to ends, and the ground should be well drained underneath and around the court, which should be laid down with a large margin, to give plenty of room at the ends and sides. The best time for making the court would be late in the spring, after all chance of frost has disappeared, the ground having previously been prepared by drainage, &c.
(b) A mixture of coal tar and cinders makes a rough and dirty court, and is very liable to work uneven from the nature of the material. It is necessary to lay these courts on a dry foundation, or they would be lifted by frost, and the cost is from 20l.to 30l.Covered balls cannot be used on them, and shoes are soon cut to pieces. A way might be found to put a finer surface on these courts, but they can never be made very durable.
(c) Real asphalte runs into a very high figure.
Cinder Courts.—(a) Plain cinder courts may be laid at very trifling cost, wherever steam power is used, and engine ashes can be had gratis, and only cost the carriage. Cinders, however, if not laid on a dry foundation, after they have been beaten down to a smooth surface, will puddle up with frost.
(b) Pare the turf off, and level the ground; give a sprinkling of agricultural salt, to kill the grass roots; put in a drain or two of 2 in. pipes, if the subsoil is clayey or retentive. Get 25 cartloads of factory or other cinders; wheel on (as they are) as many as will make a strip all across about 9 ft. in width and 2½ in. in thickness; rake off the very large ones as a foundation for next strip. Roll all thoroughly well; then put on the 9 ft. strip a layer or covering of finely riddled cinders, and again well roll, and so on throughout. Keep the roll going every day for a week, and then you may play every day in the year except during snow or rain. Use uncovered balls in wet weather; they bounce sharper, and wash clean. (Geo. H. Wade.)
(c) Foundations are first prepared of broken stones as for cement, into which a few field drain pipes are laid, upon this a covering of 3 in. of coarse cinders; and over this a finishing coat of riddled ashes mixed with a tenacious clay laid on with plenty of water, and worked up with a trowel in the same manner as cement. The ashes used may be furnace ashes from a colliery engine, of a red colour, the reddest being selected. The result is a fine smooth surface of an agreeable colour (an important consideration), and easily kept in order by a small roller. No ordinary shower affects it, and it can be placed on very soon after heavy and continuous rain. The surface is sufficiently yielding to be agreeable to the feet, and prevent the balls from playing too lively.
(d) Take 50 chaldrons fine cinders, 2 barrels tar, 1 chaldron white builder’s sand, and 2 cwt. agricultural salt. Having prepared a piece of ground by removing the grass roots, and making it quite level, sprinkle the salt to kill any remaining roots of grass, then spread the cinders 6 in. deep quite smooth; boil the tar, and pour all over the surface with a watering pot; then sieve the sand over it to prevent the roller from sticking. Then roll with a heavy garden roller with 2 men constantly for 2 days. Occasionally roll for a month after it is finished, and before it gets firmly set. There should be no rain during the operation. Around the ashes put small red gravel, the same depth as the cinders, for a pathway. The court slopes on one side enough for the rain water to run off; all along the outer edge of the lower path place a drain pipe 6 in. under the surface for the water to escape. After the hardest rain, in one hour the court will be quite playable. (A. H.)
Concrete Courts.—(a) First lay out the level with pegs, rather over 6 in. high, and fill up the floor with broken brick and stone rubbish to within about 1½ in. of the peg tops. Have a quantity of river gravel first passed through an ordinary gravel screen, putting the large aside for the roads. The gravel that passes through the first screen is again passed through a fine wire lime screen to separate the sand. The medium gravel thus separated is mixed with 1 part Portland cement to 4 of gravel, and laid over the broken bricks, bedded well among it, and coming nearly up to the top of the pegs. This covering is worked as level as possible, and allowed about an hour to stiffen, after which a fine surface is laid on of 1 part cement mixed with 2 of the sharp sand and grit that has been screened from the gravel. This surface is dressed over and finished about an hour after it is laid on.
(b) Take 50 loads broken rubbish (brick or stone), 5½ tons Portland cement, 11 tons screened gravel, 5½ tons sharp sand. The expense will depend on the prices at which the rubbish and gravel can be procured, but the cement will cost 11l.; and if the rubbish is put at 3s.per load, the gravel at 5s.per ton, and the sand at 4s., the cost of material will be 22l.7s.; allowing 5l.for labour, in laying and levelling the court, the whole expense will amount to about 27l.Such a court will be as good and as durable, for light work, as one costing 100l.A court with a good surface could be made considerably cheaper by using less cement and less solid foundation; but with a concrete court it is necessary to secure such dryness and solidity below as will prevent the risk of the floor being lifted and cracked by frost. (P. S. W.)
(c) One authority quotes the price per yard at 2s.9d., for a floor of concrete, 4 in. thick, faced with 2 in. of best cement.
(d) A proportion of 1 (by weight) of cement to 2 of clean sharp sand and 4 of clean gravel, broken stone, &c., makes excellent concrete. These proportions are 6 to 1.
Quoits.—Rules of the Game.—(1) The quoits shall be not more than 5¼ lb. in weight, nor more than 8½ in. diameter outside, and 5½ in. in the inside, nor more than 1½ in. in height, and made of malleable iron. Quoits faced, or partially faced, with steel shall not in any case be allowed.
(2) The pins shall be placed in tempered clay ends, confined by a wooden frame, and shall not project more than 3 in. Pins to be not less than 3 ft. long, and the exposed point ½ in. in diameter.
(3) The pins shall be placed at such distances apart as may be agreed upon, and in the centre of the clay. The pins to be readjusted and the clay made up only at the discretion of the umpire.
(4) No quoit shall count that is a greater distance than 18 in. from the pin.
(5) When a match is played, one umpire shall be chosen by each side, and their decision shall be final. Should, however, an umpire have occasion to appoint another in his place, the last-named in all cases shall be the umpire for the time being. No person except the umpires shall interfere, but each captain may instruct his men if requested.
(6) A player in delivering his quoit shall stand with his foot opposite the pin, but not more than 2 ft. therefrom, and must deliver his quoit before the second step is completed. Should he not do so, the quoit pitched shall be called a “no quoit,” and treated the same as a “no quoit,” as per Rule 11.
(7) The 2 quoits nearest the pin shall count one each, if belonging to the same side. If not, then only the nearest quoit counts one. The quoit touching the top of the pin to count before a side-toucher.
(8) When the inside of a quoit, taken perpendicularly from the pin upwards, shall surround the top of the pin, it shall be called a ringer, and count 2. If a player has 2 quoits in this position, they shall count 2 each, unless his opponent has one dividing them, then the last ringer only shall count.
(9) No quoit shall count as a ringer when a quoit under it covers, in a perpendicular direction, any part of the top of the pin.
(10) If a quoit when pitched shall hit the frame surrounding the clay in alighting, or shall alight outside the frame, it shall be called a “no quoit,” and shall not count or hinder any other quoit from counting, and shall at once be removed.
(11) No clay shall be removed in measuring the distance of a quoit from the pin, neither shall any quoit be removed to facilitate the measurements.
(12) When 2 quoits belonging to opposite parties shall rest at equal distances from the pin, the leading player shall retain his lead.
(13) Any player claiming a point or points after pitching one quoit shall not be at liberty to go back and play his second quoit.
(14) A player in any match must have been a member of the club he plays with for at least one calendar month previous to that time.
Making a Ground.—(a) Procure a large treacle or oil cask, cut the ends off (leaving them about 5 in. deep inside); take care that there are 2 iron hoops on each end; fix an iron pin (¾ in.) firmly in the centre of each, to stand about 7 in. above the edges of the tub, then fill it with stiff clay, raising it from the sides towards the top of the iron pin, leaving so much bare as shall be sufficient for a mark; have a waller’s trowel to smooth the surface when required. These can be placed in any convenient position for quoiting into, and may be removed when not required. Have a frame made of lightwood or iron, cone-shaped, and covered with waterproof canvas, to cover the tubs when not in use.
(b) If the land lies high and dry, and the soil is clay, which during hot weather becomes very hard, dig 2 pits the size required, and about 2 ft. deep. Asphalte the bottom and fill in with the clay.
Racquets.—Making a Racquet Court.—A court should be about 65 ft. by 30 ft. front wall 30 ft. high; back wall 12 ft. high; floor made of asphalte, and walls plastered very smoothly. The expense varies according to size, and cost of labour and materials. It must be lighted by skylights. The area of a double court should be 80 ft. by 40 ft.; front wall 30 ft. high, back wall 12 ft.; side walls sloping towards back wall, with a very slight decline of floor down towards the back wall.