Page:Cricket, by WG Grace.djvu/326

 The Hon. Lord Harris, now Lord Harris, was born at St. Anne's, Trinidad, West Indies, 3rd February, 1851. His height is 5 ft. 11½ ins.; weight, 11 st. 12 Ibs. He has proved himself to be a distinguished cricketer and a distinguished politician; an upright, true-hearted English gentleman, and the best of friends. No one has had the game more at heart, or done more for it; and every cricketer in England felt it had lost one of its greatest supporters when, in taking farewell of the County Cricket Council, at Lord's, in December, 1889, he said: "My cricket book is closed; but it contains nothing but the pleasantest of recollections."

Eton, Oxford, and Kent have had occasion to be proud of him: his county in particular; for he displayed good form as a batsman and field, and bowled occasionally with success during the many years he represented it. There are few better judges of what constitutes a first-class cricketer, and as captain of an eleven no one can spot the weakness or strength of an opponent better. He has a very free, correct style of batting; keeps up his wicket with great patience when the bowling is good, and hits freely when it is loose. Repeatedly he has scored over 100 runs in an innings for his county, and he played in the Gentlemen's Eleven for many years. He was Secretary, Captain, and President of Kent County Club, and executed the duties pertaining to these offices with great success for the county and marked credit to himself; and it was entirely owing to his personal efforts that his county has again come to the front. In his younger days he was a most brilliant outfield, covering a large amount of ground, picking up the ball quickly and neatly, and returning it smartly and accurately to the wicket; but in later years he has fielded in closer, chiefly at short-slip,