Page:Cricket, by WG Grace.djvu/171

 they did the greater part of that year. The return, at Lord's, the Gentlemen won by five wickets, owing to consistently good batting of the eleven and the successful bowling of Mr. H. Rotherham.

Very few of the old names now remained in the batting averages, and another generation of bowlers was springing up. A reference to the bowling and batting averages at the end will show a remarkable improvement on previous years. The doings, in particular, of Alfred Shaw, Morley, and Peate will bear more than one perusal. For years the first two had stood head and shoulders above every other bowler in the quantity and quality of the work done; and Shaw, in particular, might be called the bowler of the century. Other bowlers have been as successful in one or two seasons; but for consistent brilliancy, for ten years at least, he has had no equal in England, or out of it.

Lord Harris, the Hon. Alfred Lyttelton, the Hon. Ivo Bligh, and Mr. A. J. Webbe were now batting in grand form; and the amateur batting of that year was of a very high quality. Professional batting came out favourably also; Barnes, Charlwood, and Ulyett showing excellent results.

Mr. Renny-Tailyour scored 331 in a single innings for the Royal Engineers. Over 200 was scored 18 times by other players, and a 100 close upon 500 times.

The year 1881 saw Lancashire at the top of the tree. That County played brilliantly in all its matches, and came out very far ahead of the others. To begin with, it possessed in its captain, Mr. A. N. Hornby, one of the ablest and most popular cricketers in England, who never spared himself, whether he were playing a winning or a losing game, and whose enthusiasm infected every member of the team. As a batsman, he had no superior that year; for not only did he perform grandly for his