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394 the stable-door after the horse has been stolen. I think prevention is better than cure, and know of nothing more disappointing in cricket than to be compelled to decline an invitation to play in a first-class match owing to a damaged finger, which might have been prevented by simply wearing a glove. Gloves are generally made of leather, with strips of thick fluted india-rubber sewn on the back to protect the fingers and hand. When purchasing gloves be careful to see that the rubber is stout enough to resist the blow when the ball hits your hand or fingers, or you might just as well do without gloves altogether. See that the rubber on the fingers of the right-hand glove comes down slightly over the tops of the fingers, and on the side of the thumb instead of the back. Just remember that the side of the thumb, and not the back of it, is towards the bowler when you are batting. I have seen many a bruised and smashed thumb from want of care in this apparently small point. We first hear of batting gloves about the year 1825, when round-arm bowling came into force; but of course they were then clumsily made, and lacked the comfort which characterises the gloves of the present time. They had more the look of our present wicket-keeping gloves, were much heavier, and only the backs of the hands and part of the fingers were protected, cork, cane, or rubber being used for this purpose. The improvement in the make of them has been of steady growth. It is not many years since they were made with leather on the inside, which covered the palm of the hand, preventing, as everyone knows, a firm grip of the bat; however, that is a thing of the past, and now a good number of players not only wear gloves without anything covering the palm of the hand, but go so far as to cut out pieces of the inside covering to the fingers; the idea being that the more you can get of the natural hand to grip the bat, the greater your command and power over it.

Look to the fastening of your glove even more carefully than to the fastening of your pads. Carelessness in this respect will make the hand feel uncomfortable, and a loose flapping