Obituaries in 1892

WALTER N. POWYS, the famous fast left-handed bowler, died at his residence, Queen"s Walk, Nottingham, on January 8th. He was in his forty-third year, having been born on July 3rd, 1849. He was privately educated, and went up to Pembroke College, Cambridge, appearing in the University match in 1871, 1872, and 1874. In these three matches he took twenty-four Oxford wickets at a cost of 153 runs, but his fame chiefly rests on his performance in the match of 1872, when he obtained thirteen wickets. In that year he played for the Gentlemen against the Players at Lord"s. For some time Mr. Powys had faded out of first-class cricket, but in his day he was one of the best amateur fast bowlers in England. Owing to failing health he was advised to take a trip to America, but he returned invalided, and died while still in the prime of life.

CARDINAL MANNING died on January 14th, aged eighty-three. It may seem a little strange to include Cardinal Manning"s name in a cricket obituary, but inasmuch as he played for Harrow against Winchester at Lord"s in 1825, in the first match that ever took place between the two schools, his claim cannot be disputed.

THE REV. JOSEPH STONEHOUSE, Vicar of St. Saviour"s, Ark-wright Street, Nottingham, who rarely missed a county match on the Trent Bridge ground, and was a constant visitor at the Scarborough Festival, died at his residence in the middle of January.

HENRY BLAIR MAYNE, of Westminster School and Oxford University, died at Brighton on January 20th. On leaving Oxford he became a member of the Marylebone Club and I Zingari, and it is worth mentioning that in addition to his connection with cricket he was one of those who helped to frame the rules of Short Whist.

FREDERICK FURNESS, one of the Pavilion clerks at Lord"s, and a most respected and popular servant of the M.C.C., died of pneumonia on January 21st. Mr. Furness was most courteous and obliging to everyone with whom he came in contact, and his loss was much regretted by the staff at Lord"s. In addition to his work for the Marylebone Club he usually scored in the out matches of the Middlesex eleven.

WILLIAM SELBY, father of John Selby, and once a well-known Notts cricketer, died at Nottingham on January 29th, in his seventy-first year. He had been for a long time connected with the ground staff at Trent Bridge, and in his day was a fairly good player. He was contemporary with Clarke, Redgate, Davies, George Parr, and others of the old school who helped to make Notts famous before the County Club was established.

ELISHA BARKER RAWLINGSON, who died in Australia on February 17th, was never in the front rank of English professionals, but at one time he was well known in connection with Yorkshire cricket. Born at Yeadon, near Leeds, on April 10th, 1837, he was nearing the completion of his fifty-fifth year at the time of his death. He was, in his best day, a very good all-round man, but it was more to his batting than anything else that he owed his place in first-class elevens. He was a fast round-arm bowler, and used to field either at point or cover-point. For six years-from 1870 to 1875 inclusive- he was professionally attached to the Leeds Clarence Club. He first appeared at Lord"s for the Colts of England against the M.C.C. in May, 1867, a match in which the late George Summers was also seen at headquarters for the first time. Rawlinson"s name will be found in the Yorkshire eleven in 1869 and 1870.

C. A. CATER, who died in the early part of the year, played for Harrow against Eton at Lord"s in 1861, a game in which Mr. Alfred Lubbock and Mr. C. F. Buller made their first appearance at Lord"s. The match was left drawn, Mr. Cater"s scores being 27 and 13.

M. P. Bowden, whose death had some time before been incorrectly announced, died in South Africa in February. Born on November 1st, 1865, Mr. Bowden was educated at Dulwich College, and made his first appearance in the Surrey eleven in the season of 1883. His batting that year, especially in the Bank Holiday match against Notts at the Oval, showed enormous promise, and raised hopes which were never quite realised. In 1888, however- his last year in the county team-he did very brilliant work, scoring 430 runs in first-class county matches with an average of 30.10, and 797 in all matches with an average of 31.22. In that year also he had the honour of being chosen wicket-keeper for the Gentlemen, both at Lord"s and the Oval, and also for the Gentlemen against the Australians at Lord"s. At the end of the season of 1888 he went out to South Africa, as a member of the team got up by Major Wharton, and there remained for the rest of his life.

E. W. HUMPHREYS, who died on April 27th, as a member of the Harrow eleven in 1858, taking part in the match which saw the first appearance at Lord"s of several very famous cricketers, notably Mr. R. A. H. Mitchell, Lord Cobham (then the Hon. C. G. Lyttelton), Mr. H. M. Plowden, and the late Mr. A. W. T. Daniel.

CYRIL DIGBY BUXTON met his death by his own hand on May 10th under most distressing circumstances when suffering from severe mental depression. Born on June 25th, 1866, Mr. Buxton was thus only in his twenty-sixth year, and his untimely end caused a painful sensation in cricket circles. During his all too brief career he played for Harrow, Cambridge University, and Essex, appearing for Cambridge against Oxford at Lord"s in 1885, 1886, 1887, and 1888. In the last year he was captain of the eleven. It was only his good fortune once to be on the victorious side, Cambridge winning in 1885. Oxford won in 1886 and 1887, and in 1888 bad weather caused the match to be left drawn. Mr. Buxton perhaps never quite came up to the expectations formed of him when he first went to Cambridge, but he was a punishing, dangerous batsman, and a really magnificent field. There were few better mid-offs in the country.

LUKE REANEY, who umpired in several matches in the early part of last season, died on June 29th.

WILLIAM MCINTYRE, who died on September 13th will be remembered for his long and honourable connection with the Lancashire County Club. Born at Eastwood, Nottinghamshire, on May 24th, 1844, he came out for his native county and made his first appearance at Lord"s for North against South in Whitsun week, 1870. Curiously enough, his first match at Lord"s was George Parr"s last. Quite early in his career McIntyre transferred his services to Lancashire, and with the latter county he was connected so long as he remained before the public. He was a very fast right-handed bowler, extremely straight, and in his best day very effective. For a good many seasons he shared the Lancashire bowling with Watson and Mr. Appleby, and the best testimony to the general efficiency of the three will be found in the comparatively small scores made against them. William McIntyre had two brothers who were cricketers - one, the famous Martin McIntyre, who for two or three seasons did such brilliant things for Notts; and the other, Michael McIntyre, who appeared about the year 1863, but soon dropped out of notice.

CAPTAIN J. DUNN, who went down in the P. and O. steamship Bokhara, in October, was an old Harrovian, and enjoyed for some time the reputation of being about the finest bat in the Army.

THE REV. CHARLTON GEORGE LANE, who died on November 2nd at the Rectory, Little Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, was scarcely more than a name to the present generation, but in the days of the old Surrey eleven he was one of the most popular cricketers in the country. Born on June 11th , 1836, in the Parsonage at Kennington - overlooking Kennington Oval, then a market garden - Mr. Lane was connected by the closest of ties with the county with which his cricket fame was associated. He played in the Westminster eleven in 1849, when only thirteen years of age, and afterwards went up to Oxford, where he had the great distinction of being a double Blue, rowing in the eight in 1858 and 1859, and playing in the eleven at Lord"s in 1856, 1858, 1859, and 1860. Like many other famous batsmen before and since his time, however, Mr. Lane did very little in the University match, his best score in four games being only 21. Mr. Lane appeared first for Surrey in the season of 1856, and his connection with the county practically ceased after the season of 1861, when he only played in one match. Six years later, however, he emerged from his retirement to take part in Tom Lockyer"s benefit match at the Oval- Surrey and Sussex v. England. An examination of his score makes it rather difficult for present day crickets to understand how he should have gained so great a reputation, but there can be no doubt that he was considered by competent judges one of the best batsmen of his day, and he was also a superb field, especially at long-leg. Mr. Lane"s last public appearance in the cricket field was in 1887, when in the M.C.C. Centenary Week at Lord"s he appeared for the Veterans against the leading club. On that occasion he scored double figures in each innings, and proved that the praise bestowed in former days on his style was not undeserved.

THE RIGHT REV. CHARLES WORDSWORTH, Bishop of St. Andrews. Died on December 5th, aged 86. Dr. Wordsworth was a double Blue at Oxford in 1829, rowing in the eight in the first boatrace against Cambridge, and playing in the eleven in the first cricket match.

MR. FREDERICK BURBIDGE died on December 12th, at his residence, Micklefield, near Rickmansworth, only surviving by a few weeks his old colleague in the Surrey eleven, the Rev. C. G. Lane. Born at Champion Hill. Camberwell, on the 23rd of November. 1832. Mr. Burbidge had thus entered his 61st year. He played his first match for Surrey in 1854, and his last in 1866, but business always interfered more or less with his cricket, and he was never able to appear for the county so often as he could have wished. Still he had his share in the successes of the old eleven, often batting well when runs were wanted, and being always an admirable field, more particularly at point. The highest scores he ever made for Surrey were 101 in 1863 against Sussex at Brighton, and 104 in 1864 against Thirteen of Cambridge University at the Oval. His best averages for the county were 38 in 1856, 25 in 1863, 19 in 1862, and 18 in 1864. In this last-mentioned year Surrey"s batting, with Tom Humphrey, Jupp, Mortlock, and H. H. Stephenson at their best, was extraordinarily strong. After his retirement from the active pursuit of the game Mr. Burbidge retained the strongest interest in Surrey cricket. He always kept his place on the committee, and even in the most severe period of depression never lost heart. To no one probably did the splendid revival of Surrey , which began in the season of 1883, afford keener satisfaction.