The Hampdenshire WonderBeresford, J. D. (John Davys)
Science
The Hampdenshire Wonder
Beresford, J. D. (John Davys)
Science fiction
I have turned up the account of my interview in an old press-cutting
book, and I do not know that I can do better than quote that part of
it which describes Stott's personal appearance. I wrote the account
on the off chance of being able to get it taken. It was one of my
lucky hits. After that match, finished in a single day, my interview
afforded copy that any paper would have paid heavily for, and gladly.
Here is the description:
"Stott--he is known to every one in Ailesworth as 'Ginger'
Stott--is a short, thick-set young man, with abnormally long arms
that are tanned a rich red up to the elbow. The tan does not,
however, obliterate the golden freckles with which arm and face
are richly speckled. There is no need to speculate as to the raison
d'être of his nickname. The hair of his head, a close, short crop,
is a pale russet, and the hair on his hands and arms is a yellower
shade of the same colour. 'Ginger' is, indeed, a perfectly apt
description. He has a square chin and a thin-lipped, determined
mouth. His eyes are a clear, but rather light blue, his forehead
is good, broad, and high, and he has a well-proportioned head. One
might have put him down as an engineer, essentially intelligent,
purposeful, and reserved."
The description is journalistic, but I do not know that I could improve
upon the detail of it. I can see those queer, freckled, hairy arms
of his as I write--the combination of colours in them produced an
effect that was almost orange. It struck one as unusual....
Surrey had the choice of innings, and decided to bat, despite the
fact that the wicket was drying after rain, under the influence of
a steady south-west wind and occasional bursts of sunshine. Would
any captain in Stott's second year have dared to take first innings
under such conditions? The question is farcical now, but not a single
member of the Hampdenshire Eleven had the least conception that the
Surrey captain was deliberately throwing away his chances on that
eventful day.
Wallis and I were sitting together in the reporters' box. There were
only four of us; two specials,--Wallis and myself,--a news-agency
reporter, and a local man.
"Stott takes first over," remarked Wallis, sharpening his pencil and
arranging his watch and score-sheet--he was very meticulous in his
methods. "They've put him to bowl against the wind. He's medium right,
isn't he?"
"Haven't the least idea," I said. "He volunteered no information;
Hampdenshire have been keeping him dark."
Wallis sneered. "Think they've got a find, eh?" he said. "We'll wait
and see what he can do against first-class batting."
We did not have to wait long.
As usual, Thorpe and Harrison were first wicket for Surrey, and Thorpe
took the first ball.
It bowled him. It made his wicket look as untidy as any wicket I
have ever seen. The off stump was out of the ground, and the other
two were markedly divergent.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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