1916

The most sought-after edition these days despite the fact that there was little cricket of any consequence played in 1915, and the number of pages was slashed from 791 to 299. Two greats of the game - WG Grace and Victor Trumper - passed away, while AE Stoddart took his own life. The list of deaths rose significantly as the Great War began to take its toll - the current scarcity of copies is attributed to the number bought at the time by grieving relatives of casualties. One name more famous in literary circles was Rupert Brooke, who headed the Rugby XI's bowling averages in 1906 with 19 wickets at 14.05: he had, Wisden noted drily, "gained considerable reputation as a poet".
Editor Sydney Pardon
Pages 299
Price 1/6 (soft) / 2/6 (cloth)