Billiards

by William Broadfoot

MEMORANDUM

By Dudley D. Pontifex

There is one characteristic which distinguishes games such as billiards and golf, and sharply divides them from others like cricket and tennis. While in the latter the stroke has to be made on a moving ball, in the former the ball is stationary. Instructions as to the method of making a stroke consequently vary in value in the two classes of games. The tiro at cricket or tennis is told to play a particular ball in a particular way, but is met with difficulties when he attempts to carry out the advice. The cricketer knows that he ought to play back or forward according to the length of the ball, but alas! too frequently is unable to decide until too late what the length of some particular ball is. At tennis it is much the same. The player knows well enough how the stroke should be made, but at the critical moment finds himself in such a position that it is utterly impossible to make a correct stroke. In these games the value of instructions is proportionable to the capacity of the player to adapt himself to the exigencies of the moment. It is quite different as regards billiards. Having once made up his mind as to the method to be adopted, there is absolutely nothing to prevent the player from carrying it into practical effect. He is not hurried for time. He is not called upon to make a sudden and, as it were, intuitive decision instantaneously. On the contrary, the table and balls are before him, and his opponent has to wait quietly until the turn is completed. Consequently the value of instructions, if there be any value in instructions, is relatively greatly enhanced in this class of game.

When one of our best professionals is playing, it is no uncommon thing to hear the remark made, ‘What beautiful strength!’ To my mind the excellence of a fine player’s game lies not so much in his strength as in his accuracy. Given accuracy, strength will follow; at all events there is no reason why it should not. But strength without accuracy is useless, and even worse than useless. If a good player and a bad one meet, the latter usually has the better of the leaves. The reason is not difficult to discover, for the good player fails far more frequently from want of accuracy than from bad strength, and the balls are left fairly placed for his opponent. The bad player has little accuracy and less strength. He goes for his stroke, and chances position. After a score he leaves himself little, but if he fail he leaves little for his opponent. His play is characterised by a series of disjointed efforts.

But, although the good player fails more often from want of accuracy than from bad strength, he does not, unless the balls are very close together, try for exact strength. To use a well-understood phrase, he tries to get them there or thereabouts. Take a very fine player, and let him play from baulk with the other two balls nicely placed in the middle of the table, and let him play two breaks with the balls so placed. It is almost certain that after the third stroke, probably the second, the breaks will branch out differently. The good player only tries to place the balls about where he means. If he be at all successful, he will have the choice of playing one of perhaps half a dozen different strokes. Not one of these half-dozen strokes is, it may be, difficult; and then he has to consider which will leave him the best break, and if there be three or more leaving an equally good game he takes the easiest. What is deserving of observation is that, whichever he selects, he usually makes the stroke and approximately carries out his idea.

It is this deadly accuracy which is so noticeable in the play of the best professionals. How have they obtained it? First and chiefly by years of constant and assiduous practice, secondly by a correct mechanical style. Nothing can take the place of the former. No amount of teaching will be the equivalent of strong individual effort extended over a length of time. The player who really excels at billiards must have given a large amount of time to it. He who plays a wonderful game, and yet hardly ever touches a cue, exists only in the imagination of the incompetent novelist. But, although nothing can compensate for hard practice, something may be done for the beginner by teaching him how to obtain a correct style. To avoid errors is the surest and quickest way to real progress, and to thoroughly grasp the idea of a true mechanical style is the most important lesson in billiards. There is no one style that can be said to be the only correct and proper one. If the best half-dozen players be watched, it will be seen that they all differ in various ways from one another. The position of their heads, and the way in which they hold the cue, are often entirely different. One thing, however, may be noted, that however much they differ from one another, they are true to themselves. Each man keeps rigidly to his own style. His position and his manner of delivering the stroke are constant so far as circumstances permit, and this is the lesson which the amateur may properly take to heart. Billiards is more of a mechanical game than anything else, and, because the mechanical part of it is so important, nothing can take the place of continual practice on right lines. And even that which may have been a defective style originally may, by becoming habitual, lose half its injuriousness. The beginner, however, wants to avoid defects so that he may have nothing subsequently to unlearn, and he wants to know the nearest road to the best game of which he is capable. When he has once got a clear idea of what a correct style is, he is next door to getting the thing itself. And it is worth some little trouble to get. For not only will his general progress at the game be more rapid, but he will find the utility of it at a critical moment. Some pernicious trick or mannerism may not be particularly injurious on ordinary occasions, but when the stress of a match comes it is apt to be fatal. It is then that the man with an easy and correct style finds half his work done for him, as it were.

It is by no means an uncommon thing to see what may be called the pump-handle style, where the cue, instead of moving horizontally or nearly so, is at the commencement of the stroke lifted high at the butt, and then brought forward with a circular sweep. This makes it a matter of no little skill in itself to hit the ball at all correctly, and yet we see players who apparently are not satisfied with the ordinary difficulties of billiards, but must add a quite superfluous one to every stroke.

Most of these eccentric players must be to some extent aware of their eccentricities, and a very little reflection would show that they are quite unnecessary and may be harmful.

Apart from any theoretical consideration of the matter, a casual observation of really good players proves that they do not indulge in these atrocities. In fact, our best players are, almost without exception, easy, graceful players, and distinctly the best break I ever saw North play was at the same time the quickest and least demonstrative of any I have seen made by that player. The play of John Roberts is almost above criticism, and his style is at once the delight and despair of all. Diggle, Dawson, and Richards, more especially the last, are charming players to watch. They who can remember Cook at his best will recall with delight a style that was in the opinion of many unrivalled. An imperturbable temper that nothing appeared to ruffle, a nerve that never seemed to fail, a touch always firm and crisp, yet often using a strength so delicate that he seemed to require instruments more accurate than the best manufacturers could supply—these were some of the features of a game that ever had a great fascination for the spectator.

A few words may not be out of place on the benefit of private practice, i.e. practice by oneself. I believe from a tolerably wide experience that they are exceptional, very exceptional, who can keep on improving without having had, at some time or other, a good deal of private practice. How many men there are who play their two or three hours every day, and yet at the end of fifteen years are little, if any, better! It is because their energies are being entirely absorbed by the immediate contest. If they have a fault in style, they have no time to correct it. They cannot make up their minds to court present defeat for a future gain. They play the same old game with the same bad result year in and year out. The least innovation on their stereotyped game will probably result in failure, and perhaps defeat, and is therefore rejected. After a time they come to accept their game as the best of which they are capable, and when they see really good play they admire it, but never appear to dream of taking a hint from it for their own improvement.

A short time given to private practice would do much for such a one. Here there is no opponent to distract, no dread of consequences. The greatest novelty, even to the playing of a losing hazard at dead slow strength the length of the table, may be attempted fearlessly. But this is not all. Not only may every kind of stroke be attempted without any attaching penalty, but if there be a fault of which the player is conscious he may now correct it. His attention is now concentrated upon the one point, and it is wonderful how soon that which has become habitual may be changed by steady determined suppression. Billiards again, at least to play one’s best game, is very much a question of confidence, and confidence is born of familiarity. He who has played a particular stroke in a particular way a hundred times successfully in private practice, not only feels that he can do that stroke in that way in a match, but that it is his best chance of doing the stroke at all. He is in a way compelled into the better class of game.

Probably no amateur is in the least likely to go through the years of continuous labour that the best professionals have given to the game. But in many instances he may, by giving some consideration to the matter and taking a little trouble, acquire a greater degree of accuracy than has hitherto been associated with his game. Accuracy in play means accuracy in striking, and the player has to aim at hitting ball after ball with the precision of a machine. Of course one seldom or never gets two strokes running exactly alike, but the various movements of the body which precede and accompany the delivery of the stroke may be and should be alike. This uniformity of style is the groundwork of accuracy, and it is by a recognition of the various movements and a careful observance of them that the player may obtain a correct mechanical style. He should once for all definitely decide what is the best style for him to adopt, and, having decided, should strictly observe it with unfailing regularity. It is absolutely fatal to keep chopping and changing in the endeavour to copy a better player. In all probability that which is copied has nothing to do with the excellence of the play. It is perhaps some little trick which is peculiar to the man, the result of his build or of his early billiard education. Most of us have known some friend who, after seeing John Roberts give one of his wonderful exhibitions of skill, has attempted to imitate his rapidity of play. The last state of that person is worse than his first. We cannot all play our best in the same way. Some men are naturally quick players, others lose whatever merit they may have in the attempt to hurry through their stroke. Usually, the better practice a man is in the quicker he plays, but, whether he play fast or slow, he should always play naturally and at the same pace. If he be playing badly, conscious hurrying over or dwelling on the stroke will not mend matters. The reason for the bad play must be sought elsewhere. Usually the internal machinery has in some way gone wrong. But the last thing a man cares to admit is any failing in himself. It is far more pleasant to attribute his ill success to something else. Still, if his style be not radically wrong, and if during one of these seasons of depression he attempts to vary it, his game will surely suffer when the causes which led to his temporary deterioration have passed away.

If I venture to give some advice, it is with a double motive; first, to illustrate my meaning how, by a careful attention to details, uniformity of style may be obtained, and, second, in the hope that it may in some respects be found useful by beginners. But before doing so I should like to say a few words as to what I conceive to be the real utility of advice. What is too often the case is this. The beginner tries to recollect before every stroke all he has learnt, and laboriously endeavours to reduce each and every rule into practice at the same time. Some of these rules may be the exact opposite of his previous method. The consequence is that this attempt at wholesale assimilation causes the player to look like a trussed-up fowl, uncomfortable to himself and unnatural to others. He should remember that that which is ungainly in style is usually wrong, always superfluous.

Rules may be good enough in themselves, but if there be a grave difference between them and our former method there will always be a difficulty about their immediate application. There is no authority for the opinion that the world was made in a day, and even at games time must be allowed to bring about the desired result. Too great insistence upon the observance of several rules at the same time distresses and discourages the player. But if he will get, more especially in the intervals of play, a clear mental recognition of the rules which he believes to be specially applicable to himself, he will find that they will presently begin to work out in practice. This is not only a more pleasant but a better way. Without any conscious effort, the player finds that the mind is beginning to direct and control the bodily movements. The result thus arrives in an apparently natural way, and when it so comes it comes to stay. That this is the best use to which advice can be put is an opinion derived from an experience more or less intimate with a variety of games.

No exact formula can be laid down with regard to position. This is precisely one of those cases in which some latitude must be allowed for a man’s make and shape. Two points, however, should be borne in mind. To state them in their natural order they are, first, that the player should always, so far as circumstances permit, assume the same relative position as between himself, his own ball, and the line of direction. A useful general rule is the following. When the player takes his position opposite his own ball with his left leg advanced as is the usual manner, the line of direction if prolonged backwards through the centre of his ball would pass through the centre of his body. As he settles to his stroke, the body naturally sways a little to the left, leaving the right arm free to swing in the proper direction. Secondly, the position should be a firm one. The advantage of this will be more particularly felt in any game in which nerves play a part. If there be any tendency to unsteadiness in the player’s position, it will then be emphasised. The body should be kept as motionless as possible, the feet being firmly placed and the right leg straight.

It is not easy to recognise the true natural angle[^[13]] under all its different phases, and the frequent failure of even the best players at long losing hazards shows this. Constant practice is the only teacher, and the plan of having for private play two strips of wood joined together at the proper angle—and which was, I believe, first introduced by Joseph Bennett—is very useful. The angle is more sharply defined, and therefore easier of recognition, if taken through some fixed point, and this point should be the centre of the player’s ball. The angle should be taken to the centre of the pocket.

It is almost a rarity to find a really good baulk-line player, and in some cases it is quite the weakest point in a man’s game. That this should be so seems strange, seeing that the player has such a wide range within which to place his own ball. It is, I think, often this very option of choice of position that causes the stroke to be missed. The player places his ball, perhaps, quite correctly for the first long loser he has, but misses it through hitting his own ball falsely. He does not attribute his failure to its proper cause, but thinks he has placed his own ball wrongly. Next time he puts it a little wider or narrower as the case may be, and if he happen to put on by accident the proper amount of side and does the stroke, he is almost worse off than ever, for the first time he does hit his own ball truly he comes to grief. By this time he has got an entirely wrong estimate of what the true natural angle is, and it may be a matter of several days before he can do the stroke with any certainty. Another point may be remarked. If the player use only his left eye in play, he should judge the angle only with his left eye; if he use both eyes, then judge with both eyes; but if he uses the right eye to take the angle and the left eye to play, when he settles to his stroke the angle will often appear wrong, and he will become confused as to what the correct natural angle really is. This probably arises from the fact that with most people the focus of the two eyes is not identical.

Whether the cue should be held only by the fingers, or in the hollow of the hand, may be matter of opinion, but there is no doubt it should be held lightly, not gripped. Any rigidity of the muscles tends to impair the easy pendulum swing so essential to accurate play. Some people seem to think it necessary to grip the cue when making a screw. The point is easily susceptible of practical demonstration if they will only condescend to hit the ball in the proper place.

With many players, again, the position of the left hand appears to be a matter of supreme indifference. They place it on the table anyhow, and almost without taking a glance at the stroke. Now it is all very well to say ‘Look at John Roberts. He doesn’t worry about these things,’ but we are not, most of us at least, of the calibre of John Roberts. His easy and graceful style is deceptive. If anyone will take the trouble to contrast the face of the man with his manner of play, it will be apparent how thoroughly concentrated is his mind on the game. He is the consummate artist who conceals the difficulty of the stroke under the ease of its execution. For most players, and all beginners, it is advisable to pay some little attention to the position of the left hand. Obviously it is of importance. If it has to be moved, however slightly, after the player has settled to his stroke, the result will be a loss of accuracy. It should be advanced with care, by which I do not mean with wearisome laboriousness, to the player’s ball, the eye being steadily kept on the line of direction, or, better still, on the exact spot on the object ball it is desired to hit.

The cue from tip to butt should be in one straight line with the line of direction. It may be thought that this is always the case, but a close observation will show that very frequently the cue along its length is by no means in a straight line with the point aimed at. I have found it most useful to bear this rule in mind, especially when beginning practice after a long absence from the billiard-table.

The player should not hurry up from the table after delivering his stroke. The fault indicated may easily become a habit, and a very bad one. It may be often observed among the more impatient class of players. It may cause the body to move at the very moment when it is most essential it should be quite steady, viz. at the moment of the cue’s contact with the ball.

A few more hints may be useful to some. Much of billiards is played before settling to the stroke. This may at first sight appear an absurd statement, but it contains an important truth. If the player have a clearly defined idea not only of what stroke he is going for, but how it is to be made, much of the difficulty is already overcome; but if he go down to his stroke, and then have an elaborate consultation with himself as to what is to be done, the process is not only harassing to his opponent but detrimental to himself. Once having decided on the stroke, he should go for it unhesitatingly, and as though no other stroke were possible. To play one game, at the same time having a lingering partiality for another, is not usually attended with success.

The height of the player and the length of his arms will to a considerable extent determine where he should hold the cue so that he may combine sufficient power with the greatest attainable accuracy. It must not, therefore, be held too far back. This may cause a slight loss of power, but that is of very small importance. The bad play so often seen in amateur billiards is not usually to be attributed to any want of power of execution.

I have never known a professional do a stroke which most amateurs could not copy, though I have known one instance of an amateur being able to do that which probably no professional living could do. The feat deserves to be recorded. The gentleman was an undergraduate at Cambridge, and it was said that he could from baulk screw back off the red on the spot into baulk again. One day I asked him to do it for my edification, and at the third attempt he succeeded. The balls used were two of the usual set with which we ordinarily played. He used his own cue, which was one of the usual pattern of English cues. The white came straight back without touching a cushion. There are many persons besides myself who have seen him do it, but I have never heard an authenticated case of any other person who could perform the feat.

On the face of it, it seems wrong that a man of six feet and one of five feet six inches should hold cues of the same length in the same place, and a slight consideration of the nature of a proper stroke will show very good reasons for not holding the cue too long. The stroke itself should be made by, as nearly as may be, a horizontal motion of the cue. Any depression of the cue-tip has a tendency to make the ball take a slight curve. There are strokes when it is desirable to sharply raise the butt for the very purpose of making one’s own ball describe a curve before contact with the object ball, and such strokes are sometimes very useful when the pocket is a narrow one. But as a general rule the movement of the cue should be as nearly horizontal as circumstances allow. Now, if the cue be held too long for thorough control over it, as the player’s hand goes back before delivering the stroke it will take an upward direction, and one of two things must take place when the stroke is made. If, during the forward movement, the cue work in a plane, it will be depressed at the moment of contact with the ball; but if at the moment of contact it be horizontal, or nearly so, it will have described a slightly circular movement. This is one of the things to be avoided, for the cue should work like a piston-rod.

The bridge should be a short bridge rather than a long one. What is meant by a short bridge is a short distance between the bridge itself and the player’s ball. Too long a bridge must necessarily diminish accuracy of hitting. The stroke itself should come from the arm alone, and as much as possible from the elbow, the movement of the shoulder being kept within the narrowest limits. However delicate, it should be a clean, crisp blow, avoiding the least suspicion of a push. In this respect it is exceedingly instructive to watch John Roberts play. He appears to strike the ball so hard, even in his close game, that one is at a loss to understand how it stops so quickly—the fact being that the ball is struck so firmly, and so clean, as to give the appearance of a harder stroke than in reality it is. It is a very unusual thing to see an amateur strike his ball crisply when using delicate strengths. Not only should the angle be judged, but aim should be taken through the centre of the player’s ball. This applies to every stroke not less than a half-ball. For all ordinary strokes—excepting, of course, screws, &c.—the ball should be struck, whether with side or without, exactly half-way up. The ball when so struck runs truer.

One last word of advice. It is—simplify your game. If you can take your choice of two games, one which looks promising but with possible complications, the other simple and obvious, choose the latter. Some two or three years ago Dawson was for this reason a most instructive player for the amateur. His game was so simple that he never appeared to be in a difficulty. He has somewhat changed its character since, but I question if he has ever played better than he did then. In this respect John Roberts is the last player the amateur should attempt to copy. His game is full of complications, but he gets rid of them with an ease and a celerity that fairly astonish the onlookers. He is out of a difficulty almost before one has recognised that there is one. Sometimes he seems to fairly revel in them, and deliberately to make them for the pleasure of getting out of them. It is certainly wonderfully attractive, but the percentage of men who could play such a game with success would be infinitesimal.

If this memorandum appear too didactic, I can only apologise to my readers. It must necessarily assume that character to some extent. But, in truth, the advice is not meant for good players. It may be that there are some fine players who have never consciously observed any rules, but have naturally adopted a correct style. They are facile players, but they know not the pleasure which comes from attacking and overcoming difficulties. There are others, quite as fond of the game, who find the road to even partial success a somewhat stony one. These hints, or some of them, may perhaps be of use to such. One thing is certain. Not even the most perfect rules or the most undeniable instructions can of themselves make a good player. They cannot take the place of hard work. All they can do is to help the beginner over some of the difficulties others have met with, and so save him time.

The Bridge (bouclée)

CHAPTER IV
MOTION, IMPACT, AND DIVISION OF BALLS: TWO-BALL PRACTICE

The practice prescribed in the preceding chapter had for its chief object the attainment of certainty in striking ball 1 truly in the centre; we now proceed to study some of the elementary facts concerning the impact of one ball with another.

In the first place, the conditions of impact should be recognised, and what is termed the division of balls must be explained.

Fig. 1

Now, for practical purposes the cloth and bed of the table are level, and the balls are of the same size; hence when they touch one another the point of contact is invariably on the line of their greatest horizontal circumference, which, as all know, is precisely at half their height. It will hereafter be shown that ball 1 may be caused to leap, and so strike ball 2 above this; but for present purposes, when a plain stroke alone is being considered, it may be accepted as a fact that the point of impact is always at half the ball’s height. That fixes the location of impact vertically; but horizontally it is evident that there is considerable latitude. Ball 1 may hit ball 2 either precisely full, when the centre of one is played on the centre of the other, or it may strike either to the right or left of the centre of ball 2; the limit on either side being the finest possible touch. The accompanying figure will show what is meant. When ball 1 hits ball 2 full, at the moment of impact it occupies the position 1″; and the part of 2 which can be struck by a ball situated at 1 is from P″ to P; if ball 1 occupies the position 1′, then the part of 2 which may be touched is restricted to that marked P″ P′; but should ball 1 be placed at 1″, then the only point on 2 it can touch is P″. Therefore the nearer 1 is to 2 the less of the latter can be struck, and the further away the more.

As regards the division of balls, for the English game at any rate, the simpler it is the better. The larger balls on a smaller table, as used in the French game, admit of more minute subdivision than do our smaller balls, which may be, and often are, further from the player’s eye. To attempt a division which the eye cannot easily appreciate is a mistake. For purposes of play both balls 1 and 2 must be divided; and although at this early stage of the manual we are not concerned with the division of ball 1 (for all practice at present is confined to centre strokes), yet it is convenient now to record the divisions of both balls.

Ball 1 is divided by its vertical and horizontal diameters into four parts. The centre stroke is delivered at C, and is of all strokes by far the commonest and most important.

A ball struck high and right is struck in the sector C A E; low and left in C D B; high and left in C A D; low and right in C E B.

The vertical and horizontal lines are divided from the centre where they intersect, into four equal parts each way. Thus a ball ¼ high is struck on the line C A at the point marked ¼; ½ low is struck on C B at the point marked ½; ¾ right is struck on C E at the point marked ¾; ¼ left is struck on C D at the point marked ¼. Combinations of these divisions are of course possible: thus ½ high and right would indicate a point P; ¾ left and ½ low is represented by P′. That division is quite as minute as the eye can follow; indeed, for general purposes it will probably suffice to indicate the sector only; to say, for example, ball 1 should be struck high and right.

Fig. 2

Opening The Game.

In respect to ball 2 the matter is different; it cannot, as has already been shown, be struck save on the line C C′ A, the height moment of reaching 2, then its position will be that of the dotted circle 1″, whose centre is C″, and P′ is the point of impact. For any stroke between full and half-ball the point of impact will lie between P and P′; between half-ball and the extreme of fineness the point of impact will lie beyond P′ in the direction of E.

Ball 2 being struck by ball 1 at P′ must travel in the direction P′ B F, the line from the point of impact passing through B the centre. There is practically no departure from this rule. Hence it follows that if it be desired that ball 2 should travel in the direction B F, say to a pocket, imagine a line from the pocket passing through the ball’s centre; this cuts the circumference at P′, which is manifestly the point which must be struck by ball 1. Where is the centre of ball 1 to be aimed at in order that P′ may be struck? Produce the imaginary line F B P′ to C″, making P′ C″ equal to B P′ or in other words equal to the radius of the ball. If the centre of ball 1, C, be aimed on C″, ball 2 must be struck at P′ and must travel in the direction required.

Pray realise that it is impossible to hit ball 2 at the point aimed at save when the stroke is full; in every other case the aim must be beyond the point of impact, and the rule above given will enable anyone to determine precisely where aim should be taken.

When a ball is struck by the cue its first impulse is to slide forward, and if there were no friction between the ball and the cloth it would do so till arrested by other causes; but as there always is this friction, the lower part of the ball is thereby retarded, and the result is the rolling or revolving motion with which all are familiar. This will be further considered when the subject of rotation is discussed, but it is mentioned here as the cause of certain effects which will be observed in some of the strokes recommended for practice. When one ball impinges on another the immediate result is a greater or lesser flattening of both surfaces at the point of impact; this is instantaneously followed by recoil,[^[14]] the result of each ball reassuming its spherical form. The greater the strength of stroke the greater the flattening and the greater the recoil; the converse likewise holds good.

Further, the force or strength with which ball 1 strikes ball 2 is immediately divided on impact; if ball 2 be struck full it appears to acquire from ball 1 the whole of its energy save that due to naturally developed rotation, the result being that ball 2 travels fast whilst ball 1 remains comparatively stationary. If the distance between the two balls be very small, little rotation is acquired and ball 1 transmits its motion to ball 2 and stops on or near the spot which that ball occupied; if the distance be considerable, ball 1 acquires rotation which, overcoming the recoil on impact, causes it to travel slowly in its original direction. When impact is other than full, ball 1 parts with more or less of its force, which is transmitted to ball 2. What the one loses the other gains.

These general remarks will seem to many self-evident and superfluous; to others they may prove difficult to realise and distasteful; but students, whether beginners or those who have already acquaintance with the game, may rest assured that a careful consideration of them can do no harm and may be of much advantage; for practice is assisted by an intelligent appreciation of the behaviour of balls under certain conditions; in short, by a consideration of cause and effect.

For practice: place ball 1 on the centre of the Ｄ on the baulk-line, put ball 2 a foot up the table in the central line, play 1 full on 2 with varying strength, at first with strength to carry 2 to the top cushion; the truth of the stroke will be shown by 2 passing over all the spots in the central line and 1 following slowly in the same line for a short distance. When tolerable certainty is acquired play the same stroke harder, and if correctly struck ball 2 will return from the top cushion and meet ball 1, kiss as it is called, in the central line. The stroke can be made more difficult by placing ball 2 further up the table, say on the centre spot, and playing as before, and again by placing it on the pyramid spot. This practice, though it may seem uninteresting, is most useful; it combines and continues that recommended for one ball with that required for truth of stroke on another. It also, as will hereafter be shown, is directly useful in the matter of cannons, hence it should be assiduously practised.

Fig. 5

Next set ball 2 upon the central line at such a distance from the baulk-line as the player can imagine its division described on page [133], and play ball 1 so as to make three-quarter, half, and quarter-ball strokes with some confidence. This distance will no doubt vary with the stature and sight of the player, but 2 feet may be tried as about average. If P, P′, P″ be the points of impact for the various divisions, ball 2 will, after the strokes, travel in the directions R, R′, R″, each being the prolongation of a line from the point of impact through the centre. Ball 1 will behave differently according to the strength with which it is struck; what is always true is that it will travel in a contrary direction to ball 2. If the one ball goes to the left after impact the other will go to the right. Played with strength 1 or 2, impact being at P, ball 1 will follow through the space which ball 2 covered, and will stop slightly to the right of the line A B. With impact at P′ or a half-ball stroke, ball 1 will deviate further from the line A B, and travel in the direction D, A C D being the half-ball angle; when played quarter-ball, impact being at P″, ball 1 will deviate less from A B and travel towards E. The object of this practice is to accustom the eye to recognise approximately the directions taken by both balls after impact.

A small matter which is a little obscure connected with the language of billiards should here be noticed. In placing ball 1 for a stroke, it is usual, and generally desirable, to select a spot from which the angle 1 C D shall be what is known as the half-ball angle, and certainty in play is greatly based on the power of recognising this position. Consequently in time players, perhaps unconsciously, refer almost every stroke to that angle as a standard. If a hazard or cannon is on the table, they consider for a moment whether the angle contained between the two paths of ball 1 is greater or less than the half-ball angle, and to the best of their ability they apply compensations to meet the difference, playing fuller and harder when the angle is less, finer and slower when the angle is greater, until a following stroke becomes necessary. Nevertheless, the universal custom is to define the situation when the angle is smaller as wider, and when the angle is greater as narrower. Thus the position 1 C D is called wider than 1 C E. Clearly it is so only as regards the deviation of ball 1 from the prolongation of its original path—that is, from the path which would have been followed if there had been no impact—consequently the angle of deviation must be defined as that between the new actual path of ball 1 and the path that would have been described if the deviation had not taken place. This being accepted, the ordinary use of the terms wider and narrower is appropriate.

In this and in all diagrams as far as possible the lines followed by the centres of balls are shown; hence, as the centres cannot touch each other or the cushions, the lines do not reach to the surface of either, but are necessarily short of the point of impact by the length of the ball’s radius. Ball 1, after impact other than full, describes a curve due to the forces to which it is subject; this is greater in proportion to the strength of stroke, and though in practice its effect must not be neglected, it is not ordinarily shown in the diagrams, which do not pretend to absolute accuracy, but merely to such measure of correctness as is required for practical purposes. An illustration of the curve, and a warning when its existence must not be overlooked, will be found in Chapter V.

Fig. 6

From the strokes recommended in Chapter III. for practice it will have been learnt that in a general way a ball played against a cushion will return therefrom, so that the angle of reflexion shall be nearly equal to the angle of incidence. A useful two-ball practice based on this is to place balls 1 and 2 on the table and endeavour to play on 2, having first struck a cushion. The difficulty is to determine the point on the cushion on which 1 must impinge so as to rebound on 2.

The solution is approximately:—From ball 1 let fall 1 A perpendicular to the cushion A C D; produce 1 A to B, making A B = 1 A. Join B with the centre of 2; where that line cuts the cushion at C is the point required. Play 1 so that it shall strike C and it will rebound on 2. Similarly, if the second ball occupy the position 2′ the line from B to its centre intersects the cushion at D; ball 1 played to touch the cushion at D will travel to 2′. In a game of course the cushion must not be marked, but in practice it will at first be found advantageous to mark the spot sufficiently to guide the stroke and educate the eye. This is easily done by placing a piece of chalk on the wooden frame of the cushion just behind the spot to be hit, thus doing away with the need of marking the cushion with chalk, which it is well to avoid. When it is necessary to mark the cloth of bed or cushion, pipeclay such as tailors use is preferable to chalk. Special attention is necessary to two facts: first, the angle of reflexion varies with the strength; that is, a soft stroke will come off very nearly at the same angle as that of incidence, whilst with a hard stroke there is a perceptible difference; second, the point on the cushion which should be hit must not be aimed at. This is merely a modification of what has already been explained with reference to the points of aim and of impact. Fig. 7 shows how very far a ball on the line 1 P played, i.e. aimed at P, is from hitting that point; instead of doing so it strikes the cushion at T; hence allowance must be made in aiming, the length allowed on the cushion diminishing as the angle approaches a right angle. When the stroke is at a right angle to the cushion the points P and T coincide and no allowance is required.

One reason why the angle of reflexion varies with the strength is that, on impact with the cushion, the ball, being harder than the rubber, indents it—makes a sort of cup, in fact, deeper as the stroke is stronger. Friction with the cloth of the cushion has also some effect on the angle, and there may be other causes at work; fortunately, it is probable that one to some extent counteracts another. This practice from a cushion is interesting as well as useful; at first the beginner will be satisfied if he hits ball 2 anywhere and anyhow; but soon he will be able to hit it on one side or the other, as he may wish, when the distance ball 1 has to travel is not very great. Hereafter both cannons and hazards will be mentioned, which must be played bricole, or off a cushion before ball 2 is struck, and the practice proposed will make their execution fairly easy and certain. We conclude this chapter, which has covered important ground, with four illustrations of the division of ball 2 at the moment of impact. A shows ball 1 applied to 2 for a quarter-ball stroke, B for a half-ball, C for a three-quarter-ball, and D for a full ball stroke; the phases varying between partial and total eclipse.

Fig. 7

Fig. 8

CHAPTER V
PLAIN STROKES, WINNING AND LOSING HAZARDS, CANNONS: THREE-BALL PRACTICE

By the practice already recommended, the beginner should have become fairly able to strike ball 1 in the centre, and familiar with the divisions of ball 2; he may therefore with advantage proceed to play natural or plain strokes. We prefer the term plain, partly because, ball 1 being struck in the centre, no rotation beyond that which is self-acquired or spontaneous is communicated by the cue, and partly because one stroke deserves the name natural as much as another. It is as natural for a ball struck on its side to rotate round its vertical axis as it is for a ball struck in the centre to have no such rotation.

In billiards plain strokes cover a vast field; most of the certainties, or strokes which should seldom be missed, come under that definition. Their number is infinite, and it is impossible to give diagrams of more than a few typical examples. The student can, without great effort, multiply and vary them at will, and it is desirable that he should do so, altering the strength and noting the behaviour of each ball after the stroke. He will thus learn more than he can possibly acquire from any book, however excellent, and will profit much if his practice is occasionally supervised by a competent instructor.

Let us begin with winning hazards. Place ball 2 on the centre spot; it is then opposite the middle pockets. Choose one of them into which the ball is to be played. From what has already been explained, it is known that the ball should travel on a line drawn from its centre to the centre of the pocket—that is, from C to A (fig. 1); also that the point of impact must be where that line prolonged meets the circumference at B, and that the centre of ball 1 must therefore, at the moment of striking, be at P, B P being equal to B C, or the radius of the balls. No matter where ball 1 may be situated, its centre has to be played on P in order that the winning hazard may be perfectly made.

Set ball 1 on the prolongation of A C, which is the line of the cue’s axis. The player must place himself accordingly, and aim full at ball 2. The stroke is precisely similar to that recommended for practice over the spots, but easier, as the distances are shorter. It should be played with various strengths. With a soft No. 1, ball 2 will roll into the pocket, ball 1 following a few inches on the same path. If it diverge there is error in the stroke, and endeavour should be made to correct it. That is, the player should not be satisfied with the mere winning hazard, which is very simple, but should by watching the path of the balls, satisfy himself that the stroke was true. With No. 2 strength, or a free No. 2, ball 1 will follow on, and eventually drop into the same pocket.

When tolerable certainty has been acquired, ball 1 may be moved to 1′, 1″, &c., either to the right or left of the original position. No good can result from giving precise measurements for the various situations of ball 1; it does not, indeed, greatly matter where it is set, so long as the player can reach it with comfort; what is obligatory is that its centre must pass over the point P. The limit of the stroke is when the position 1ⁿ is reached; thence, if correctly played, point B will just be touched, and no motion to ball 2 be communicated. Hence, when the path of ball 1 before impact is at right angles to that which 2 must travel, the winning hazard is impossible. In other words, a right-angled cut is impossible; such strokes sometimes seem to be made, but the explanation will, on examination, be found in the size and shape of the pockets. These winning hazards should be practised into both middle pockets till a tolerable certainty or confidence is acquired. Some persons will make the full, whilst others will play the fine strokes best; and again, it will often be found that, when playing into the right-hand pocket, there is a tendency to error on one or other side, but when playing to the left-hand pocket the mistake is just reversed. If the strokes are taken too full to the right, they will be made too fine to the left. The proper procedure is obvious: by making a very small allowance each way the mistake will be corrected, the eyes will become educated, and the tendency to error will diminish. It need scarcely be added that the kind of stroke in which one has least confidence should receive the most attention; failure indicates where practice is required.

Fig. 1

Also, let the path of ball 1, after impact, receive close attention, and as soon as some certainty in making the hazard is felt, let the exercise consist quite as much in playing to leave ball 1 in or near a desired place as in the success of the hazard. The value of this is all but self-evident, and it is as important in pool or pyramids as in billiards.

Similar practice may, with advantage, be made to the top corner pockets, ball 2 being placed on the billiard, and afterwards on the pyramid spot. The rules for finding what point of 2 should be struck and the points of aim are, of course, unaltered, but attention may usefully be given to the following hint, based on the construction of the cushions at the neck of the pocket. Whether a pocket is easy or not depends, perhaps, more on this than on the actual width at the fall. If the channel is gradually rounded off, with but little rubber in the sides, a ball once in the neck is nearly sure to fall into the pocket; but if there is much rubber in the sides, the same ball would expend its energy in rebounding from side to side, and have no disposition to travel forward into the pocket. Cushions cut square, as it is called, make the pockets more difficult than those sloped gently away; the channel is narrower.

Let ball 2 be placed between the spot and the top cushion, or anywhere on a line connecting a point so chosen and the corner pocket into which it is proposed to play. In this case the point of aim is no longer the true centre of the pocket, nor even the centre of the portion of the pocket which is open from position 2, but a point so chosen that ball 2 may impinge on the neck or side of the pocket entrance, and thence drop in. The accompanying sketch will show what is meant. If ball 2 were played on C, the centre of the pocket, it would strike the cushion A, and very probably rebound to the opposite side, and the hazard would fail: but if, on the contrary, it strike the cushion B at a point T, inside the neck of the pocket, then, unless played very hard, the hazard will to a certainty be made.

Fig. 2

With reference to the position of ball 2, C is termed a blind pocket, because the full width at the fall is not open. Hazards into blind pockets are therefore more difficult than those into open ones; nevertheless, if the player is careful to observe the required point of impact, and to allow accordingly in aim, such strokes can be played with considerable confidence.

When measurements are given whereby the positions of balls on the billiard-table may be found, they must not be supposed to be absolutely accurate. They no doubt are nearly so for the table and balls with which the stroke was played for the purposes of this volume; but tables, balls, cloth, and climate are subject to variation which may make modification necessary, and, moreover, each man has a mode of using his cue as peculiar to himself as is his handwriting. Therefore, once for all, let it be understood that the diagrams and descriptions must be treated as but approximate. All measurements from a cushion are from the edge on which balls impinge to the centre of the ball whose position is to be fixed; those from a pocket are from the middle of the fall. The dotted lines with figures marked in Diagram I., example A, show the measurements whereby the position of ball 2 is determined. Many mistakes are made by inaccurate reading of instructions, and by failure to use the measure correctly, but the eye will prove a useful check; for if the position of the balls, when placed on the table, does not nearly coincide with that shown in the diagram, there is an error somewhere which a little patience and consideration will cause to be discovered.

A few typical strokes are shown on Diagram I.:—

A. Ball 1, on or near the right corner of the Ｄ; ball 2 7½ in. below the right middle pocket, and 8 in. from cushion 3. The measurements are in this instance shown on the diagram as a guide in other cases.

Play a free No. 1 strength. Ball 1, after pocketing 2, should travel to the top cushion, and so far back as to leave an easy winning hazard on a ball on the billiard spot. With slight variation of the position, the stroke may be played slower or faster, as may be desired. If the strength is misjudged, and ball 1 should stop somewhere between the top cushion and the desired position, a losing hazard in the left top pocket may not improbably be possible. The positions of both balls may be considerably varied, whilst the stroke remains virtually unchanged. The further ball 1 is brought to the left along the baulk-line, the fuller is the hazard, and the position of ball 1 after the stroke will be more to the right of the spot than that shown in the diagram.

B. Ball 1, 25½ in. from cushion 2, and 10 in. from the top cushion.

Ball 2, touching the top cushion and 12 in. from the right top pocket. Play a gentle No. 1, which will leave ball 1 about 7 in. from cushion 2 and 14 in. from the top cushion.

In this stroke ball 2 and the cushion are simultaneously struck, as will be apparent if ball 1 be placed against ball 2 at the proper point of impact; hence a very common rule is to direct the player to aim between ball and cushion. The general rule however for finding the point of impact holds good, and the fact that under the circumstances the cushion is struck at the same time as the ball is merely a coincidence.

Instead of Long Rest

C. Ball 1, 3 in. from the left side cushion, and 9 in. from the left top pocket.

A Disputed Score.

Diagram I.

Ball 2, touching the left side cushion and 4½ in. from left top pocket. Play a very soft stroke so that ball 1 may be left at 1′; a losing hazard from the spot is then open. This stroke is best made if the player stand close to the balls and lean over the table, making his bridge for the cue bouclée—i.e. the forefinger bent round the cue. If played in the usual way the stroke could not be reached without the long rest, and the eye is then so far from the ball that error and failure are probable. Any ordinary player can show the stroke, which is quite easy and very useful.

D. Ball 1, 5 in. from cushion 5 and 17 in. below the left middle pocket.

Ball 2, 6 in. from cushion 5 and 7 in. below the left middle pocket.

This is an example of a hazard to a blind pocket. Ball 1 should be struck gently, and its position after the stroke will be in the direction of the right top pocket. It is, in fact, a fine cut, and if played with sufficient strength ball 1 may probably go into the right top pocket. If ball 1 be placed 6 in. from cushion 5, the stroke is slightly fuller and may be played slower; after impact the ball will travel in the direction D E.

Diagram II. shows positions for doubles, with which it is well to accustom the eye. Though such strokes are not very much used in billiards, they are occasionally of great value, and their principle is based on the equality of the angles of incidence and reflexion. It is clear that a double may be set up at almost any part of the table, and it is well that several positions should be selected and played from till some certainty is obtained; those shown in the diagram are merely types. In these cases ball 1 is played full or nearly so on 2, and position for a further score may with attention to strength be attained. Doubles are used more in pool and pyramids than in billiards, and will be treated in detail when the two former games are described.

Diagram II.

It may be as well to make a few remarks explanatory of the diagram. A is an example of a double in baulk where the balls are easily reached. The point A on the cushion where impact with ball 2 should take place is half-way between the baulk-line and the bottom cushion. A ball played from B to A should, if truly struck in the centre, fall into the left bottom pocket. Place balls 1 and 2 as shown in the diagram on the line B A, keeping 2 sufficiently far from the cushion to avoid a kiss; play full, and 2 should be doubled. Again, let C be the middle point of cushion 6, and imagine lines joining it with the right middle and right top pockets. On these lines place the balls. A full stroke from ball 1 to 2 should double the latter in the one case into the right top pocket, in the other into the right middle pocket.

Next, D is an instance of a simple double, from which in more ways than one a losing hazard from spot may be left. Ball 1 is 24 in. from cushion 6 and 26½ in. above the middle pocket; ball 2 is 5 in. from the same cushion and 20½ in. above the pocket. A full stroke will double ball 2 into the right middle pocket, and ball 1 may be left near the line from the left middle pocket to the spot.

In the case marked E, ball 2 is just beyond the shoulder of the right middle pocket, ball 1 being so placed nearly in a line from 2 to the left bottom pocket that a full stroke about No. 1 strength will carry 2 to the left top pocket. Ball 1 may be so played as to leave a losing hazard into the left top pocket from a ball on spot.

All these strokes should be played medium strength, say No. 1 or 2; in practice it will be found that the angle of reflexion varies somewhat with the strength, and in a less degree with the table.

As great accuracy is of the highest importance in playing winning hazards, it is evident that, when either ball has a considerable distance to travel, the stroke should not be played too slowly; for in a very slow stroke imperfections of ball or table tell more than when greater strength is used. Also, before leaving the subject, it is desirable to impress the reader strongly with the importance of the remarks on pages [145]–6 respecting play into a more or less blind pocket. Attention to them is essential to good spot play and also to what is called play at the top of the table. Clearing the dangerous shoulder of the pocket is the secret of success.

We now proceed to losing hazards, which with most amateurs form the mainstay of the game; partly because being easier than winning hazards, they are usually taught first, but mainly because they are possible with a slovenly style and inaccurate striking which effectually prevent success with winners. In reality, however, they will repay care and accuracy as much as any other stroke, because, unless ball 2 be struck in the proper place, it will not travel in the desired path, and the result of a poor stroke may be success as regards the hazard, coupled with leaving ball 2 hopelessly safe. When played with intelligence and with due regard to the position of ball 2 after the stroke, they form most excellent practice. Following the usual custom, these strokes may be divided into short and long losers, and each will be separately treated; at present, of course, plain strokes only being considered. It is convenient to take the half-ball hazard as the standard or typical stroke; it is the easiest for the reason given at p. [133], because aim is taken at the edge of ball 2, a well-defined mark, instead of at an indefinite point on the ball’s surface. Moreover, on billiard-tables certain positions are recognised as affording half-ball losers, and these are most valuable to a player as supplying the means, during play, of testing and correcting his strokes or his judgment of angles. It often happens from many causes that a man’s eye or nerve partially fails, which failure destroys confidence and begets still worse play; he probably before long gets a stroke from one of the many positions which should be played half-ball. The mere effort to recognise the situation tends to arrest demoralisation, whilst the success which follows correct recognition goes far to restore equanimity and confidence. That is one reason against wantonly altering the positions of the spots on the table, the size of the Ｄ and such matters; though, no doubt, if the game can thereby be certainly improved, the alteration is justified, and in time players will learn similar positions under the altered circumstances. Hitherto such changes have been made rather with the view of cramping the play of one or two men, and so placing others less able or less diligent on a par with them, than with the object of making an undeniable improvement in the game. Such modifications under the pretext of reform are much to be deprecated.

Taking the billiard, pyramid, and centre spots as fixed points on the table, Diagram III. shows with sufficient accuracy the lines of half-ball strokes to the top pockets. Let the billiard spot be considered first. From either top pocket there is a half-ball stroke to the opposite one; also from either middle pocket there is similarly a half-ball hazard into the opposite top pocket. Next, from a ball placed on the pyramid spot there are half-ball hazards from either corner of the Ｄ into the top pockets; and, lastly, from a ball on the centre spot, half-ball strokes to either top pocket may be made from positions about 7½ in. to the right and left of the centre spot of baulk. Precise accuracy in definition of these strokes is not attempted; tables and balls vary, whilst no two men strike exactly alike; hence each must work out for himself the exact position for a half-ball stroke; it will in every case be reasonably near the lines indicated.

Diagram IV. illustrates several losing hazards, all good for practice. For the group marked A, place ball 1 on an imaginary line from the centre of the red spot to the upper edge of the shoulder of the left middle pocket about half-way between them, where it can be conveniently reached by the player; it is then in position for a gentle half-ball stroke to the right top pocket. When correctly played, impact with ball 2 takes place on the central longitudinal line of the table, and consequently 2 travels to the top cushion on that line, and returns on the same path a shorter or greater distance according to the strength of stroke. A very gentle one will bring ball 2 back to the spot; a medium stroke will result in leaving it near the pyramid spot, and it can be brought further down the table if desired; but for practice at this stage endeavour should be made to leave ball 2 between the red and pyramid spots on the centre line. If this is effected, ball 2 has been truly struck; should it return to the right of the line it has been struck too full, and if it rests to the left of the line too fine. So that here again we have an index which points out error and shows what is required for its correction. The hazard is so easy that after a little practice it will seldom be missed, and for that reason it should be worked at till it becomes what is called a certainty.

Diagram III.

Then from A lay off, in the direction of the right middle pocket, a series of positions marked A′ A″ A‴ A⁗, each about 1¾ in. from the other, and from each of these play the hazard. The point of impact should be the same in every case, therefore the point of aim will vary slightly with the change of position; but the chief variation in the stroke lies in the strength employed.

For the position A′ the strength is about No. 2, and ball 2 should be left on the central line L L between the centre spot and the bottom cushion. For A″ the same stroke a little stronger, ball 2 returning from the bottom cushion towards the centre spot: and so on. It is seldom necessary to practise beyond A‴ in dealing with plain strokes. The strength required for this stroke is considerable approaching No. 4, and ball 2 should travel beyond twice the length of the table. In all these strokes endeavour should be made to keep ball 2 travelling on the line L L; this will be found not quite an easy matter, and sometimes divergence may not be from any fault of striking, for an imperfection in the ball which might account for an error of half an inch or less in 6 ft. would produce a perceptible deviation during a journey of 24 to 30 ft. Nevertheless, the prime source of failure is to be looked for in a faulty method on the part of the player, who, if he cannot easily remedy what is wrong, should without hesitation revert to the practice previously prescribed. After some work at this he will probably find that ball 1 was not being truly struck, and will amend the fault. These strokes should then be transferred to the other side of the table, making the hazards into the left top pocket. They are very conveniently played with the left hand, and the player who can use both hands almost indifferently has a great advantage over a purely one-handed performer. It is entirely, we think, a matter of resolution and of practice. At any rate, these strokes should be played from both sides of the table till they can be made without difficulty.

Diagram IV.

Example B exhibits a valuable stroke of common occurrence. Ball 1 is on the line from the left top pocket to the spot. That line should be taken from a point nearer the top than the side cushion. Ball 2 should be struck so as to drive it as indicated, half a foot or more above the right middle pocket on to the cushion, whence it rebounds and comes to rest conveniently over that pocket. A similar stroke should be played from the right top pocket, and there is as usual a little license as to the position of ball 1; it may be further from or nearer to the pocket than is shown in the diagram, and also a little above or below the line indicated, and still be a plain stroke; when the divergence is greater, side is required, and the methods of play will be hereafter explained.

The strokes marked C on this diagram afford admirable practice for middle pocket losing hazards; for their results record plainly the errors committed. They have been selected because the point of impact on ball 2 is in the central line of the table; therefore, as has been already shown, its path should lie on that line. Another advantage these strokes possess is that from each position of ball 2 precisely similar hazards may be made into the right and left middle pocket.

Place ball 2 in the central line of the table, 24 in. from the baulk-line. A half-ball hazard is open from either the right or left corner of the Ｄ. Ball 2 should pass up and down the central line, the distance varying with the strength; for simple hazard practice it should be brought back to its place before the stroke was made. Next bring ball 2 1½ in. down the central line; place ball 1 10 in. from the centre of baulk; play as before.

This stroke may be repeated by bringing ball 2 down the central line 1½ in. each time, till a position 18 in. from the baulk-line is reached. When nearer than this the stroke is so far changed that the strength must be reduced, so that ball 2 shall not return from the top cushion, but shall be cut towards one of the top pockets, and as the position of ball 2 approaches the baulk-line it will be found desirable to place ball 1 further and further back in the baulk within the limits of the Ｄ. Ball 1 is placed 1½ in. towards the centre for each stroke up to the fifth when ball 2 is 18 in. from baulk. Whilst accuracy should be aimed at, its perfect attainment is impossible; in playing these strokes occasionally a very good one may be made, and ball 2 may keep very close to the central line. Oftener, however, there will be divergence, and hence it is well to recognise limits within which the stroke, though not very good, may yet suffice to leave ball 2 in play. In the diagram the lines P M and Q N, drawn from the corners of the Ｄ parallel to the sides of the table, form such boundaries. If ball 2 be left anywhere in the space so enclosed, and as far down the table as the spot, there is almost certainly a plain hazard to be made off it from baulk into either top or middle pockets.

Other and easier middle pocket hazards may be indefinitely multiplied, and should be practised till the person playing acquires confidence, not merely that he can make the stroke, but that he can vary the strength at will from such delicacy as scarcely to move ball 2 to one which will bring it in and out of baulk. A few examples are given in Diagram V.

A. Ball 2, 16½ in. from cushion 3, 12½ in. below right middle pocket; ball 1 on right corner of the Ｄ. Play half-ball about No. 2 strength, leaving ball 2 placed for a hazard in the left middle pocket. Ball 2 can be brought back nearly over the centre spot, and the danger of the stroke is that, if played too fine, ball 2 will lie near cushion 6 and be practically out of play.

B. Ball 2, 15½ in. from cushion 3, 6 in. below right middle pocket; ball 1 on baulk centre spot. Play half-ball No. 2 strength, leaving ball 2 with hazard into right middle pocket.

C. Ball 2, 21 in. from cushion 5, 10 in. below left middle pocket; ball 1 on baulk centre spot. Play half-ball No. 2 strength, bringing ball 2 back over or near the centre spot of the table. With slight variation of strength and aim ball 2 can be brought back into almost any desired position on the table.

D. Ball 2, 9 in. from cushion 5, 23½ in. below left middle pocket; ball 1, 5½ in. to the right of the centre of baulk, or on position 5 of Example C, Diagram IV. Play a half-ball slow No. 1. Ball 2 will travel to the side cushion on a line at right angles to its face, or, in other words, parallel to the baulk-line, and will return on the same line to a distance varying with the strength. A medium No. 1 strength will bring the ball back from 24 to 30 in. from the side cushion. There is great latitude in placing ball 1 for this stroke, which can be made as far as 8½ in. to the right of baulk centre, the difference in play being merely in strength. The further ball 1 is placed from 2 the greater is the strength required, and as a consequence the further does ball 2 return from the side cushion. This stroke is of the class called ‘jennies.’ Each stroke here recommended for practice can be played from either side of the table; and this should always be done in order that the eye may become equally familiar with the angles into either side pocket.

The next two examples (Diagram VI.) are of an importance which the beginner may not at once realise, but which is abundantly clear to a professional or to an advanced amateur. The hazards are in themselves so easy that a very poor player can have no difficulty in making them; but mark the difference between the right and wrong method of play. In the first example the paths of ball 2 after impact are drawn, both when rightly and when wrongly struck; and an examination of them will show that if the proper method is followed, error in strength has much less effect in leaving the ball out of play, and if the stroke is wrongly played the margin for such error is comparatively small. The principle here illustrated applies to many positions, and consequently the strokes deserve close study.

Diagram V.

Example A.—Place ball 1, 40 in. from the top cushion, 7 in. from cushion 6; ball 2, 16 in. from the top cushion, 11 in. from cushion 6; play a free stroke rather finer than half-ball; it is a bad stroke indeed which leaves ball 2 out of play. Another good example is shown at B; ball 1, 24 in. from cushion 4, 4½ in. from cushion 3; ball 2, 13 in. from cushion 4, 9 in. from cushion 3. Play a free stroke finer than half-ball on 2, which will follow a course somewhat resembling that indicated.

Diagram VII. may be thus set up:—Ball 2, 5 in. from left middle pocket, ½ in. above a line joining the centres of the two middle pockets; place ball 1 7 in. to the right of the centre spot in baulk; play half-ball on ball 2 a free stroke. Ball 2 must be very badly struck if it is left out of play; it should strike the left side and top cushions and return to position. If played improperly, it returns from the top cushion only, and unless the strength is very exact is probably lost to play. Many accidents may happen; it may be holed in the left top pocket, or, still worse, catch in it and run safe under the top cushion; it may return close to cushion 6 and come to rest either above or below the middle pocket; in each case it is left in a more or less undesirable position. If played too full, ball 2 will probably be left safe near cushion 2; hence there are at least two types of wrong paths which might be shown, but they have been omitted to avoid complicating the diagram.

Having fairly mastered short losing hazards, the next step is to study similar strokes into the top pockets from baulk. They are called long losing hazards, and form an excellent test of a performer’s capacity at the game of billiards, in which they fill an important part. They require greater accuracy than the short hazards, because the balls have to travel over a greater distance, so that correctness in placing ball 1 for a plain half-ball stroke on ball 2 is of the greatest consequence. Smoothness and truth in the delivery of the cue must not be lost sight of, and a short reversion to the practice recommended in Chapters III. and IV. for the attainment of these objects will prove to be of much benefit.

Diagram VI.

The typical long losing hazard is made from ball 2 on the centre spot, ball 1 being about 7½ in. from the centre of the baulk. Differences in the elasticity of the balls will make a slight alteration in the best position for ball 1; where it is considerable, 8 in. may not be too far from baulk-spot, and where it is less 7 in. will suffice; the position also varies with the strength of stroke. This hazard is rightly considered a difficult one, and it cannot be mastered without much application; it is indeed now of more value than of old, because in a break when ball 1 is left touching another ball, the game is continued by placing the adversary’s ball on the centre spot, the red on spot, and playing from baulk.

The stroke can be made with considerable difference of strength, which varies of course with the position desired for ball 2. Ball 1 should be struck in the centre (not below) about No. 2 strength; this will bring ball 2 back over the middle pocket, the stroke being played half-ball. If it be made ten or twelve times in succession on a clean table, the path travelled by 1 after impact will be fairly visible, and it is an instructive subject of study. First there is a straight line to within the length of a radius of the point of impact, next there is a somewhat violent curve, the result of the forward course suddenly modified by impact, the rebound due to elasticity and the frictional action between ball and cloth, and this in turn is merged into a second straight line. The action described is not peculiar to this stroke, but is visible in many others, and exists more or less in all, but this one forms a favourable opportunity for observation. The path travelled by ball 1 is roughly indicated in fig. 3, and the practical lesson to be learned therefrom is that in playing cannons the curve must never be overlooked or forgotten when the third ball lies within the sphere of its influence. Reference has just been made to the impact of two balls and the rebound which follows, a subject which was referred to in the last chapter; it is of interest, and at this moment appropriate, to consider the matter a little further.

Diagram VII.

Fig. 3

In fig. 3 ball 1 played on 2 impinges at T; 2 travels from T as shown by the arrow. B C shows the line travelled by 1 after impact as it is exhibited in the diagrams; but the true path is more nearly B D. Hence it is clear that a cannon on ball 3 would just be missed, the position of 1 being indicated in the act of passing 3. The tendency of the lines B D and B C to approach each other and ultimately to coincide is apparent. It is also clear that the magnitude of the curve B D depends on the strength of stroke as well as on the elasticity of the balls. If played very hard, it will be greater; if very soft, it will almost disappear, the line of travel approximating to B C, in which case it is evident the cannon would be made.

The balls may for our purpose be assumed to be of equal density and perfectly elastic; that is, they are equally hard, equally heavy, and when they receive the shock of impact they recover their figure or shape with a force equal to that which caused the momentary compression. What happens more or less in every stroke in which one ball is made to strike another is that at the moment of collision the round surfaces are flattened by the shock, and impact is not confined to what is accurately called a point, but is extended to this flattened surface, which varies in size according to the strength of the stroke, the hardness of the balls, and the part of ball 2 struck. In using a very perfect set of ivory balls 2³⁄₃₂ in. diameter, in a stroke rather fuller than half-ball with strength from No. 3 to 4, this temporary flattening was found to extend to about the size of the head of a small tin-tack, say ⅒ in. in diameter; nearly but not quite as large as the billiard balls shown in the diagrams. The rebound is due to the reaction whereby the balls recover their normal shape; in the case of ball 2, which was at rest before impact, the effect is to make it travel on a line from the point of impact through its centre; the effect on ball 1, which was not only moving forward but also revolving, being to check its velocity, some of which is imparted to ball 2, to rebound, and to assume a new path, the first part of which is curved as a result of the blending of the various forces to which it is subjected. In this explanation no pretence to a mathematical solution is made; it is simply the result of watching the behaviour of the balls and endeavouring to account for it by an exercise of common-sense. Most persons who have played much must have noticed occasional stains of red on the white ball; these were the results of impact, and if carefully examined would be found to be small circular spots; similarly all persons are familiar with the fact that the red ball gradually loses its colour, which it parts with in the way here noticed.

Now to return to the long losing hazards; the usual mistake is to place ball 1 for a stroke finer than half-ball, the result being that it strikes the side cushion on the dangerous shoulder; therefore, when in doubt, allow for this and place the ball for a full rather than for a fine stroke. The hazard from ball 2 on the central point of the table should be constantly practised, first into one top pocket and next into the other, till it can be made with considerable facility and with varied strength. Then let ball 2 be placed on the pyramid spot and ball 1 on or near the corner of the Ｄ; a half-ball stroke will make the losing hazard into either top pocket. Care should be taken not to hit ball 1 above the centre, and the strength should be about a soft No. 2. Ball 2, after striking the top and side cushions, should come to rest so that a middle pocket hazard may be left.

Between these two hazards a number of others may be interpolated, the most satisfactory plan being to set ball 2 at intervals of 6 in. from the centre spot up the central line towards the pyramid spot as shown in Diagram VIII. By this means six separate hazards are provided for practice, or four are inserted between the two already described. Taking these four 6 in. in succession above the centre spot; for the first, ball 1 should be placed about 7 in. from baulk centre; for the second about 5 in.; for the third about 2½ in.; and for the fourth on the centre spot of the baulk. As before explained, these positions for ball 1 are but approximate; they require modification proportioned to the elasticity of the balls, the personality of the player, and the strength used. For example, from the position when ball 2 is on the centre spot and for the next two positions, in playing with bonzoline balls it would be prudent to place ball 1 from ½ to ¼ in. further from centre of the Ｄ than the positions indicated.

Diagram VIII.

When the eye has become acquainted with the half-ball angle, ball 2 should be set up anywhere within the lines P M, Q N (Diagram IX.), between the centre and billiard spots, and practice continued. Unless for some special purpose, endeavour should be made to leave ball 2 within the space enclosed by these lines.

On Diagram X. two hazards, when ball 2 is further up the table than the pyramid spot, are shown. They are types of two classes, either soft or strong strokes—forcing hazards, as they are called. A is of the latter class; that is, though the hazard can be played quite gently by the use of side, yet as a plain stroke from the left corner of the Ｄ the strength required would be such as to make it probable that ball 2 would be left in baulk after the stroke. To avoid this, place ball 1 so that the hazard may be played with strength sufficient to bring ball 2 in and out of baulk. Place ball 2 about 16 in. from the top cushion, and 26 in. from cushion 2; ball 1 should be played from baulk 8 in. to the left of the centre, a free No. 2 or No. 3 strength. Ball 2 will travel somewhat as shown by the dotted line; if struck fuller it will go further and keep better within the lines P M, Q N.

Diagram IX.

B is an example of a gentle stroke, and of a type which frequently occurs in the course of a game. Ball 2, 4 in. from the left side cushion and 4 in. from the top cushion. Place ball 1 on the baulk-line on the left corner of the Ｄ. Play on to the left top cushion so as to rebound on 2 about half-ball. As in most other strokes, there is considerable latitude both as regards strength and the fulness or fineness with which ball 2 may be struck. A few trials will show where it is desirable to place ball 1 if a very gentle stroke is required, and where it should be put if a stronger one is wanted. That the latitude both as to the position of ball 2 and to the point of aim is great is clear from the results of a number of trials, ball 1 being played at a point on the left side cushion about 18 in. below the top cushion; the path taken by ball 2 varied generally between the two shown on the diagram; when it was struck full or nearly so, it impinged on the top cushion at R, and travelled towards the pyramid spot, and sometimes beyond it; when struck fine it was cut towards M, and of course did not travel so far. It is useful to be able to play this stroke when ball 2 is at some distance from the pocket until, in fact, the direct losing hazard becomes possible, and therefore it should be practised till the eye can select with tolerable accuracy the point of the cushion at which ball 1 should be aimed. This method of playing by first striking a cushion or bricole is too much neglected in the English game, which suffers thereby; when played it is often considered a fancy stroke, whereas numerous plain strokes, specially cannons, are advantageously made by its judicious use. Seeing that play from a cushion is sometimes imperative, as, for example, when player’s ball is in hand and a certainty left in baulk, bricole practice from a variety of positions will well repay the labour bestowed.

What has been mentioned about the elasticity of balls and the consequent rebound after impact has a special importance in treating of cannons. This class of strokes has a tendency in the recent development of the game of billiards to supersede in a measure losing hazards which formerly, without doubt, were the mainstay of our players. The inferiority of losing to winning hazards in respect to influencing the game was conclusively shown when the spot stroke was played, but that stroke was rarely formidable save in professional hands; the amateur, as might be expected, clinging to the easier losing hazard. When the spot stroke was barred, a substitute had to be found, and in a great measure this has been supplied by the cannon, chiefly, no doubt, in runs or series of strokes called nurseries (of which more will be said hereafter), but also by strokes which have the result of leaving the three balls close together, gathering them, as the Americans say. To deal fully with these involves the use of side and of other refinements of play with which as yet the student is not supposed to be familiar; at present attention is confined to plain strokes, which include those made direct from ball to ball and those made after impact with one or more cushions, but all played without side.

Diagram X.

Fig. 4

The general rule to be observed as to strength is to make it proportional to the distance to be traversed and to the angle between the paths of ball 1. That is to say, the smaller the angle between balls 1, 2, and 3, the greater the strength required. Figure 4 shows at a glance what is meant. Ball 1, played half-ball on 2, cannons on 3, as indicated by the lines. The nearer 3 approaches the position 3′, which is nearly at right angles to a line joining the centres of 1 and 2, the harder must the stroke be played. When it passes the right angle and approaches to 3″, screw is required in addition to strength; that is, ball 1, though still truly struck in its vertical central line, must be struck below its true centre. Hence it may be said that, the greater the angle or the finer the stroke, the more gently should it be played; the smaller the angle, or the fuller the stroke, the greater is the required strength.

The other point of importance is common to all plain strokes, but may here be usefully repeated; the player should stand for the stroke so that the line from 1 to 2 prolonged through 1 backwards shall form the axis of his cue.

Another matter never to be forgotten is that the finer the stroke the less velocity ball 1 loses, and consequently the less is imparted to ball 2; the fuller the stroke the more 1 loses and 2 gains.

Fig. 5

It is evident that, in every instance given of losing hazards, if ball 3 be substituted for the pocket the stroke will be converted from a hazard to a cannon; indeed, if that ball lie on any part of the path of ball 1 after impact or within the distance of a radius (1¹⁄₃₂ in.) on either side of the path, a cannon must result. Hence the examples for losing hazards are equally available for practice cannons, the eye-training for the requisite angle being the same. The cannon is in fact easier than the hazard, the target being nearly equal to the width of two balls, as fig. 5 shows; 1 played on 2 may just touch 3 to the left, when it would occupy the position 1′, or it may just touch the other side as shown, 1″. The width of this target varies with the distance between balls 2 and 3; at greatest it may be taken as double the size of a ball, or 4⅛ in. The pocket on the other hand is usually 3⅝ in. at the fall, the target it presents being under the most advantageous circumstances somewhat larger; on the other hand, when it is blind the target is reduced.

A few cannons useful for practice, which if properly played result in gathering the balls, that is in leaving the three balls together, or so placing them that another stroke is left, are shown in the accompanying diagrams. In every case when indication is desirable the path of ball 1 is marked by a thin line; that of ball 2 by a dotted line; and that of ball 3 by a line consisting of a dash and dot alternately. In some cases the positions of the balls after the stroke are indicated thus:—1′, 2′, 3′; 1′ being the position which 1 has taken, and so on; in other cases this is not done because the situations are somewhat indeterminate, and also when the balls are but slightly moved the diagram would be confused and needlessly complicated.

The cannon shown in Diagram XI. is not merely an excellent plain stroke for practice, but the position is not infrequently met with or played for in a game, and is of a type which will repay close attention. As in all other cases, the measurements are merely approximate, and it is evident that a great variety of similar cannons can be set up simply by varying the position of ball 2. For ball 3 is supposed to be on the spot, and ball 1 in hand, so that a slight change in the position of ball 2, either up or down the table or in its distance from the side cushion, merely entails a corresponding move of ball 1, so that the cannon on ball 3 may always be played a soft half-ball. In the present instance, ball 2 is 18 in. from cushion 6, and 6½ in. above the central transverse line of the table. If ball 1 be placed a little to the left of the baulk centre, say from 1 to 2 in., and played half-ball, so as to do little more than reach ball 3, and cannon on its right side, ball 2 will be brought towards the spot from which ball 3 has not been far removed. The balls may not improbably be left in the positions 1′, 2′, 3′, in which case there is an excellent opening; but it must not be expected that in every instance fortune will be equally favourable. Still, unless the stroke is very badly played, the three balls will be left not far from each other, and at the top of the table, and that is a sufficient recommendation. The stroke, when correctly set up, simply requires a true half-ball plain stroke, with attention to strength. If ball 3 is sometimes hit on one side, sometimes on the other, and occasionally missed altogether, the inference is that accuracy in the half-ball stroke is wanting, and it is well to try and recover that by the methods previously recommended; when confidence is restored, then pay particular attention to the strength. Do not be satisfied till ball 3 is displaced from the spot not more than a few inches, say under six. Hence, in this class of cannons, which, like all other strokes, should, whenever possible, be practised under professional supervision, the first thing to do is to place ball 1 correctly for the half-ball angle; the next is to strike 2 precisely half-ball; and the last is to regulate the strength so that ball 1 shall strike ball 2 very gently. These remarks are to some extent general, and may be usefully applied, at the reader’s discretion, to many strokes.

Diagram XI.

Diagram XII. shows a variation of the stroke just described; ball 2 is still 18 in. from the left side cushion, but is 3 in. below the central transverse line. There is, it is clear, a losing hazard into the left middle pocket from about the right corner of the Ｄ; but it is a better game in this position to place ball 1 2½ to 2¾ in. left of the baulk centre, and play the half-ball cannon. If ball 2 were further from the side cushion, the losing hazard would become the better stroke, and this example may be considered as almost the limit at which the cannon is to be preferred. The balls will approximately follow the paths indicated, and their positions after the stroke may be about 1′, 2′, 3′, a fair chance remaining for continuing the break; and if, as will often happen, ball 1, placed a little wider or played a little finer, should strike ball 3 on the other side, i.e. on the side next the left top pocket, then ball 3 is driven towards the right top pocket, leaving a hazard (a winner for preference) into it, ball 2 is left, as before, near the spot, and the situation is still eminently favourable. If played a great number of times, some unfortunate results will occasionally happen; the three balls may be left in a line, all nearly touching the top cushion, and ball 1 between 2 and 3; even then a way may be found out of the difficulty, but at present the plain cannon is being considered, and it is difficult to set up on the table a better practice stroke.

Diagram XII.

The cannon shown in Diagram XIII., though apparently a little different, is, in reality, played precisely like the others; the results, too, are in a way the same, for the three balls are gathered at the top of the table. The main difference is that, the cannon being made off the top cushion, ball 1 is generally left above ball 3—a situation not so favourable as when ball 1 is below the other two balls. It often happens, however, that ball 2 is so left that a losing hazard from it into the left top pocket can be made, and the break may be thus continued. The further it is desired to bring ball 2 towards the left top pocket, the more towards baulk centre should ball 1 be placed; and the nearer to the spot it may be wished to leave it, the finer should the stroke be set. One advantage of practising this stroke is that confidence is acquired in making the cannon from the cushion, which is in this instance greatly preferable to playing a forcing stroke direct, though many persons, thinking of the cannon alone, would erroneously select the latter mode of play. A substantial gain is made when the player has recognised that the stroke is almost exactly like the two just described, and that the top cushion may, save in a small extra allowance of strength, be completely ignored.

On Diagram XIV. two cannons are shown; to that marked A special attention is invited. The position, or a similar one, often occurs, and is as often incorrectly played by amateurs, when balls 2 and 3 are on the table, and 1 in hand. Thinking solely of making the cannon, the player usually spots 1 towards the right of the baulk for a half-ball stroke. Result, a cannon and separation of the balls, 2 being doubled towards baulk, 3 carried up the table and not improbably lodged in safety under cushion 6.

Place ball 2, 14 in. from cushion 5, 30 in. below the left middle pocket.

Ball 3, 11 in. from cushion 5, 17 in. below the left middle pocket.

Ball 1, 9 in. to the left of baulk centre. Play a gentle stroke on 2 so as to double it from the cushion to 3 and with strength sufficient for ball 1 to reach 3. The three balls will be left close together and not far from the left middle pocket. Care must be taken to prevent the balls being left in one straight line, and also to avoid a kiss between balls 1 and 2 before the cannon.

Diagram XIII.

Example B, though not of so common occurrence as A, is also an excellent practice stroke.

Ball 1, 5½ in. from cushion 3, 21½ in. from the bottom cushion.

Ball 2, 4 in. from cushion 3, 33 in. from the bottom cushion.

Ball 3, in front of the left top pocket, 3 or 4 in. from it. Play a centre ball stroke, about half-ball on 2, with strength to carry 1 to 3—say a free No. 1. Ball 2 will double from cushion 3 and join 1 and 3 near the left top pocket.

In this stroke accidents may happen, and if it be missed by a hair’s breadth the adversary will rejoice. Ball 3 may be cannoned into the pocket and ball 2 may also go in; but, if played often, the result will generally be satisfactory and the stroke is therefore a fairly sound one. If ball 3 were the red, it would be prudent to play so as to leave ball 2 somewhat behind and thus reduce the danger of losing it in the pocket. A little consideration will show that the varieties of this stroke are numerous, and that by means of some of them the three balls may be brought to the top of the table.

The strokes shown in Diagram XV. exemplify that most useful class of cannons in which the velocity of ball 1, struck often with considerable force, is almost wholly transmitted to ball 2, and 1 retains little more than is required to reach 3. This is achieved in the first place by playing as full as the cannon will admit of on 2, and next by a peculiar use of the cue, which the French term arrêté because it is grasped and not permitted to follow the ball more than an inch or two after delivery. The stroke is a stab, and its intensity can be varied by raising the butt of the cue. The point of ball 1 to be struck is, as before, the centre, but delivery instead of being horizontal is at a smaller or greater angle with the surface of the table. The stroke is made as though the striker desired to stab the ball through its centre to the table. It springs away with more life than can be communicated by a horizontal stroke, and parts with that life on impact with 2 more readily, and therefore expires or comes to rest on reaching 3 with greater certainty. The stab is not required in every case, but where ball 2 has a long path to travel and ball 3 is at a right angle from 2 or less, it cannot be dispensed with. Classified as a stroke, it may be placed between the horizontal centre and the screw, which will be described in the next chapter, whereby ball 1 is made to return towards the point of the cue after impact with 2.

Diagram XIV.

A simple form of these cannons is shown at A on this diagram. No measurements are required, as the position is perfectly simple and equally good for practice when varied according to pleasure. It can be conveniently played when ball 3 is on the pyramid spot, ball 2 about 6 in. from it and rather nearer the player, ball 1 being between the player and 2 near the latter as shown. Play ball 1 nearly full on 2 with strength sufficient to cause its return from the cushion to 3, which 1 should reach but scarcely move. When played as shown across the table the stroke is always a gentle one, and when the balls are close to the cushion from which 2 has to return it must be played very softly indeed. The usual faults made in playing are that 2 is struck too hard and too fine, the result being that the three balls separate instead of coming together.

For B, a pretty little stroke useful in turning the corner at the left top pocket, the following measurements will help in placing the balls, which can however be set up from the diagram with sufficient accuracy.

Ball 1, 5½ in. from cushion 6, 22½ in. from the top cushion.

Ball 2, 3½ in. (full) from cushion 6, 16½ in. from the top cushion.

Ball 3, 8½ in. from cushion 6, 13 in. from the top cushion.

Play a gentle stroke on 2 from ¾ to ½ to the right so as just to reach 3; 2 will return from side and top cushions, and the three balls will be left together. It is evident that this stroke may be adapted to any corner of the table, an exercise which may be left to the student.

Diagram XV.

Example C.

Ball 2, 19 in. from cushion 6, 16½ in. from the top cushion; ball 3 on the spot; ball 1, 18 in. from cushion 6 and 12 in. from the top cushion.

Play a little less than full on 2 with strength to bring it back from the bottom cushion to the neighbourhood of the spot; ball 1 to travel to 3, which it moves slowly towards the right top corner pocket.

This stroke as exhibited at C is not very difficult, though some moderate execution is required, and an intelligent application of the stab will give more perfect control of the balls. As ball 3 is placed further from 2 and nearer the top cushion, so does the stroke require greater skill and judgment, the stab then becoming more necessary, as the energy or life of ball 1 must expire about the moment it reaches 3, otherwise the success of the stroke is much endangered.

Diagram XVI. shows a position of the balls which at first sight is apt to be regarded with dissatisfaction by the player.

Ball 2 is too near cushion 2 and too far from the right top pocket for a certain losing hazard; say 28 or 29 in. from top cushion and 5½ in. from the side.

Ball 3 is 3 in. from cushion 6 and 12 in. above the middle pocket.

Ball 1 is in the central line of the table, from 9 to 13 in. below the pyramid spot.

Play No. 1 strength finer than half-ball on 2, which strikes cushion 2 and travels towards ball 3; ball 1 makes the cannon off cushions 2 and 1, and sometimes off cushion 6 as well.

Diagram XVI.

The danger of this stroke is that balls 1 and 2 may kiss just before ball 3 is reached, the result being disappointment for the player and a good opening for the adversary. In the modern game, however, a man should look for success to skill and enterprise which, though not without risk, lead to rapid scoring, rather than to tactics of obstruction, so dear to the heart of respectable mediocrity. The results of this stroke will be found to vary considerably. Sometimes ball 3 will be placed over the left middle pocket with a winning or losing hazard for next stroke. Again, if the cannon is made on the right side of ball 3, ball 1 will travel below the pocket, and the next stroke will probably be another cannon. It is clear that this type of stroke can be modified at will; ball 1 may remain fixed whilst ball 3 is moved up the left side and 2 down the right side of the table, or ball 1 may be shifted a little up or down the central line; the limits being when losing hazards become preferable to the cannon.

High Bridge for a Cramped Stroke

CHAPTER VI
ON THE ROTATION OF BALLS

The subject of this chapter is a very difficult one to deal with in a manner at all satisfactory, and the writer is conscious that the want of minute knowledge, both theoretical and experimental, must render the task before him formidable in every way. Yet there is no intention of evading it, for the remarks which will be offered for consideration are based on a lengthened observation of the behaviour of billiard balls under various conditions, and will, it is believed, prove of interest, if not of use, some to one person, others to another, even though put forward in an unscientific manner.

In most books on billiards the subject is avoided; a chapter (of a page or two) is devoted to side, and those writers who have dealt with it most briefly have probably made the fewest mistakes. An exception, however, must be made in the case of M. Vignaux, in whose ‘Manual’ endeavour is made, with considerable success, to explain many phenomena in a homely way; and as the observations and deductions therein recorded often agree with those arrived at in this book independently, it is not remarkable that the courage which the Professor has shown in attempting a difficult subject should be admired, and that the skill which has led him to no small measure of success should be praised. Besides, in trying to convey instruction the teacher is much assisted, and the learner finds his task more easy, in proportion as the reasons for orders are understood. A rule whereby a player is desired to use right-hand side for a certain stroke from baulk to the top of the table, and left-hand side for a similar stroke from the top to baulk may be perfectly correct; but it is much more likely to be remembered and put in practice at the moment of need if the reason why has been explained and is known. Hence, some space will be devoted to the consideration of rotation, and it may be that when attention is drawn to the various effects, or some of them, due to this cause, a better qualified writer may be induced to study and deal with the subject in a more scientific and satisfactory manner. If this should happen, the remarks now made, however imperfect and conjectural, will not have been thrown away.

It has already been brought to the reader’s notice that a ball, when set in motion by the stroke of a cue, does not merely slide forward, but at once commences to rotate round its horizontal axis, which is at right angles to the axis of the cue, or the path of the ball. That is, in addition to the movement of displacement, or movement from one place to another (which can be effected by taking the ball in one’s fingers and placing it down in its second position), called by the French ‘translation,’ there is generated a distinct movement of rotation, which is for the most part latent and invisible till after impact with another ball or with a cushion.

That the motions are distinct is evident; for a ball or a cube may be so pushed or removed from one spot on the surface of the table to another that no rotation results. Again, the same ball may be made to spin or rotate by the action of the fingers, and dropped vertically on the table, so that no impulse forwards or backwards is communicated, and yet no sooner does the ball fall on the cloth than it will commence to travel in a line at right angles to the axis of its rotation. Hence, both motions may produce displacement or translation, and when both are at the same time active in a ball the path travelled, whether straight or curved, is the resultant of the two movements.

In Or Out Of Baulk?

Now at p. [132]–3 the divisions of balls were explained, and the same figure will suffice to assist in defining the various classes of rotation used in the game of billiards to effect different purposes at the discretion of the player. There are four main divisions, corresponding to the four sectors into which the lines H B and G D divide the ball.

(1) Forward rotation, or follow, is communicated by striking the ball on the line C H above the centre C.

Fig. 1

(2) Backward rotation, retrograde, or screw, is obtained by striking the ball on C B below the centre.

(3) Right side,[^[15]] or rotation round the vertical axis H B from left to right, is attained by striking on the line C D; whilst

(4) Left side,[^[15]] or rotation from right to left, results from striking on C G.

And these can manifestly be combined; thus, the ball struck in the sector C H D has both follow and right side; struck in C D B the combination is screw and right side; in C G B screw and left side; and in C G H follow and left side. These are the practical divisions for purposes of play, but it must be borne in mind that so long as the cue is delivered horizontally the path travelled is the prolongation of its axis, of a line parallel to that axis, and the effect of the rotation communicated does not show itself, save to a very minute extent, till after impact with a ball or cushion. Then it becomes immediately apparent and often bewildering in the strangeness of its results. Who, for example, has forgotten the feeling of awe with which he first contemplated the result of a well-executed screw, ball 1 striking ball 2 smartly and thence returning to the point of the cue? And to this day the most consummate masters cannot explain some of the strange results whose practical effects are sufficiently well known.

Before passing from this figure it may be as well to explain that the maximum of rotation can best be effected, or most side given, by striking at the ends of the diameters H B and G D, on the principle of the lever being longest at those ends; but practically the limit is reached at the point on either line beyond which a miss-cue would result. Each player will in time find out this point for himself, and it is remarkable how practice improves the power. With it a man can hit clean and sharp further out on the arm of the lever—that is, further away from the centre—than is possible for an untrained person, and it will be found, moreover, that in time and by practice a delicacy of touch and increase of effect are acquired.

But what is this rotation, what causes it, and how is it regulated?

The main factor, or at any rate the main reason whereby its effects become visible and are regulated, is friction with the cloth or bed of the table. If balls were perfectly smooth, the bed also being equally hard and smooth, and if they were unaffected by the resistance of the air and the force of gravity, once set in motion they would continue to slide along for ever within the limit of the length of the bed. They would not roll, but would slide as a curling stone does on smooth ice. But the practical condition of affairs is different. In the first place, the surfaces of the balls, be they never so finely finished, instead of being smooth, are if examined under a microscope found to be palpably rough. The cloth, too, no matter how well stretched or of how fine a texture, is both soft and rough. A ball at rest on it is standing in a little cup, whilst one travelling forms a narrow groove, along which, it is plain, resistance will vary according to its direction and that of the nap of the cloth. If with the nap the friction will be less, if against it more.

Fig. 2

Hence it follows that in considering the motion and rotation of billiard balls on a table, we must picture to ourselves a toothed-wheel working on a toothed-plane, and one toothed-wheel working into another, rather than a perfectly smooth surface on a similarly perfectly smooth plane, or two perfectly smooth spherical surfaces in contact.

The accompanying drawings, in which the roughness is purposely exaggerated, will convey the idea better than much elaborate description. No. 1 shows a ball in contact with the cloth, and No. 2 one ball in contact with another. From these it is easy to realise that a ball rotating has a bite of the cloth, and will travel along it in the direction of the rotation, and also that a ball rotating round its vertical axis brought into contact with another must transmit a portion of its rotation, the effect of which is to make the second ball revolve in the opposite direction, precisely after the manner of one toothed-wheel working into another. Such transmitted side is no doubt very small and difficult to perceive, save in the matter of results which cannot otherwise be accounted for. It is indeed probable that side can in this way be communicated to a third ball provided it be touching the second ball. By its means certain kiss strokes can be made which without the use of side are impossible. The subject is undoubtedly complicated, and the suggestions here offered may be wrong; they are those which, after much consideration, have commended themselves as most in agreement with known facts concerning the rotation of bodies, and as accounting for the behaviour of billiard balls in a manner which is not repugnant to common-sense. Nevertheless it must be admitted that absolute proof of transmitted side can scarcely be said to exist, that many experienced persons deny its existence, and, moreover, it is never safe to jump to conclusions.

Let us now consider the four classes of rotation which have already been defined, and begin with forward rotation or follow. This is the most important of all; for, as will be seen, it is present and active in almost every stroke unless special means are employed to counteract it. It is generated in two ways—spontaneously, and by striking the ball above its centre.

When a ball is struck by a cue in the centre, no rotation is thereby communicated. Its first impulse is to slide along with a velocity and for a distance proportionate to the force employed. But the instant that motion is communicated, resistance to sliding forward is experienced. The ball then is subjected to two forces, one from the cue impelling it forward, and the other a retarding force caused by the friction of the cloth. The impelling force drives C in the direction M, and the friction or retarding force acts on B in the direction B N. The point B is thereby retarded, and the result of the two forces is that C travels towards M, whilst A advancing, B being retarded, a rotatory motion is produced whereby A at the top gradually lowers its position till it reaches the bottom and rests on the cloth. It is evident that this spontaneous rotation exists in every plain stroke; it is separate from the mere displacing or translating force, and has a separate life. One may outlive the other; an ordinary example of this is when ball 1 is played full on ball 2. When the distance between them is small, little or no rotation has been acquired and the force of ball 1 is transmitted to ball 2, the former remaining nearly stationary, or dead, after impact; but when there is considerable distance between 1 and 2, rotation is well established and asserts itself after impact, which destroys the life of the force of displacement or translation. Thus ball 1 on impact stops merely for a moment, for rotation coming into play carries it forward on its original path. A very common illustration of this is unpleasantly familiar to young pool players. They cannot prevent their own ball from following into a pocket after a long straight hazard.

Fig. 3

But follow can be increased or accelerated artificially, and the object of doing so is to augment the progress of ball 1 after impact. No gain in propulsion results from hitting a ball over the centre, for what rotation gains translation loses, and when there is no obstacle to run or follow through it is a mistake to strike above the centre, for a ball will travel less truly when so struck, and further, should it encounter unperceived obstacles, such as grit, or dust, or tobacco, the tendency to leap is enhanced by follow, and the result is greater or less deviation from the true path.

The chief use, then, of follow is to control deviation and prevent stagnation after impact. When a fine stroke becomes dangerous a follow may not only be safe, but may be played so as to leave a good game. The stroke should be delivered gently, smoothly, and the cue should be held as horizontal as possible, the butt being lowered, and the bridge raised so as to bring the tip opposite the part of ball 1 to be struck. After impact the point of the cue should be permitted to follow on with a flowing motion. Another and at first sight quite different use of follow is to decrease the velocity of rebound from a cushion or from a ball touching a cushion. The reason is that after impact rotation is reversed, and a stroke which reaches a cushion with follow rebounds with retrograde or drag. If played with strong follow, the ball will not improbably leap in the air after impact, and either stop short on reaching the bed or even return towards the cushion. As is perhaps evident from what has been explained, follow is very useful when balls 1 and 2 are so close that little or no rotation can be spontaneously acquired; its absence is supplied by striking ball 1 above the centre.

The next rotation to be considered is round the same axis—horizontal—as follow, but is in the opposite or backward direction, whereby what we call ‘screw’ and ‘drag,’ the French ‘retrograde,’ and the Americans ‘draw,’ are effected. The point of aim is on the line C B (p. [191], fig. 1), and the lower the ball is struck the greater the rotation, the limit being as usual where a miss-cue would ensue. To ensure striking low, the cue should be made to bear somewhat heavily on the bridge between the thumb and forefinger, and the butt should be slightly raised. The result of the stroke is that ball 1 is forced forward but does not acquire spontaneous rotation, that being counteracted by the inverse rotation or screw communicated by the cue. If the stroke be played the length of the table close observation will disclose a different behaviour of the ball from that which results from a plain stroke. In the first place, the ball will start for an equal transit or length of path with greater initial velocity, it will slow down much more abruptly, will apparently stop for a moment, and then continue its course till it comes finally to rest. Analysing this path, the first portion is traversed by the ball with inverse rotation and under the influence of a stronger stroke than would have been necessary had it been struck in the centre; the slowing down is the struggle between the screw or backward rotation artificially given and the spontaneous or forward rotation naturally acquired; the momentary check or stop is when the one rotation exactly counterbalances the other, and the ball on an instant slides forward without any rotation; and the final part of the course is when (the backward rotation being dead) the spontaneous rotation has conquered, and in turn dies with the force of displacement or translation. That is what is seen when a master of the art plays with drag. He uses it to overcome irregularities in the ball or bed, and is by its means enabled to combine the advantages of a strong and of a gentle stroke. If ball 1 cannot be trusted the length of the table for a slow hazard or cannon, the player strikes it comparatively hard with drag; the ball then runs fast over the greater length of its course, but pulls up in the manner and for the reasons above described, and reaching ball 2 with gentleness does not displace it to any great extent.

That is the complete stroke; but if it should happen that ball 2 is so near ball 1 that impact takes place before the backward rotation is dead, if the stroke be full the whole of the forward motion (translation) is communicated to ball 2, and ball 1, which has apparently stopped for a moment on the spot which ball 2 occupied, will return towards the point of the cue by reason of its inverse rotation or screw. The result is what is known as a ‘screw back stroke.’ The more full ball 1 is played on ball 2, the further will that ball travel and the greater will be the recoil and screw back. The finer ball 2 be taken, the less velocity will be imparted to it and the less will be the return of ball 1. Screw back is not possible, unless, perhaps, the balls are very near each other, if ball 2 be struck half-ball or finer.

When the student has acquired confidence that he can play ball 1 on ball 2 direct and full and screw back, he may with advantage study the various angles at which ball 1 will come off ball 2 when hit at certain divisions between full and half-ball. A convenient mode of practising these strokes is to place ball 2 on the baulk-line, and ball 1 6 in. to 8 in. below it.

Thus, if ball 1, struck three-quarters low, or wherever the player can communicate most screw, be played full on ball 2, the latter will travel up the table parallel to the cushion, whilst ball 1 will return over the position it occupied, also parallel to the cushion, in the direction of the bottom cushion. The distance travelled will depend on the strength and truth of the stroke as well as on striking ball 1 so as to obtain the maximum reverse rotation. That is the limit in one direction of the screw stroke; the other limit is to aim at the edge of ball 2, ball 1 being, as before, struck three-quarters low. In this instance the path of the latter after impact is along the baulk-line, or, in other words, practically perpendicular to its path before impact. That is what is known as a ‘right-angled screw,’ a most useful stroke to master, as is evident after a moment’s consideration. In the first place, if ball 3 were situated anywhere along the baulk-line, a cannon becomes a reasonable probability; and next, if there were a pocket at either end of the baulk-line, the losing hazard would be far from impossible. The way to acquire confidence in this right-angled screw is to begin softly, but always endeavouring to give ball 1 the maximum of screw. The beauty of the stroke is that it is impossible to give ball 1 too much screw, and that its path, when struck truly, must lie on the baulk-line; if it leaves the baulk-line and goes up the table, then ball 2 has been struck finer than half-ball, or ball 1 has had insufficient screw given, or both; if it comes back from the baulk-line, ball 2 has been struck fuller than half-ball. So here, again, is an example of a practice stroke which records exactly the causes of failure, thereby saving much time in fruitless inquiry, and pointing directly to the required remedy.

Now, having acquired the power of bringing ball 1 back from ball 2 in a direction perpendicular to the baulk-line, and also of screwing off ball 2 along the baulk-line, it follows that by subdividing ball 2 between full and half-full, and by regulating the strength used, the path of ball 1 after impact can be foreseen, and it may be made to travel thereon with some certainty. Thus 1 played full on 2 returns towards A; 1 half-ball on 2 travels towards L or B; when struck fuller than half-ball it returns towards C or K; fuller still towards D and H; and so on in succession towards E, F, and G. Now the acquisition of these strokes is not nearly so difficult as it seems, specially when a cannon is played for, and the power and confidence acquired by knowing that wherever a ball is situated—for example, anywhere on or near the various lines drawn on fig. 4—there is a reasonable prospect of scoring, are of great advantage.

Fig. 4

In the example just explained ball 1 is supposed to be near ball 2, say from 4 in. to 8 in. distant; when they are further apart the stroke must be played with greater strength, and ball 2 must be struck fuller to compensate for the tendency of ball 1 to travel past the position which was occupied by ball 2 before the screw takes effect. As the distance between the balls increases so must the strength of the stroke be greater, and so also must ball 2 be struck more nearly full.

This question of regulating the strength of screw strokes is of great importance. The general rule is as above stated, but there are many instances when a player, to obtain position, will vary the stroke. Thus, in order to make ball 2 travel he will play fuller on it, reducing the amount of screw, though the stroke might be equally certain if played gently, half-ball, but with more screw. There must be no slavish adherence to any one division of ball 2; the screw must be made at will off a full, fine, or intermediate ball, and the strength must be varied to suit the division of the ball, and the distance between the two balls.

At the risk of incurring the charge of repetition, let it be further explained (for this elementary fact should never be forgotten) that the reason why greater strength and more screw must be used as the distance between the balls is increased is because of the tendency ball 1 has to develop rotation in the direction of its path. When the balls are near each other but little spontaneous rotation can be acquired, and therefore ball 1 need not be struck hard or very low; when they are very near, the spontaneous rotation is so slight that in order to screw it is unnecessary to strike ball 1 below the centre. On the other hand, when the distance between the balls is increased, the opportunity for acquiring forward rotation or follow is greater; and greater, therefore, must be the strength and screw used for its conquest. That being so, it is further necessary to abandon attempts to screw off the finer divisions of ball 2. Endeavours to do so will end in failure, for the needful strength will carry ball 1 past ball 2 and the screw will be overcome. Hence the necessity for playing more and more full on ball 2 as the strength of stroke is increased. The fuller the stroke the more is forward motion transmitted to ball 2, and the less is the screw imparted to ball 1 interfered with. These matters, which are very difficult to deal with in a lucid way on paper, can be plainly demonstrated on the table without much trouble; there the student should repair with his instructor, and soon what may seem confused and useless in the above remarks will appear plain and of great value.

Fig. 5

The consideration of regulated screw leads to the insertion of fig. 5, in which a class of strokes of common enough occurrence, but little relished by players whether amateur or professional, is illustrated. They are intermediate between the path of a forcing stroke and that of the right-angle screw. Now the latter, though decidedly difficult when the balls are far apart, say 2 ft. or so, yet admits of some certainty in playing, for it represents about the maximum of most men’s power; but the intermediate strokes, though they require less execution, are yet oftener missed, because the player has no definite measure of them, no guide or clue to which he can trust.

If the paths represented from ball 1 to ball 2 and then to ball 3 be those of a hard forcing stroke, and the paths 1 to 2 and 2 to 3A those of a right-angle screw, the strokes referred to lie between the two, and may be represented by the dotted lines from 2 to 3B, 3C, &c. The balls may be set up as shown; ball 1 on the right spot of the Ｄ; ball 2 at the same distance from the side cushion line and opposite the centre of the middle pocket; ball 3 anywhere between the pocket and the limit of a forcing stroke in the positions marked 3B, 3C, &c.; or ball 1 may be advanced nearer to ball 2, in which case the strokes are easier. In either case practice at these intermediate angles will not have been thrown away if the remarks and advice respecting screw be appreciated and followed. Do not forget that when played with strength ball 1 will pass beyond ball 2 before the screw takes effect.

In practising the straight screw back it is advantageous to keep the cue exactly in position after the stroke, which, if true, will result in bringing ball 1 back to the tip. Also the behaviour of ball 2 after each stroke should be noted, in order that when playing in a game its position may be approximately foreseen. Always chalk the cue before attempting a screw.

Rotation round a horizontal axis having been considered, it is necessary now to examine side, or rotation round a vertical axis. This is communicated by every stroke of the cue which is not delivered precisely on the vertical line H B (fig. 6), and is, as may readily be conceived, generally applied unintentionally. In fact, much of the preliminary practice has been recommended in order that the power of striking a ball without side might be acquired. Still, when intelligently used, side gives great additional scope to a player and will well repay attention and study. To discuss right side and left side separately is unnecessary, for the one is simply and solely the reverse of the other.

Side, or rotation round the vertical axis, does not convey to a ball a movement of displacement or translation; on the contrary, its tendency is to bring the ball to rest, precisely as a top when thrown with heavy spin at first gyrates or travels a little, but soon comes to rest, or sleeps, whilst revolving at a great rate. Hence it follows that some compensating strength has to be used when playing with side.

Now, the student cannot have got so far, supposing that the various strokes have been practised, without having acquired some knowledge of the effect of side. He has learnt, for example, that the more out of the centre his ball was struck, the more did the angle of reflexion vary from the angle of incidence; if struck on one side, the angle of reflexion was enlarged; if struck on the other side, it was diminished. Side also makes some, though less evident, modification in the angle of deviation after impact with another ball. The proper mode of communicating side to a ball by means of a cue must now be considered, G H D B is a ball standing on the table T T; H B is its vertical axis, C its centre, E and F represent the cue-tips at the moment of striking the ball: E for right side, or side which tends to take the ball towards the right, and F for left side, which will carry the ball to the left. It will be observed that the cue is delivered on the central horizontal line, for on it the maximum of rotation round the axis H B can be given; in other words, the height of the stroke is precisely the same as that for a plain or true centre stroke, and is equal to half the height of the ball.

Fig. 6

The next point is the proper alignment of the cue. In a plain stroke it has been shown that the path of ball 1 previous to impact is the prolongation of the line of the cue’s axis. For a side stroke, the point of aim being the same, the only difference is that ball 1 must be struck on the side instead of in the centre. Hence, to preserve the same path, the cue’s axis must be parallel to that in the plain stroke and distant from it in proportion to the amount of side to be given.

Fig. 7 illustrates the chief points connected with side strokes, and admits of comparison between them and an ordinary plain stroke. Ball 1 played half-ball plain on ball 2 travels the path shown by the continuous line 1 1′ 1″ and 1‴, and the angle at which it comes off the cushion is nearly equal to that of approach. The position of the cue is the central one on the prolongation of the path 1 1′. The same stroke played with right side is thus effected: the cue is moved to the right, its new axis being parallel to the original axis. The stroke is delivered in precisely the same way and in the same direction, save that the point of ball 1 struck by the cue is to the right of the centre. Ball 1, if struck with the strength of a full No. 1 or more, travels practically the same path until it strikes ball 2, after which it deviates slightly to the right, following the path marked by dot and dash alternately, and reaches the cushion at R, whence it flies off at an enlarged angle in the direction of R′. Right side for the stroke figured increases the velocity of ball 1 after impact with the cushion, from which it shoots perceptibly faster than does a ball plainly played. Hence, this side is termed direct, being given in the direction that the ball is intended to travel.

Played with left side, the cue is shifted to the left of the centre, but is still parallel to the original direction. As before, on delivery of the stroke ball 1 travels to ball 2, but after impact follows the dotted line 1′ L L′, returning from the cushion at once more perpendicularly and with reduced speed, the left side with which ball 1 is charged tending to reduce velocity, specially after impact with the cushion. In respect to this stroke, left side, conveying as it does rotation in a direction contrary to that of the ball’s path, is termed reverse. Of course, if the other side of ball 2 were played on, the left side would become direct and the right side reverse.

EDGE OF CUSHION
Fig. 7

There, in a nutshell, lies nearly all that is essential in the matter of side. A man with ordinary powers of thought can for himself apply the lesson either to cannons or to losing hazards, and nothing but practice, as far as possible under the supervision of a master, will suffice to produce the confidence and certainty which is necessary to good play. Be careful about the alignment of the cue; see that the left hand, which forms the bridge, is so placed that the part of forefinger and thumb on which the cue lies is precisely opposite the point on ball 1 to be struck, and as there is special danger of a slip or miss-cue when much side is used, never neglect to chalk the cue carefully before the stroke. Attention to this, though it seems but a small and self-evident matter, will save many a game and much temper.

There are, however, certain other matters connected with rotation which, though not so important as what has already been explained as far as the game of billiards is concerned, are yet of considerable interest, partly as they affect the game, but chiefly in so far as they may add to our knowledge of the various forces which affect a ball in motion. Amongst these is the side which may be acquired from friction with the cushion. The probability that such side is so acquired is understood, but the conditions are little known. M. Vignaux remarks that it depends on the angle of impact, on the velocity, and on the strength; and he gives as an example a plain stroke played gently in a corner of the table, when the ball always has a tendency to come off at a diminished angle of reflexion, specially when the angle of incidence is about 45. The side acquired is probably greatest when a ball is played along and touching a cushion; if played from baulk up the left cushion the tendency would be for the ball to acquire right side, and up the right cushion left side; but all such strokes are complicated by the much more important friction with the cloth on the bed of the table. It is unnecessary here to speculate further on a matter which so slightly influences the game. Of vastly greater significance, though its action is still most imperfectly apprehended, is the effect of the nap of the cloth on the rotation and path of a ball. Amateur players scarcely understand the subject at all, and no doubt the habitual strength with which they play in a great measure destroys or smothers the effect of the nap, which tells more when the execution is delicate. There is also another reason why they are ignorant of its effect, which is that markers, to please the great majority of their patrons, smooth and iron away the nap in order to make the table faster. By this means they ruin it for the very few who can play, for without plenty of nap the slow screws and gentle side strokes will not tell, the ball, so to speak, cannot obtain a bite or grip on the cloth, and the result is that strokes which should be played softly, and from which the position of the balls can be foreseen with some accuracy, have to be forced, and an ignorant hard hitter may on such a cloth defeat a player of a much higher class. Thus the common fault of amateurs, in attempting by strength results which should be effected by skill, prevents them from acquiring a practical knowledge of the use of nap, which is consequently sacrificed, to the detriment of the game. It is scarcely an exaggeration to say that there are but few tables in London clubs the cloths of which are in fit condition for play.

Now, though the professional scarcely understands better than the amateur why the game can be more scientifically played on a cloth with nap, yet from practice, and because of his habitually gentler touch, he prefers a slower table and a cloth with proper nap. For all serious matches a new cloth is used; and in some cases when the game is very long, extending for two weeks, a condition is made that one player shall supply the cloth for one week and the other for the next. Of course there is a limit to the amount of nap which is desirable; it is quite possible to have a cloth which is too coarse and rough, but the usual mistake is the other way. Persons are apt to think that the more friction is reduced the better; but it is not so, and even an average club amateur would find if he tried to play on glass or ice how impossible many ordinary strokes would become.

In a general way, in very delicate strokes side should be reversed when playing against the nap. Many examples can be shown, and a good professional will easily set them up on the table. One may be mentioned here, as it affords an excellent illustration of the general principle. If ball 1 be in baulk, almost touching the left cushion, and it be desired to run a coup in the left top pocket, a gentle stroke with side next the cushion, or left side, will cause the ball to hug the cushion and fall into the pocket. But reverse the stroke, play from the top of the table down the same cushion; if cushion side, or right side, be used, the ball will run fairly straight as long as the forward force (translation) overcomes or neutralises the side; but whenever the latter can assert its power the ball will show a distinct tendency to leave the cushion altogether. It will even strike the bottom cushion 6 in. away from the side cushion, and return towards the latter by reason of the side. Play the same stroke with left side—i.e. side away from the cushion—and as soon as the side tells the ball will most distinctly hug the cushion, and if repelled from it will endeavour to return again. At present the full effect of playing with or against the nap is neither understood nor practised, but it has attracted attention, and the more skilful and thoughtful players are studying and utilising its effects. It is sufficient here to notice a refinement of play from which considerable development may confidently be expected.

Fig. 8

Many diagrams are unnecessary for this chapter, which is rather an essay or series of suggestions on matters connected with rotation than part of a manual of billiards; examples of following, side, and screw strokes will be dealt with in the next and subsequent chapters. Still, practice is useful at this stage, and some strokes are accordingly indicated. The opening stroke of a game may be taken as the first example. Place ball 1 in baulk on or close to the baulk-line A B and at a convenient distance to reach, say, the centre spot, or, perhaps better still, an inch or so beyond it, in order to avoid playing from a spot which, however thin, must on a new cloth, at any rate, be raised above the general level. If the player stands at A, he should strike ball 1 with right side and strength sufficient to take it to the cushion above B and back as nearly as possible to the central longitudinal line of the table, or below the centre baulk-spot, thereby securing a good position, marked P, and making his opponent’s next stroke, also usually a miss, as difficult as possible. If played from B, left side must be used, and the stroke must be practised till complete confidence as to angle and strength is acquired. Then marks should be set up at C, D, E, F, and each stroke practised till ball 1 can be brought with fair accuracy to follow the lines B C, B D, B E, and B F, which, as is seen from the figure, will result in a coup in the left bottom pocket. At first this is about the maximum of side a beginner can command, but after some practice he will succeed in striking the bottom cushion near G, a stroke which is useful when a ball is left over the pocket, as a losing hazard may be made with sufficient strength to bring ball 2 out of baulk. These strokes should be played from B as well till some certainty is acquired. They are very useful for disturbing a double baulk, and even for scoring from one, and a good break so made has a somewhat disconcerting effect on the adversary.

A side stroke played back to baulk is shown in Diagram I. Place ball 1 on the right corner of the Ｄ, and play on the left top cushion 14 in. above the middle pocket with a little right side a free No. 2 strength; the ball should follow approximately the course indicated, and run into the left bottom pocket. Similarly played from the other corner of the Ｄ to the right top cushion, the ball should fall into the right bottom pocket. These strokes are often useful in a game when a double baulk is given and one or both balls are over a pocket. A little modification too, either by aiming higher or lower on the top side cushion, or by using more side, makes this stroke available for cannons in the neighbourhood of the bottom pockets, and for disturbing the balls when the adversary has left a certain score for himself in the corner.

Diagram I.

The next stroke is also well worth acquiring. It is differently played by different people, but the main point is to bring the ball on to the bottom side cushion a few inches below the middle pocket. If that is done the path thence is practically a straight line to the centre of the bottom cushion. It is interesting to practise thus: place balls 2 and 3 as shown in Diagram II. on the central longitudinal line of the table, ball 3 near the bottom cushion, and ball 2 immediately above, but not necessarily touching it. Set ball 1 on the baulk-line about the centre spot, play at the side top cushion, 30 in. from the pocket, a free No. 2 with a little direct side. The stroke can be played off either right or left side top cushion, and should be tried from both. It can also be made from the corner spot of the Ｄ, aiming at a point 15 in. above the pocket, if the stroke be played more gently and the side correctly regulated. It follows, therefore, where there is so great possible divergence in the manner of play, that each person should find out that mode which best suits him, and practise till confidence is gained. The cannon may be made in many ways, sometimes as indicated, on other occasions ball 1 will strike the bottom cushion first and thence cannon from 3 to 2, and so on, showing that there is considerable latitude for error in striking. Once the player realises the path of ball 1 from below the middle pocket to the centre of the bottom cushion, it is clear that many possibilities of scoring cannons in baulk are opened. The reader can no doubt supply them for himself, and it is well that he should take the necessary thought to do so; but one example is indicated. If balls 2 and 3 occupy the positions 2′ and 3′ the same stroke will probably result in a cannon. Mr. John Roberts often uses this stroke or a modification of it, and when the result is successful the delight of the spectators is unbounded; they applaud and regard him with the awe and respect due to supernatural power. Yet there is nothing remarkable in the stroke. Mr. Roberts knows approximately the course of the ball after it has struck the bottom side cushion, he sees that ball 2 is on or near that path, and therefore that there is a fair certainty of his hitting it, and if he does so on the proper side the cannon on 3′ or 3″ is probable. It is well to be conversant with strokes of this nature, though as a rule they should only be resorted to when clearly necessary, and never used simply to show off or to bring down the gallery.

Other examples might obviously be added, but these are sufficient to illustrate the principle, which is, when learning the stroke, always play it as nearly as possible in the same way and under the same circumstances. The result is that the eye becomes familiar with the tracks of the ball, and then moderate ingenuity and observation will serve to guide the player when he may make use of his knowledge to advantage in a game.

This chapter, wherein are raised interesting and suggestive questions which may hereafter be more thoroughly investigated and applied to the game, may be appropriately closed by an illustration, the idea of which is borrowed from ‘Modern Billiards,’ the text-book of the American game, prepared by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Co. of New York.

Diagram II.

Place fig. 9 so that A is in position for reading, and follow is illustrated. Reverse it, bringing B into position, and screw or drag is shown. Bring C into position for reading, and a side stroke, in this case right side, is represented; and if this be reversed, D being brought into position; the massé stroke, which will hereafter be explained, is seen.

Fig. 9

CHAPTER VII
MISCELLANEOUS STROKES

Under the above heading it is proposed to describe a variety of strokes many of which may be played in different ways, according to the position which it is desired to leave. Some of these are genuine strokes, whether plain or whether rotation is applied; others partake rather of the nature of tricks, but as they do not contravene existing rules they must be treated as legitimate, and their effect on the game is so important that they must not be neglected in any manual. Following strokes belong to the former class, and are of much importance to the game; the principle involved in playing them was explained in the last chapter. The number of such strokes which may be set up on the table is infinite, whilst the examples here given are necessarily few. They have, as in other cases, been selected after much thought, and being in some instances strokes commonly met with in a game, similar diagrams will be found in other books on billiards. Yet this does not involve plagiarism, for in many instances repetition cannot be avoided, as will be apparent when the spot stroke is described.

Endeavour has been made to give examples which may readily be varied at the will of the player, and so that slavish adherence to the measurements given may be unnecessary. This is important, for not only do tables vary slightly in make, but persons vary the manner of measuring. The diagrams, as before, must simply be considered approximate, but are, it is hoped, sufficiently correct and intelligible to enable a careful reader to set up the strokes when disposed for practice.

Diagram I., stroke A.

Ball 1: 34 in. from cushion 2; 23 in. from cushion 1.

Ball 2: 30½ in. from cushion 2; 37 in. from cushion 1.

Ball 3: 24½ in. from cushion 2; 50 in. from cushion 1.

Strike ball 1 one-half above the centre, a free No. 1 strength, play nearly full (between three-quarters left and full) on ball 2, and cannon gently on ball 3; ball 2 will follow the course indicated or some modification thereof, and after contact with two cushions rest near the middle pocket; ball 3 will also be driven gently in that direction, and the situation of the three balls after the stroke may be as indicated by the figures 1′, 2′, and 3′, leaving, as is evident, an excellent opportunity for further play. Played fifty times, this stroke may never result twice precisely alike; yet it is scarcely possible to make the cannon and fail to leave a good opening. That is one beauty of the stroke. Even if, as will happen occasionally, ball 1 cannons fine on ball 3 (which it may easily do in a slight variation in the stroke) and runs into the pocket, ball 2 comes up from the bottom cushion and there is a fair chance of scoring from baulk. There may, of course, sometimes be an unlucky leave, but if the stroke be played with freedom this will rarely happen. The general fault made in all following strokes is to play too fine on ball 2, specially when some strength is used; hence it is prudent to play what seems to be rather too full. This should never be forgotten; ten strokes are missed because they are played too fine for one that fails because it was played too full.

Another set of measurements which may be substituted for those given, and which will exhibit a somewhat similar stroke, are here appended. They are taken from the same cushions, which are not therefore again indicated.

Ball 1, 33 × 27½ in.; ball 2, 31 × 36 in.; ball 3, 20 × 52½ in. This stroke and many variations of the same type will suggest themselves to the player, and may with much advantage be practised. At first sight position A might seem to an amateur a rather unfortunate conjunction of the balls; yet see what an excellent opening may be left in one stroke! It is the power to recognise such situations and to profit by them which makes the great difference between players.

Diagram I.

Diagram I., stroke B.

No measurements are needed. Ball 2 is on the spot, and balls 1 and 3 as indicated. Ball 1, struck slightly above the centre, aimed at ball 2 about ¾ right, medium No. 1 strength, will cannon on ball 3 and scarcely disturb it, whilst ball 2 will return from the side cushion and the balls will be gathered about ball 3. This is a very common position from which endeavour is made to start a series of nursery cannons; but if this is not desired, and if ball 2 be the red, then a winning hazard to the left top pocket will leave a good opening for continuing play at the top of the table.

When balls 2 and 3 are touching the cushion, as shown in Example C, ball 1 being in hand or suitably placed on the table, the cannon can best be made as a simple following stroke, because aim is easier when no side is used.

Play thus: Ball 1, ½ to ¾ high, No. 2 strength full on ball 2, which will escape in the direction shown by the dotted line, whilst the follow will cause ball 1 to run up the cushion and make the cannon. The stroke may be played with left side and slower, with the advantage that the position of the balls afterwards may be roughly foreseen, and that if the cannon be missed direct it may be got off the top cushion. If the losing hazard into the left top pocket be desired, then left side must be used, for the pocket is as blind as possible, and the side is necessary not so much to keep ball 1 close to the cushion on its way to the pocket, as to cause it to enter the pocket after contact with the shoulder of the top cushion. For the cannon, the further ball 1 is from ball 2 the safer is it to dispense with side and trust to follow.

Diagram II. shows types of losing hazards made by use of follow. Example A may be set up by eye, measurements not being required. Play ball 1, striking it about one-half left and over rather than under the height of its centre; impact with ball 2 should be about three-quarters left or fuller, and the latter ball will take a course somewhat as indicated by the dotted line, on which it is evident that once out of baulk there is a considerable margin as regards strength within which the ball is left in play. If there is a heavy nap on the cloth, and if for some reason it may be desired to play this stroke very gently, the reverse side may be used, ball 1 being struck one-quarter right. The side acting against the nap and outliving or predominating the forward motion (translation) will powerfully draw the ball into the pocket. It is understood, of course, that the reverse side is only used when playing against the nap of the cloth.

Example B,—Ball 1: 30 in. from cushion 5, 15 in. from cushion 4. Ball 2: 12 in. from cushion 5, 3 in. from cushion 4. This is a useful stroke for practice, and may be played in many ways, either without side or with it, either gently or with considerable freedom, according to the position in which it is desired to leave ball 2.

For a plain stroke deliver the cue medium No. 1 strength on ball 1 rather over centre than under, striking ball 2 three-quarters right or fuller; ball 2 will rebound off two cushions towards the centre of the table, leaving the path of ball 1 to the pocket clear. This stroke may be varied by advancing ball 1 on the line 1, 2; but as the distance between the balls decreases strength should be reduced and follow increased, the reason being that there is less space within which ball 1 can develop rotation, which, therefore, must be artificially supplied. Ball 1 may be retired on the same line, in which case the stroke is plain—i.e. the cue is delivered on the centre of ball 1.

It may also be played with side, which has two effects, both beneficial. If ball 1 be struck one-half left on ball 2, as before, nearly full, the side used tends to prevent the common error of playing too fine on that ball, and further it enlarges the pocket, or, in other words, will cause ball 1 to drop into the pocket even if it may have touched the dangerous shoulder, as that corner of the cushion is called which partly blinds the pocket.

As a variation of this stroke, place ball 1 30 in. by 13 in., and ball 2 12 in. from cushion 5, and touching the bottom cushion—i.e. ball 1 is moved 2 in. nearer the bottom cushion and ball 2 is set touching it, the other measurements being unchanged. Play with strong left side, striking ball 1 above the centre; impact with ball 2 as before. The stroke may be played with almost any strength desired, and the distance between the balls may be varied; the usual error is to play too fine on ball 2, probably from forgetting to allow for the difference between the points of impact and of aim. As certainty is acquired ball 2 may be placed further from the pocket, when the stroke, though otherwise similar, requires greater accuracy.

Example C is not of uncommon occurrence in a game, and is specially useful when 2 happens to be the adversary’s ball which would be lost for play if dropped into the pocket. By playing a free stroke with strong left side full on ball 2, the latter is driven along the cushion, catches in the shoulders of the pocket, and travels down the table, leaving an open path for ball 1 to the pocket. Ball 1 should be struck above the centre to secure follow, and with plenty of side, to cause it to cling to the cushion. The stroke is an easy one, soon acquired; but the same can scarcely be said respecting Example D, which, though merely a variation, yet requires more judgment and accuracy. The difficulty, of course, is how to give ball 2 time to take the corners of the pocket and get out of the way. Solution is simple, and might be correctly arrived at by a careful student who has read thus far; but the stroke requires some neatness, and time and temper will be saved by watching an expert and by playing before him. It is far from easy to describe such a stroke so as to make its execution by another person certain; all that will be said here is that, to give ball 2 the required time, ball 1 must after impact travel very slowly, whilst ball 2 has considerable velocity, and this is effected by delivering the cue slightly under the centre. If it be struck too low or too sharply, it will stop altogether; and if struck true centre or above, it will follow too soon and again collide with ball 2, the result in both cases being failure.

Diagram II.

Diagram III.—Measurements are not required, as the balls can be placed from the diagram with sufficient accuracy. From position 1″ the stroke can be made by a well-executed screw either direct or off the top cushion, but it is easier and more certain if played as a following stroke; but from positions 1 and 1′ the screw is all but impossible, whereas the high follow offers a reasonable prospect of scoring. Let the cue be well aligned and let the player stand carefully, so as to ensure free delivery. Get well down to the stroke; play ball 1 a free No. 2 strength, three-quarters high, nearly full on ball 2; after impact ball 1 will follow a path somewhat as indicated, the curve being usually very pronounced. The first and sharper curve is apparently due to the rebound after impact modified by the strong follow, whilst the second and more gentle curve is the result of impact with the cushion. The tendency of the latter is, of course, to reverse the follow and send the ball down the table; but the strong follow appears to fight with this, and to prevail so far as to maintain its bias for the cushion and its disposition to return towards it. Ball 1 may almost be placed anywhere towards the left side of the table, and the stroke remains much the same. As the distance between balls 1 and 2 increases, follow becomes less necessary, its place being supplied by naturally developed rotation.

The variety of strokes which may be played on this principle is very great. Too much force should not be employed, or that will in the final conflict defeat the follow, of which it is ordinarily impossible to give too much.

Fine strokes should rarely be attempted unless ball 1 is near ball 2; they are, then, however, often of great value, because, being played gently, the positions of the balls after the stroke can be foreseen with tolerable accuracy. The great secret of success is to stand properly, so that the edge of ball 2 may be clearly seen. A few examples are shown on Diagram IV. They can be set up without measurement.

Diagram III.

Example A.—A fine stroke on ball 2 will make the losing hazard and leave that ball about 2′ .

Example B.—Ball 1 played fine on ball 2 will make the losing hazard and leave an opening from baulk.

Example C.—A very useful stroke. Ball 1 played fine on ball 2 will cannon rather full on ball 3, which it will drive as shown by the dot-and-dash line; ball 1 will stop between the other two, and a winning or losing hazard will almost certainly be left in either top pocket.

In playing nursery cannons fine strokes are often useful; indeed, a player who possesses great delicacy of touch may make a series of strokes yet scarcely move balls 2 or 3. These cannons will be considered hereafter, and, therefore, are not at present further noticed.

Fine strokes have the following drawbacks: they must usually be played so softly that the least obstacle or untrueness of ball will cause deflection from the proper path; the target presented by ball 2 is small, sometimes merely an edge; and an error so slight as to be imperceptible in the division of ball 2 may result in leaving the balls safe.

A Push Stroke

The next variety of strokes to be considered are those in which the ball is pushed rather than struck; they are usually subdivided into push and half-push strokes. Great difference of opinion exists as to whether push strokes should be lawful in the game, but at present we are not concerned with what should be, but with what is allowed. The question whether, in the interest of billiards, the stroke should or should not be foul will hereafter be considered; at present, it is permitted by the rules, and without it much delicate play and many long breaks would be sacrificed, consequently a few examples are introduced. In learning this stroke, instruction from an expert is indispensable: there are various ways of playing it, some grasping the cue tightly with both hands to secure rigidity and sliding the bridge, which is bouclée, the forefinger being hooked round the cue and the other fingers shut on the cloth; others somewhat shorten the cue, or hold it further from its butt and play over a bridge in the usual way; but in any case the cue-tip should be brought as close as possible to ball 1, short, of course, of touching it, and not withdrawn before the stroke, but pushed gently and steadily forward. Contact between cue-tip and ball 1 must be preserved till the position occupied by ball 2 is passed, and ordinarily no more strength should be employed than is necessary to carry ball 1 either to ball 3 or to the pocket. The idea of the stroke is that, by dint of steady pushing, ball 2 is removed from the path of ball 1, which is more nearly unaltered on impact the more perfectly the stroke is made. In practice, if the distance between ball 2 and the pocket or ball 3 is considerable, some allowance must be made, and the player cannot safely ignore ball 2; he must not push exactly for the part of ball 3 he desires to hit, or straight for the pocket, but compensate for the throw-off from ball 2 by aiming somewhat fuller than would be necessary were it removed. The more perfect the performer, the more may ball 2 be neglected, and the less compensating allowance is necessary. For example, if the cue-tip were stuck to ball 1, so that interruption to contact was impossible, ball 2 might be wholly neglected; ball 1 could be pushed through a pyramid of balls and made to enter a pocket, or cannon simply by aligning correctly and pushing straight for the object. By common consent, however, long push strokes—i.e. when ball 1 is far from ball 2—are avoided; it is very difficult, if not impossible, to make them without interruption to the contact between cue-tip and ball, and consequently they either fail if the cue be withdrawn, or are foul if it be reapplied.

Some cases when the push stroke is specially useful are shown in Diagram V. A is an example of the commonest and simplest type. Ball 1 pushed on the alignment shown will move ball 2 slightly to the left (thereby opening the losing hazard from baulk), and cannon full on ball 3, leaving a losing hazard in the middle pocket.

B. Ball 1 pushed gently through ball 2 on the alignment shown, will enter the pocket and leave a losing hazard from baulk.

C is a bricole push, a useful and very pretty stroke. The three balls are so nearly in a straight line, so near each other and so near the top cushion—which, however, they do not touch—that a score by an ordinary push or stroke is impossible. If, however, the cue be aligned as shown, and ball 1 be pushed without touching ball 2 on to the cushion, it will escape between the cue-tip and cushion in the direction of ball 2, and, entering between it and the cushion, will push it out of the way and make the cannon.

This stroke is made easier and more certain if the cue is applied to the left side of ball 1; if by chance it was applied to the right of the centre, there would be much probability of the ball becoming jammed between cue and cushion.

D is another ingenious adaptation of the push stroke. Ball 1 pushed gently on ball 2, which touches the cushion, is slightly kissed and travels quietly to ball 3, whilst ball 2 squeezed between ball 1 and the cushion indents the latter slightly and escapes to rejoin the group at ball 3. Some players, perhaps Mitchell specially, use this stroke with great effect in nursery cannons.

Diagram IV.

In Example E the situation is shown when assistance cannot be got from a cushion. The balls are too nearly in a straight line for the ordinary push, it being impossible to get 2 out of the way before 3 is reached; if, however, the cue be carefully aligned on the right edge of ball 3, a steady push will result in 2 striking 3 on the left, causing it to travel to the right, where it meets ball 1, which has been slightly deflected in the same direction. This is a pretty example of a class of strokes which requires great accuracy of eye and a wonderfully just judgment to invent or to modify in a game; of course, when a situation somewhat similar to that now shown occurs, and a player profits by the advice given here, he may not necessarily possess these qualities in an eminent degree, but his recognition of the stroke and its successful execution will encourage him to try modification, and may elicit the sound judgment which is so greatly to be desired.

On Diagram VI. A is an example of as easy a push hazard as can be found on the table. Ball 1 is very close to or touching the top cushion, ball 2 partly masks the pocket. Align the cue parallel to the cushion, and push ball 1 along its edge past ball 2, which may be wholly neglected. The cushion forms a guide to both cue and ball, and the stroke can scarcely be missed.

B is a modification of the cannon already explained (Diagram V., Example C). In this case, ball 2 is too immediately in front of the pocket and too nearly equidistant from the top cushion with ball 1 to permit of the treatment just recommended for A. It is necessary to align the cue as shown, and to push ball 1 on its right side to the cushion. The squeeze between cue and cushion will cause that ball to remove ball 2 and enter the pocket.

The half-push is quite a different stroke from the push; it has always been considered a fair stroke, whilst some years ago the push stroke was held to be foul; but both are open to the same objection.

Diagram V.

When balls 1 and 2 are very near each other, their surfaces being not much more than an inch apart, and ball 3 is so placed that the cannon would ordinarily be made by use of follow, but so far away that sufficient follow cannot be communicated to ball 1, the stroke may be made by the half-push. C is a favourable example. Ball 1 is on the right corner of the Ｄ; ball 2 immediately in front of it, slightly nearer cushion 3; ball 3 is placed, say, 30 in. from the top cushion, and so near cushion 2 that a ball cannot pass between them. Imagine a straight line through the centres of 1 and 2 prolonged to P, a point equally distant from 2 with ball 3. Halve the space between P and ball 3, and let Q be that point. Strike ball 1 in the centre about No. 3 strength, aiming at Q, or slightly nearer ball 3, as a precaution, because there is a large margin for error on the right of that ball; it will deflect sufficiently to make the cannon. Similarly, it is evident losing hazards can be made by the half-push, the pocket being substituted for ball 3, but they are seldom useful and will not be further considered.

In making push strokes, good players often apply the cue to the side instead of to the centre of ball 1, with the view of supporting it and of modifying its escape on that side. This precaution is often required in order to obtain position.

Kiss Strokes.—In the English game the term kiss is used rather vaguely, so that precise definition is difficult if not impossible. It includes the strokes which the French call coups durs, in which ball 2 is touching a cushion and cannot give way as usual, but throws off ball 1 with the recoil of balls and cushion combined, as well as those termed rencontres, or the meeting of balls 1 and 3, the former having been put in motion by the cue and the latter by collision with ball 2.

Of the former kind examples are shown in Diagrams VII. and VIII. In playing these strokes recollect that screw or retrograde rotation augments the velocity of ball 1 after impact, whereas follow has the opposite effect.

Diagram VI.

A Push (bouclée)

Diagram VII.

Example A, Diagram VII., is the simplest form of the stroke, the three balls being in one line—ball 2 against the cushion, and ball 1 between 2 and 3; a stroke full on ball 2 will result in a cannon. B is a modification, for ball 3 is out of the straight line; the cannon is made by a slight division of ball 2, say ¾ right; if ball 1 be played on that spot it will cannon on ball 3. The student can set up examples for himself, and by careful division of ball 2 make many cannons. The greater the distance ball 1 has to travel, the lower and harder must it be struck. A very excellent practice to train the eye to the angles and the hand to control strength is afforded by Example C, which is otherwise not of much use in a game. Mark the positions of balls 1 and 2 slightly with pipeclay, and try to make losing hazards into every pocket on the table. After each stroke the balls are replaced, and the number of strokes taken to make the six losing hazards is the measure of accuracy in play. The first stroke into the right bottom pocket is easy; it will soon be made in one trial, for it is almost a plain half-ball stroke. The second into the left bottom pocket is perhaps the most difficult of all, for not merely has ball 2 to be correctly divided but strong left side is used; the left middle and top pockets are made direct, accuracy depending solely on the correct division of ball 2, finer for the former, fuller for the latter pocket. The right top and right side pockets are made off the cushion, and in the last-named side is used. This hazard may be made without a kiss; ball 1, played a free No. 1 strength half-ball on ball 2, will touch bottom and side cushions and travel towards right middle pocket. It is needless to enter into further detail, for the advantage of the stroke is to accustom the eye to the angles at which ball 1 comes off the various divisions of ball 2, and that is learnt solely by practice. To try for the pockets merely gives an object or interest to the stroke, and, if further incentive be required, back yourself to complete the hazards in fewer strokes than another person may require. The practical application of the knowledge thus obtained is that, should ball 3 happen to be on the lines 2P, 2P′, 2P″, or 2P‴, the cannon may be played with some confidence, and if it be anywhere else on the table, a reasonable attempt to score may, if needful, be made, and a game in extremis may thus be saved.

Diagram VIII.—Example A is an easy and useful stroke. Ball 1 is 30 in. from cushion 3, 15 in. from bottom cushion; ball 2 on the baulk-line touching cushion 3; ball 3 is as shown in the neighbourhood, say 18 in. from the right top pocket and within 2 in. of cushion 2. Play ball 1 with high right side half-ball or slightly fuller on ball 2, free No. 1 strength.

Example B is, in its way, a curiosity, but the stroke is by no means devoid of use. First, suppose ball 2 on the baulk-line touching the cushion at its left extremity. Place ball 1 for a half-ball kiss hazard into the right top pocket. This is squarer than an ordinary half-ball angle, because ball 2, being against the cushion, cannot give way; but the difference is not as great as might be imagined, and the stroke is not very difficult. What is curious, however, is that, if ball 2 be moved a certain distance up the cushion to positions 2′, 2″, &c., a half-ball cannon will be made on balls placed 3′, 3″, &c., at exactly the same distance along the top cushion. That is, if ball 3 be placed at the centre of the fall of the pocket, the distances between 3 and 3′, and 3′ and 3″, shall exactly equal those between 2 and 2′, and 2′ and 2″.

Diagram VIII.

The other class of kiss strokes is illustrated in Diagram IX., from which it is seen that ball 2 is in no case touching the cushion, but that (except in case E) it is used to kiss or plant ball 3 in such a direction that it advances to meet ball 1, and the cannon is thus effected. In case E the course of ball 1 is modified by a second impact with ball 2.

Example A. The three balls are in a straight line perpendicular to the cushion. If ball 1 be played absolutely full on 2, that ball will strike 3 full also, and no score will be made; but if ball 2 be struck slightly out of the centre—that is, between centre and ¾—a cannon will result. Play ball 1 a soft No. 1 strength slightly to the right of the centre of ball 2, which will travel proportionately to the left and strike ball 3 to the left of its centre. Ball 3 will strike the cushion slightly to the right of the perpendicular line, and, returning therefrom, will meet ball 1 when the cannon is complete. Ball 2 may be struck similarly on the left of its centre, and the stroke be made on the same principle as before.

Example B. Balls 2 and 3 touch, and the line through their centres is slightly inclined to the cushion. Ball 1 is so placed that the fine cannon is either impossible or dangerous. Play a gentle No. 1 centre stroke on ball 2 about three-quarters left; ball 3 will be planted on to the cushion, and, returning, will meet ball 1. The general fault is to play too fine on ball 2, but the stroke is easy.

Example C. Place the balls as shown; do not attempt the fine stroke, but play half-ball on ball 2; the cannon is inevitable.

Diagram IX.

Example D partakes more of the nature of a fancy stroke than of one useful in games; nevertheless, it illustrates in a striking way what may be done by means of the kiss or plant. Set up the balls as shown in a straight line. Balls 2 and 3 should touch, and ball 1 should be a little apart, to permit of a stroke on ball 2. The balls should touch or be very near the side cushion. Play ball 1 one-quarter right, No. 2 strength on ball 2, so as to impinge on the side cushion above the right middle pocket. Ball 2, being thus struck rather fine, causes ball 3 to travel at a moderate pace down the table towards baulk, whilst ball 1, travelling faster, comes off cushion 2 and meets or catches ball 3 generally in baulk. A similar and easier stroke may be from positions 1′, 2′, 3′, near cushion 5, ball 1 being played on ball 2 to strike cushion 3.

Example E is a very pretty little stroke, which may be thus placed.

Ball 1:	6½ in.	from cushion	6, 7	in.	from top cushion.
Ball 2:	11½ in.	„	6, 2½	in.	„
Ball 3:	19½ in.	„	6, 7½	in.	„

It will be observed that there is no direct stroke whereby ball 2 may be kept at the top of the table, nor is the fine side stroke (ball 1 with strong right side played fine on the left of ball 2) possible; in fact, the position seems far from being desirable. Yet, if the directions for playing this stroke be followed, the cannon will be found almost a certainty, and the balls will generally be well left for further play. The stroke is made thus: play ball 1 centre, a soft No. 1 on ball 2, three-quarters right, which will return from the cushion, kiss ball 1 on to ball 3, and often remain between ball 1 and the pocket. Hence, if ball 2 be the red, a better opening for a break could scarcely be desired. The stroke should first be practised from the positions indicated until fair certainty is acquired, then the positions may be slightly varied, and it may with advantage be set up without measurement, so that the eye may become trained and able to recognise the situation should it occur in a game.

Example F happens occasionally, and, therefore, it is well to be prepared. The three balls are in one straight line, and the situation generally comes about thus: the red ball being on the spot, the adversary’s ball happens to stop directly above it, between the red and the top cushion, ball 1 being in hand. The easiest way to score is to place ball 1 in line with balls 2 and 3, in this case on the centre spot of the Ｄ, and play full on ball 2. Personal inaccuracy will in this case insure the score, for ball 2 will rarely be struck so full as to impinge on the centre of ball 3; it will strike it on one side or the other, and a cannon will result on the same principle as that explained under Example A.

The general warning as to kiss strokes should be remembered. Avoid attempting doubtful strokes, specially when the balls are not close together.

Jennies.—In Chapter V. p. [160], an example of the plain half-ball stroke was described, and whenever the pocket is fairly open these strokes can be best made without side; but when the pocket is very blind, the losing hazard cannot be thus made, and side, which takes ball 1 into the pocket after touching the farther shoulder, must be employed. The nearer ball 2 is to the side cushion the more difficult is the stroke and the more side is required. The general fault in playing these strokes is that ball 2 is struck too full, a natural result of the use of reverse side, of which it is impossible to put on too much, specially for long jennies.

Diagram X.—Example A.

Ball 1: about 1 in. behind and right of the centre spot of the Ｄ.

Ball 2: 22¼ in. below the left middle pocket, 6¼ in. from the side cushion.

Play ball 1 one-quarter left medium No. 1 strength on ball 2, half-ball or rather finer; the hazard will be made off the far shoulder of the pocket, and ball 2 will rebound nearly perpendicular to the side cushion towards the centre of the table.

Example B.

Ball 1: on baulk-line, 8 in. to the right of centre.

Ball 2: 10½ in. below the right middle pocket, 4 in. from cushion 3.

Play ball 1 one-quarter right free No. 1 on ball 2 half-ball or finer. The more side the stroke is played with the better; it will often compensate for inaccuracy of aim.

Example C.

Ball 1: as in last example.

Ball 2: 9 in. above the left middle pocket, 4 in. from cushion 6.

Play ball 1 one-quarter left No. 1 strength on ball 2 from half-ball to quarter-ball.

Jennies are not nearly so difficult as they seem at first sight. The general rules for playing them are, for middle pockets, plain wherever possible, ball 1 being struck rather below than above the centre. But when ball 2 is so near the side cushion that the hazard cannot be made by a plain stroke, and for long jennies, use as much side as possible and endeavour to aim on ball 2 finer than half-ball.

In Diagram XI. a few examples will be found of bricole strokes, or those in which ball 1 strikes a cushion before impact with ball 2, side being used. Plain strokes of the sort have been mentioned in Chapter VI.

Example A.

Ball 1: on baulk-line a little to the right of centre.

Ball 2: over the left bottom pocket as shown.

Play ball 1 one-quarter right, aiming just out of baulk, No. 1 strength; the side, if correctly judged, will bring the ball back as indicated, and the losing hazard may be made.

Example B.

Ball 1: on the centre spot.

Ball 2: on the centre transverse line of the table overhanging the pocket, with just room on either side for ball 1 to pass without touching it.

Diagram X.

The losing hazard may be easily made as shown from either side of ball 2. Take first that from the left side. Play ball 1 one-quarter right, medium No. 1 strength, so as just to pass ball 2 to the left without touching; ball 1 will return from within the shoulder, strike ball 2, and fall into the pocket. For the hazard from the right of ball 2, ball 1 is played one-quarter left, to pass the right of ball 2.

Example C is precisely the same stroke into a corner pocket.

Example D may occasionally be of use, though generally a miss would be the proper game under the circumstances. Ball 1 is supposed to be in hand, ball 3 having stopped near ball 2 on the spot, but not sufficiently straight above it to warrant playing for the kiss cannon. In this case the knowledge acquired by playing an old fancy stroke—to make the losing hazard off ball 2 from baulk by playing bricole—is utilised. In that stroke an approximate guide as to the point of aim on the side cushion was obtained by aligning the cue so as to pass over the left bottom pocket, and the left corner of the Ｄ: the prolongation of that line indicated the point. Hence, by aiming a little above the point thus found, ball 2 is struck on the right side, and the cannon is possible. Place ball 1 on the left corner of the Ｄ, play a free No. 1 strength at the side cushion, aiming as directed. One or two trials will determine the correct point of aim with a given strength; if the strength is altered, the angle of reflexion will also alter.

Example E, on the other hand, is perfectly simple and most useful. Measurements are unnecessary. Play ball 1 to the cushion with slight right side; ball 2 will be pocketed, and ball 1 will rest in a good position for a losing hazard from spot into the right top pocket.

Example F.—Ball 1 in hand, balls 2 and 3 as shown about the diameter of a ball or a little more from the side cushion, so placed that the fine cannon from 2 to 3 would be very difficult. By placing ball 1 on the baulk-line as shown, and by playing with a little right side behind ball 2, ball 1 will, after impact, run down the cushion and make the cannon. When the eye is trained, ball 2 may be a considerable distance—say six or eight inches—from the cushion, and the stroke may be made with a reasonable chance of success, whereas played in any other way the result would almost certainly be failure.

Diagram XI.

Plants (see definition in Chapter III.) are perhaps more connected with pyramids and pool than with billiards; nevertheless, they may be occasionally used, and, therefore, must be briefly considered. The simplest form is when the centres of balls 2 and 3 are on a straight line which leads to the centre of a pocket. (See Diagram XII.)

Example A.—Balls 2 and 3 are on the line P Q and touch each other. Ball 1 may be on any part of the table from which ball 2 may be struck save the small corner cut off by the line R S perpendicular to Q P, and if played on ball 2 with sufficient strength ball 3 will run into the left bottom pocket. It is hardly possible to miss the winning hazard, and hence, whenever two balls touch and are so aligned, a very easy stroke is presented if ball 1 be suitably placed; for, no matter how badly it may be played on ball 2, ball 3 must of necessity travel to the pocket.

So far the matter is simple enough; but the next example, B, at once introduces difficulties which it is proposed to observe and notice rather than attempt to explain. A glance at the diagram will show that in this case G H, the alignment through the centres of balls 2 and 3, does not terminate in the pocket, but falls slightly without; hence, if the plant were played in the ordinary way, ball 3 would impinge near the shoulder at H. In the first place, let ball 1 be removed from the table, and let the problem be to play ball 2 with the cue so as to put ball 3 into the pocket. If this stroke be presented without explanation, nine men out of ten or more will attack ball 2 from the baulk side, playing towards the top of the table. The more they do this the further up the table will ball 3 strike the cushion; but let the player go round and place his cue on the alignment shown so as to strike ball 2 on its side towards the top of the table—that is with right side—a medium No. 1 stroke, when, wonderful to relate, ball 3 will travel to the pocket in the most docile manner. That having been established to the satisfaction of the player, let him replace ball 1 on the table anywhere as shown—that is, in any of the positions marked 1 or in any intermediate position. For the stroke as now set up, play ball 1 one-half left, No. 1 strength, on ball 2 half-ball or fuller to the right; again ball 3 will roll obediently to the pocket. If by an error of judgment ball 2 be played on to the left, ball 3 will strike the cushion above the point H.

Diagram XII.

Example C is merely an amplification of the same stroke. Ball 2 is conveniently placed in front of the pocket, and ball 3 is placed touching it first on the line P R, when the straight plant is to the left of the pocket, and next on the line P S, when it is to the right; ball 1 being somewhere as shown, an exact position for it being of no consequence. Now, when ball 3 is on the line P R, to the left of the pocket, play ball 1 on the left side of ball 2; when it is on the line P S, to the right of the pocket, play to the right of ball 2; in both cases the winning hazard will be triumphantly made.

These strokes are capable of ready demonstration on a table, but the laws which govern them are not certainly known. The results seem to point partly to transmitted side, but that is scarcely sufficient to account for so considerable a deviation from the straight plant, specially if it be considered that such side can hardly be detected by the unassisted human eye. Very likely, when once it is understood, the explanation will seem simple enough; at present, so far as is known, the result has not been accounted for in a satisfactory manner.

Example D is worth mentioning and worthy of practice; like most other strokes, it can be far more satisfactorily explained on the table by a man who can play it than by the most careful description on paper; yet, as in spot play and possibly in other circumstances it may be useful, an attempt to convey an idea of the stroke will be made. Ball 2 is on the spot; ball 1, too near it for any ordinary stroke with fair chance of success, but not necessarily touching, is first on the line T U, the straight plant being therefore on the point U. Now, if the cue be aligned as shown on the right side of ball 1, pointing towards X, and a medium No. 1 strength be delivered, ball 2 will be deflected into the pocket. Conversely, when ball 1 is on the line V W, close to ball 2, the cue must be aligned on a point Y below W, and a stroke on the left side of ball 1 will, as before, result in sending ball 2 to the pocket. The principle is apparently the same in all oblique plants, if those may be so called whose path is not the prolongation of the straight line through the centres of the two balls.

In Example C ball 3, and in Example D ball 1, are not drawn, in order to avoid complicating the diagram; their positions are indicated by the figures.

The subject of screw strokes was fully considered in last chapter, and practice was recommended with the view of facilitating the acquirement of the stroke rather than of illustrating its application to the game; hence it is now appropriate to give some useful examples.

Diagram XIII. Example A.—Balls 1, 2, and 3 as shown. This stroke may be played in many ways, depending on where it is desired to leave the balls. If ball 2 is to be brought back, play ball 1 one-quarter low about No. 2 strength nearly full on ball 2, which will travel to and return from cushion 1; ball 1, having parted with its velocity, will return slowly to ball 3, and the three balls should be left together. It might be desirable to play the stroke in a totally different manner if, for example, 2 were the adversary’s ball. In this case it would suffice to send ball 2 up the table towards spot, and cannon on ball 3 so as to leave a winning hazard in the left bottom pocket. To do this the strength communicated to ball 2 must be diminished, and this may be effected by playing finer on that ball and by using more screw in compensation.

Example B is a good practice stroke, and may be played harder or softer at will. It does not require to be laid down by measurement, and may be set up wherever convenient. Play ball 1 about one-half low and left, medium No. 1 strength on ball 2, about three-quarters right.

Example C, a screw back losing hazard, is often useful, ball 1 being between ball 2 and the pocket; no instruction is required beyond that given in last chapter for playing the stroke. It may be varied by moving ball 2 round ball 1 as far as the cushions will permit; the stroke is always possible, and in trying to make it some practical lessons in the matter of compensation will be learnt.

Example D.—Place the balls as shown. Play ball 1 three-quarters low on ball 2, half-ball or rather fuller, but avoid the kiss. Ball 1 will travel up cushion 2 and make the cannon or hazard, whilst ball 2 will escape towards the left middle pocket.

Example E is a screw off a fine ball, a stroke at which many amateurs fail chiefly because they do not stand properly for it—do not usually align their cue fine enough on ball 2. If played very slowly, very fine, and with the maximum of screw, the stroke is perhaps more certain of execution, but ball 2 will probably be left in baulk. To obviate this, play rather fuller, with less screw, and with more strength. The stroke is conveniently made from the spot, ball 1 being placed variously between the angle at which a losing hazard with side can be made and the vertical, or when the ball 1 is directly above the spot. The position shown in the diagram is a fair one, the stroke being not very difficult; it becomes more so as ball 1 approaches the position above the spot. It may be thus played: Align the cue as shown for a fine stroke, play ball 1 one-half low No. 2 strength on ball 2, one-quarter right. It is difficult in a stroke of this nature to give precise instructions for making it, because it varies with every slight variation of the position of ball 1 and with the power of each player to communicate screw; hence it is advisable at first to get the assistance of a competent person, and then to practise before minor details are forgotten.

Example F is well worth mastering; it is easier the nearer ball 2 is to the pocket. Play ball 1 one-half low and right on ball 2 about three-quarters left a free No. 1 strength. Ball 2 may thus be brought out of baulk, whilst the reverse side carries ball 1 into the pocket. In strokes of this kind care should be taken to avoid the kiss.

Diagram XIII.

Close screws, when ball 1 is so near ball 2 that the stroke cannot be made in the ordinary way, are worth mastering, but as some execution is required, they should at first be played under professional supervision. The chief point about them is to convey to ball 1 a maximum or nearly so of screw and side; the cue has to be delivered with great freedom, and ball 1 passes well beyond the position occupied by ball 2, then the forward force (translation) having been chiefly transferred to ball 2, the screw and side conquer the small balance left and ball 1 returns more or less towards the player. A rather neat example of a close screw is shown on Diagram XIV., and may be set up on the table without measurements. Play ball 1 one-half low and one-half right, a free No. 2 strength on ball 2 between three-quarters left and centre, so as to cause its return after impact with cushion 1; ball 1 should make the cannon off cushion 4 and perhaps cushion 5 as well, and the three balls should be gathered at the left bottom pocket. This kind of stroke is useful for losing hazards also, but should not be practised until the player has acquired much confidence in the delivery of his cue, lest accidents should happen.

Another stroke which must be noticed, though it should be rarely employed, is that known as the leap or jump, whereby ball 1 leaves the bed of the table during part of its course. It is made in two ways: either by laying the cue on the table, aligning it as usual in the direction desired for ball 1, and striking that ball so low that the tip touches the cloth before it reaches the ball. This is practically equivalent to putting the cue under the ball and throwing the latter upwards; but there being at the same time a forward motion, the result is a leap higher and longer in proportion to the strength of stroke. Played in this way there is no danger of cutting a sound cloth, and the ball may be made to jump higher with less strength, and to be better under control than when the leap is otherwise effected.

Diagram XIV.

Ball 1 may also be made to leap by striking it down towards the bed, the cue being oblique, its butt elevated—in fact, by an exaggerated stab. The ball is thus momentarily squeezed between cue-tip and bed, and leaps as it escapes from the pressure. This stroke should be practised with the greatest moderation; indeed, not at all until the player is well experienced and confident in handling the cue, for it commonly results in knocking the balls off the table and damaging them, and may further cut the cloth. The stroke is sometimes of use, and, therefore, must not be ignored; but it is safe to say that no one who valued his table or a good set of balls would willingly see them used for this class of practice.

The leap or jump stroke

Diagram XV. shows a few instances in which the leap stroke is legitimate, and as safe for the balls and table as is possible under the circumstances.

Example A.—It is desired to play the winning hazard on ball 3 without disturbing ball 2. Align the cue on the table in the direction required for the hazard, see that the tip is on the cloth and kept there, and play a medium No. 1 strength. Ball 1 will leap over ball 2 and make the winning hazard.

Diagram XV.

Example B.—The three balls as shown are in a straight line with no reasonable chance of a score. The situation happened at a critical moment in a match which the writer played many years ago, and a successful leap cannon enabled him to win. Place the cue in alignment with the three balls, and play the stroke as directed for the previous example; ball 1 should jump on ball 2 and roll off to ball 3. The difficulty, of course, is to control the strength used; the top of ball 2 must be cleared, and yet the ball must not be wholly missed. It is a question of nerve and judgment tempered very considerably with good luck. There is little or no danger to cloth or balls in practising this stroke.

Example C is one which is not infrequently played in exhibition games. Ball 2 is so placed that it cannot be got rid of by means of the shoulders of the pocket, and there is not sufficient room for a cushion or bricole hazard. A delicate leap stroke played between ball and cushion will make the losing hazard. It is not a desirable stroke for a beginner to practise, for he will inevitably cause ball 1 to jump beyond the pocket and roll away till brought up by some obstacle more or less destructive.

Example D is of a class which occurs occasionally in actual play. Balls 1, 2, 3 are nearly in a straight line, ball 3 being about 2 in. from the side cushion, so that a ball cannot pass between. An ordinary following stroke is difficult and uncertain, so usually the best play would be to give a miss; but the state of the game may render that impossible or undesirable, in which case the best chance of scoring is to strike down on ball 1, causing it to leap on to ball 2, which in turn bounds away, leaving the course clear for ball 1 to reach ball 3 and make the cannon either direct, off the side cushion, or even possibly from the top cushion.

The effect of ball 1, so struck, causing ball 2 in turn to leap, is prettily shown by placing the pool basket and balls as drawn in Example E. A smart stroke down on ball 1 will cause ball 2 to jump into the basket.

Many examples of fancy strokes made by means of the leap could be given, but they are purposely withheld, as there is no wish to encourage experiment as useless to the game as it is detrimental to the implements.

Fig. 1

Piqué and massé are not often used in English billiards; the latter, indeed, seldom or never, whilst the former, when used, is miscalled massé. They form in reality a continuation of the series of strokes which, departing from the normal or horizontal, culminate in one delivered vertically on the top of the ball. Thus, in fig. 1, Q, Q′, &c., represent the axes of a cue presented at various angles to the ball whose centre is C on the table T T. It has already been explained, but may without harm be repeated, that, the strength of stroke being equal, the maximum forward motion to the ball, or translation, is given by the horizontal delivery of the cue on the line Q C. As the angle of delivery increases, so does the forward impulse decrease until the limit 90°, or a vertical stroke, is reached, when there is manifestly no forward motion communicated to the ball, the entire force of the stroke being counteracted by the rigidity of the table. Now, without any attempt at fine distinction or any claim to precise accuracy, it may, in a rough way, be said that plain strokes are delivered on the axis Q C; that stabs lie between that and Q′ C, which is at an angle of 45° with Q C, or half-way to the vertical; that piqué commences at Q′ C and ends at Q″ C, beyond which the strokes are termed massé. This is not exactly correct, for there may be a massé with less inclination than Q′ C, the real distinction between piqué and massé being that in the former the cue’s axis is directed to the centre of the ball, and therefore the effect is to drive it straight with reverse or retrograde rotation; in the latter, the cue’s axis is not directed through the centre, but on one side or other of it, with the consequence that the path of the ball is no longer a straight but a curved line. This is the case to such an extent that the rotation round an oblique axis will often conquer the small measure of translation or displacement conveyed by the stroke and produce some beautiful curves.

Now, so long as the push stroke is allowed, massé will not be much attempted; it is difficult of execution at any time and in any position, impossible on a large English table save when the balls are near a cushion. It further has the great disadvantage, when played hard, of causing a dent or pit in the cloth sufficient to deflect or arrest a very slow ball, and therefore soon spoils a cloth near the cushions on the very part most used for nursery cannons. It is also doubtful whether with the most skilful manipulation effect can be got with small balls and fine-pointed cues at all equal to that which is obtained in the French game. Hence for many reasons we are indisposed to recommend the study and practice of this undoubtedly beautiful stroke.

Quite otherwise, however, with piqué, which may often be used with advantage in the English game and without harm to the table. The stroke is indispensable when ball 1 is so near ball 2 that the screw back cannot be made in the ordinary way, or when the cushion prevents the application of the cue to the proper part of the ball. In Diagram XVI. a few examples are shown. A learner should get some person who can make them—and they are all very simple—to play the strokes before him once or twice, when he will observe that no great strength is required: the weight of the cue let drop on the right part of ball 1 will almost do what is needed, and by restraint of force the danger of cutting the cloth is greatly reduced. More harm is done by hitting the ball hard vertically, for then the cloth is damaged in the same way, though not so badly as when a careless or thoughtless person in spotting the red ball, finding that it has a tendency to move on the spot, hammers it down with force, thus in a very short time forming a cup sufficient to ruin all delicate play from the spot, and with a hard stroke very likely to cause the red ball to fly off the table. The practice is most reprehensible, and persons doing it should invariably be remonstrated with, for they are ruining the table for more intelligent players.

Diagram XVI.

Example A. Balls as shown. Play ball 1 a gentle piqué, the cue at an angle of about 60°, inside, i.e. to the left of the centre of ball 2; ball 1 will return and cannon on ball 3; ball 2 will be left in the neighbourhood of the left bottom pocket. If it be desired to move ball 2 very slightly, the stroke may be played massé, the cue being nearly vertical, and ball 1 struck slightly to the right of the centre, nearer ball 3 than the centre. This mode of play gives greater rotation but less forward motion to ball 1.

Example B. Balls as shown. Play ball 1 piqué, cue from 50° to 60° according to the distance it is desired to make ball 2 travel; aim at ball 2 about three-quarters right, a clean gentle stroke, say equal to a medium No. 1. Ball 1 will make the losing hazard.

Example C. Balls as shown. Play ball 1 piqué 45° to 50° nearly full on ball 2, which will cross the table and return or remain near the spot as may be desired. The strength employed should be almost entirely communicated to ball 2, whilst the rotation will make the cannon. If ball 2 be the red, it may be as well to bring the balls together for the next stroke; if it should be the adversary’s ball, it would be better play to leave it near the spot and pocket the red next stroke.

Example D. Balls as shown. Ball 1 is too near the top cushion for a screw in the ordinary way, whilst ball 3 is so placed that a ball cannot pass between it and the cushion. Play ball 1 piqué 55° to 65°, so as to bring it well on the right or cushion side of ball 3, which is by its situation what is termed in billiard language greatly enlarged. A few remarks respecting this term will be found a little further on.

Respecting massé proper, it is not proposed to write in detail. Those who desire more information are referred to ‘Le Billard,’ by M. Vignaux,[^[16]] from which excellent work, though on the French game, much may be learnt by players of the English game. Two of his remarks may be quoted:—‘No stroke is more difficult. Good players hesitate to attempt it, for the slightest inadvertence causes failure. The fault of amateurs is always to play too hard, a stroke which requires the greatest delicacy and the lightest possible touch.’

This chapter may be suitably closed with a few remarks on what are called precautions and compensations. In certain situations we have already frequently remarked that a pocket was blind—that is, was more or less narrowed by one of its shoulders, and as a precaution, if a hazard is desired the player has been warned to avoid the dangerous shoulder. Sometimes it is sufficient to play inside the other shoulder; at other times, when the pocket is more blind or less open, reverse side has to be added in the case of losing hazards to induce the ball to enter the pocket after contact with the far shoulder. The side so used is said to enlarge the pocket, and the expression is appropriate, for if the ball struck the part of the shoulder which is exposed and had no side it would simply rebound and remain on the table; the side overcomes this tendency and the hazard is made. Again, in case of cannons, a cushion or two cushions, if judiciously made use of, similarly enlarge the size of a ball. When ball 3 is near an angle of the table so placed that another ball cannot pass between it and either cushion, a very large target is presented, and there is room for much inaccuracy without imperilling success. The thoughtful player will avail himself of this when it is of paramount importance to make the stroke, as, for example, when it is the game stroke, and so aim as to have the widest margin for error on either side. This is an instance in which there are many chances whereby a cannon may be made direct or off either cushion, so that ball 3 has for practical purposes a size equal to three or four balls.

Similarly, when a ball is within a diameter of a cushion, it may be enlarged by judicious precaution.

Fig. 2

Thus, in fig. 2, C C is the cushion, 1, 2, 3 are the balls. If it were the last stroke of the game, and therefore the cannon were of chief importance, the stroke should be played to make ball 1 after impact with ball 2 travel towards a point P between ball 3 and the cushion, and not direct on that ball. If ball 1 should strike the cushion anywhere from P′ to a point opposite the centre of ball 3, the cannon is certain; hence, aiming at P, a convenient spot between P′ and ball 3, a margin for error is left on either side.

The subject of compensation is very interesting, and its proper use is one of the refinements of play. Certain elementary forms will be described, but the application of the principle to the execution of strokes must be left to the intelligence of the player; and this may with safety and a clear conscience be done, for the less ambitious and clever player will not concern himself with the question.

Perhaps the simplest form with which ordinary amateurs are familiar is that whereby the angle between the paths of ball 1 before and after impact with ball 2 is diminished or enlarged by side which compensates for strength. Thus, taking plain losing hazards of the simplest type (Diagram IV. p. [157]), side may be substituted for strength, and the angle of deviation altered so that with the strength prescribed for the first hazard the second and even the third hazard may be made. Similarly, reverse side will compensate for fine striking; it will, in other words, decrease the angle of deviation.

These remarks of course apply equally to cannons, and with them also compensation is used in order to control the movement of ball 2. Without a knowledge of the motions which may be communicated to a ball by a cue, and the skill to apportion them at will, no long break can be continued. For the power to leave ball 2 in a certain position or direction is often a necessity; hence, whilst the actual stroke is made, that ball must be struck sometimes on one spot, sometimes on another, and therefore compensation must be supplied for the variation of aim.

Fig. 3

Consider a right-angle screw stroke.

In fig. 3 let 1, 2, 3 be the balls; if played half-ball, R will be the point of impact between balls 1 and 2, therefore the path of ball 2 will be in the direction R P. But suppose for some reason it is desired that ball 2 should travel towards P′. Then impact must be at R′, and, this being fuller than before, ball 2 will travel faster and ball 1 slower, if the strength of the two strokes is the same. But as ball 2 is struck fuller, less screw is required, and therefore ball 1 need not be hit so low. Here the additional fulness on ball 2 is compensated for by a diminution of screw, and the cannon is made; were the screw kept the same as that necessary when impact was at R, ball 1 would return to some such position as 1′, and the cannon would be missed.

Again, suppose that it is wished to send ball 2 towards P″; R″ must be the point of impact, and that makes the stroke so fine that ball 2 will travel much more slowly, and ball 1 as much faster; hence, to get the cannon, ball 1 must be struck extremely low to compensate for the loss of recoil occasioned by taking ball 2 so fine. So, if it be desired to make ball 2 in this case travel as far as before, additional strength must be used to compensate for the fineness of the stroke. This example shows the principles involved; working them out and applying them correctly to particular strokes is a matter of practice and experience, without which theoretical knowledge is useless or nearly so for purposes of play.

Another common illustration of the principle of compensation is the drag stroke, which was explained at p. [197]. As the ball is hit more and more below the centre according to the length of the path to be travelled, so must greater strength be used to compensate for the loss of naturally developed rotation; and, conversely, when that rotation is too powerful, or when there is special need for accuracy of path, or necessity for diminishing the travel after impact with ball 2, compensation is given in the form of retrograde rotation by striking ball 1 below the centre.

It is hardly necessary to give more examples, the great matter being to direct attention to the general principles which govern the conversion of strokes, and to make the player inquire why he attempts a stroke in a certain way. When he begins to do this and can solve such questions satisfactorily, the power will soon follow to realise at sight the compensations which he must apply to each stroke as it occurs in order to continue a successful break; and then, as in other matters affecting us, the value of calm sound judgment becomes apparent.

In almost every stroke in a break some compensation or other is used in order to control the paths of the balls. Strength is substituted for side or vice versâ; screw is increased or diminished according to the fineness or fulness of the stroke, which in turn involves variation in strength, and so on; substitution of one element of a stroke for another is constant, even though the player may scarcely appreciate the fact.

When player’s ball is near a cushion

CHAPTER VIII
THE SPOT STROKE

Hitherto the theory of the game and the strokes recommended for practice have been such as are required in learning to play a sound and perhaps old-fashioned game, that of an amateur in distinction to that of a professional player. But in dealing with the spot stroke a wholly new field is entered; much more severe and constant practice is needed if any real measure of success is to be attained, and if this cannot be bestowed the amateur would act wisely in never sacrificing an opening at the ordinary game for the sake of the spot. If he does so he will assuredly verify the truth of the old saying, that the spot has lost far more games to ordinary players than it has ever won. Still, it stands unrivalled as practice in winning hazards combined with getting position for another similar stroke; and even moderate familiarity with its variations and their results is of much advantage to the average player who cannot give the time and attention needed for their complete mastery. Hence he is recommended to practise the stroke as much as possible, and when some certainty in its execution is reached to take advantage of his knowledge and skill when favourable opportunities present themselves in games; but cautioned not to neglect ordinary openings for the sake and on the chance of making a few spots. It is difficult to say when that stage is reached at which it may be sound policy to throw up an ordinary for the sake of a spot break. Circumstances vary so much (and prudence must take them all into consideration) that what is wise in one case may be foolish in another, whilst it should never be forgotten that, as a rule, failure to make the hazard results in an easy break for the adversary. Taking a considerable class of amateurs, those who can occasionally make breaks of thirty, and who perhaps once or twice in a season make fifty, their average score is probably nearer four than five—that is, they take nearer twenty-five than twenty innings to score a hundred. Now at first sight it would seem that as soon as a player of this class was fairly certain of making three or four hazards he might reasonably discard the ordinary for the spot game, because such a break would be double or treble his average; but he would scarcely find it advantageous to do so; for, having made say four spots and failed at the fifth, he would leave the red ball over a pocket, so that an equal opponent was nearly sure of three, and might get six, in addition to the chance of making his average four. Hence the advantage is largely discounted, but very little more than four hazards as a measure of spot play will give the man who can make them a distinct superiority. He does not play the all-round game worse because he can make from six to ten spots; quite the contrary, and soon experience will act as a safe guide when to make use of them and when to play the ordinary game. If an amateur improves on this and becomes capable of making ten spots commonly and twenty occasionally, he passes into a higher class; the average of such a player would probably be seven or eight, and he has reached a stage to maintain which constant practice is required. Beyond this the amateur becomes gradually so merged in the professional that it is difficult to define the differences in their play, the excellence of which mainly depends on their state of training. This is specially true in respect to spot play; the late William Cook, whose delicacy of touch was unrivalled, has recorded that if he ceased to practise even for a week his execution suffered. So it will be readily understood that an inferior player, whose practice is much less, soon loses touch, and is very apt to hurt his game rather than benefit it by too persistent employment of this particular stroke.

The Long Rest.

On the other hand, the general game is greatly assisted by improvement in making winning hazards, and hence practice of spot play, though wholly insufficient for producing a spot stroke player, may yet vastly improve the all-round game. Without it the modern game played at the top of the table is impossible; that being, in fact, merely a development of spot play into which the element of cannons has been introduced, whilst the number of consecutive winning hazards is limited.

Again, of all breaks made on the table none is more genuine, none owes less to chance, than a series of spots; and it is far from impossible that its monotony, as it is called, does not in a great measure arise from the absence of luck. Partly, at any rate, from this, and partly because the complaint of monotony was judiciously fanned by those whose performances at this stroke were not of the highest order, spot play fell out of fashion, and in the present state of public knowledge and education in matters concerning billiards it is not likely to resume the position it legitimately held for many years. As has happened to the spot stroke, so in course of time and with far more reason will cushion nurseries of cannons be in turn abandoned; but what will take their place it is difficult to say. It may, however, be safely affirmed that the former, having genuine value, will continue to influence the game, and consequently will be practised; whilst the latter, being made by trick, of little service beyond the continuation of the series, will when once discarded perish for ever.

The positions and their variations from which the spot stroke should be practised have been defined in most books on billiards, amongst which the treatises by Bennett, Cook, and a small volume by Mr. J. P. Buchanan may be mentioned. There is no new position to illustrate, and even the modes of play do not greatly vary, though where one player will elect to get position from two cushions, another will obtain it from one. And it is well to remark here that perhaps in no strokes do the different qualities of ivory and bonzoline balls make themselves so evident; whilst with ivories in a certain position a following stroke off two cushions would be the preferable mode of playing, with bonzoline balls it would undoubtedly be better to play a stab from one cushion only. In some strokes the advantage clearly lies with ivory, in others as clearly with bonzoline; and so it may be said than on the whole the merits of either sort of ball are about equal. But bonzoline is cheaper, and can be got more uniformly accurate in shape and weight, hence it is not unlikely to supersede ivory in a great measure; therefore, a mention of the differences of behaviour as a warning to players is not out of place in this chapter. It is of course understood that some sets of bonzoline balls are more like ivory in behaviour than others, and then the warning is scarcely required; but in other sets the difference is marked and cannot safely be neglected. When playing it is better to adhere to one or the other sort of balls, and to practise with the kind selected. It is also desirable to practise each position and variation separately till confidence is acquired, and then gradually try to make breaks. It will often be found that, after certain positions have been fairly mastered, the work at a new one will cause the student to forget what he has learnt, and to fail when an old position recurs. For this there is no remedy save practice. The same thing occurs in other strokes, and those whose memory is retentive have no doubt a great advantage over those who soon forget, and the only way in which the latter class can at all compensate for their defect is by working harder and longer at each stroke. By resolute labour they may bring themselves on a par with their more fortunately constituted brethren. It is an ordinary experience that at one time a player excels at winning hazards, at another he succeeds with every follow, whilst he fails with every screw; again, he will find much certainty in playing fine strokes one day, whilst the next he can do none but the simplest of that sort. So it is with the spot stroke, and against failure there is no remedy but hard work, involving not improbably a return to the simplest one-ball practice to correct inaccurate delivery of the cue. In playing or practising the spot, the cue should be constantly chalked, or the requisite delicacy of touch will be lost, and miss-cues will result; side should never be used when the stroke is possible without it, for the actual hazard is by its use at once made a difficult stroke. Stab or screw are much safer because the cue is delivered on the central vertical line of ball 1, and they can in a great measure supersede side, but there are strokes in which the latter is obligatory. Again, contrary to what is often recommended, a free style of stroke is, we believe, to be preferred to very great delicacy. The latter is often the result of timidity or nervousness, which is sure to be soon fatal to accuracy; it also places the player far more at the mercy of untrue balls or table. Readers whose experience dates from the early seventies will understand precisely what is meant if they recall the play of William Cook and John Roberts, junior. When balls, table, and player were all that could be desired, Cook’s delicacy of play gave him a distinct advantage at the spot; but let any little disturbing element intervene, and Roberts’s freedom of stroke carried all before it. It was a far better style for lasting, and rendered him far less dependent on absolute perfection of implements. It is just the same in other strokes—trying to be too clever, too delicate in strength, is not to be recommended; in nursery cannons it results in leaving the balls touching after every third or fourth stroke, whereas a firmer delivery of cue will result in a far longer break. No doubt the general fault of beginners is to play too hard, and the reason is obvious; brute force in all things precedes science. But excessive strength is found often to cause disaster, and when that is realised, and the student has learnt how to compensate for strength, he is very apt to fall into the opposite extreme, and to play in too slow and hesitating a manner. Of two players, there is more hope for the one who strikes rather too freely than for the other who just fails from want of strength, for the man who is too quick rather than for the man who is too slow.

Fig. 1

The limits within which it is prudent to confine spot play may be roughly ascertained from the accompanying figure. S is the spot, S P and S P′ being the paths which the red ball should travel, in order that the pocket, which is somewhat blind, should be enlarged as much as possible by directing the red ball to the shoulders of cushions 2 and 6, thereby avoiding the dangerous shoulders of cushion 1. A A′ is a straight line passing through the spot parallel to cushion 1. S B and S B′ are prolongations of the paths of the red ball, so that if ball 1 be placed on either line, the hazard is played full ball, S C and S C′ are each 60° from A A′, leaving an angle of 60°, C S C′, in which the spot cannot be played. Within the remaining angles, A S C and A′ S C′, the stroke may be considered possible, but the practical limits are much smaller. It is unwise to attempt to lay them down dogmatically, for those which are right for one man are wrong for another, and therefore advice must be general. Perhaps the simplest definition is to recommend that play be confined within the dotted lines S D and S E on one side and S D′ and S E′ on the other; D, D′, it will be seen, are but very slightly below the line A A′, and S E, S E′ are at angles of 50° with A A′, the arcs D E, D′ E′ being 18 in. from S. Within these limits endeavour should be made to leave ball 1 after each stroke as nearly as possible on the lines B S or B′ S, and from six inches to a foot distant from S. It is just as bad a fault in spot play to get too near the red as to get too far from it; in fact, of the two, it is, in the same way as the extremely soft play already referred to, the more objectionable, for a very slight error of strength will result in the loss of position.

Spot hazards may be conveniently divided into those above the full ball strokes on the lines B P′, B′ P and those below. Of the former there are two classes, the drop stroke and the stab follow. The limits are marked as before, D, D′ and E, E′.

Commence with a stroke on the limit line from D to S, and place ball 1 about eight inches to a foot from the spot, ball 2 (the red) on the spot.

Fig. 2

Play ball 1 rather below centre, a gentle No. 1, the strength being just sufficient to carry ball 2 into the pocket; ball 1 after the stroke will rest in a position near 1′.

This stroke can be played in a variety of ways, but the plain stroke is unquestionably the best. If there is much nap on the cloth, right side may be used in the hope that the ball’s path will curve towards cushion 1, and if there is little nap the reverse or left side will have a tendency to keep ball 1 up the table; but in either case the difficulty of making the hazard is greatly enhanced by the use of side, and the advantage is microscopic in the extreme.

The next stroke is an easy one, consequently the position is good for play. Instead of placing ball 1 on the limit line from D to the spot, place it above, between the lines D S and B S. This is also a plain drop stroke, but as ball 2 must be struck fuller, it may be played with greater freedom. Place ball 1 as directed, eight inches to a foot from the spot, ball 2 on the spot.

Play ball 1 centre, a gentle stroke on ball 2; the former will follow through and come to rest about 1′, a position somewhat similar to that played from, but on the other side of the table.

The first point to ascertain is the correct division of ball 2, and the next is so to regulate the strength that ball 1 should remain within a foot of the spot.

Fig. 3

The stroke shown in fig. 4 is played differently from the preceding ones, and requires a little making. Ball 1 is placed between its position in the last stroke and the line B P′ for a full ball. It is, indeed, only so far from that line that a screw back would cause position to be lost.

Place ball 1 as directed at the same distance from ball 2 as before. Play a gentle stab on ball 1 rather below centre; ball 2, being struck nearly full, will acquire most of the velocity, whilst ball 1 will follow slowly through and obtain position on the other side of the table. The further ball 1 is from 2 the harder must the stroke be played, and the nearer the softer; indeed, when ball 1 is within six inches the stab is scarcely required; a medium No. 1 strength one-quarter low will suffice. The stab or screw corrects the tendency ball 1 has to follow straight after ball 2. If it did so position would be lost.

Fig. 4

When ball 1 is moved further down the table than the position described in the previous example, so as to be on the line B P′, the stroke is evidently full, as the hazard is perfectly straight. Position is retained by screw back.

Place ball 1 as shown eight to ten inches from ball 2, and in direct line for the corner pocket. Play ball 1 one-half low, a medium No. 1 strength full on ball 2, which should be pocketed, whilst ball 1 should return on the line S B.

Fig. 5

Though this stroke seems very easy, yet no position for the spot requires longer and more careful practice. At first, beginners will find that they cannot make two similar hazards in succession; either ball 1 will have left the line S B, or it will have travelled on it too short or too great a distance from the spot. These errors can only be cured by practice. If the screw back is not straight, ball 2 has not been struck full, and for correction it is as well to remove ball 2 to another part of the table, say the pyramid spot, where there is no question of making a hazard, and there playing solely for trueness of screw back. After delivery, keep the cue exactly in position; it should then point absolutely to the centre of the pyramid spot, and ball 1 should return to the tip. Strict practice in this way is not wasted; the power of regulating the screw to compensate for strength is most valuable, and in time the student will find, to his satisfaction and profit, that with a very gentle stroke he can screw far enough back for another chance, and that the certainty of the hazard is greater as the strength decreases. As in other similar strokes, the further ball 1 is from ball 2 the more strength is necessary. When by misadventure ball 1 remains on the straight line, but very near ball 2, play may be continued by a piqué; struck gently down, the cue’s axis being 60° or more with the surface of the table, ball 1 will return as before along S B or sufficiently near that line to leave another spot stroke. Again, if similarly left very close to ball 2, but slightly out of the straight line for the pocket, the hazard may be made and position even may not be lost by use of the plant stroke described at p. [246], and exhibited on Diagram XII. (p. [245]). We do not think this has ever been mentioned in any treatise on spot play, and many persons who can make a considerable number of spots would consider the position lost were ball 1 left as described and give a safety miss. Yet a little practice will prove that the hazard, at any rate, is not very difficult; it is less easy to retain position, for freedom of stroke, amounting to double strength, is generally required.

Of the straight screw back there are two variations which require great delicacy of touch and accuracy of appreciation, for side has to be used in compensation for a minute division of ball 2. They occur when ball 1 is left at a suitable distance from ball 2, say, from 4½ in. to 9 in., not precisely on the straight line B P′, but very near it. Being off the line, it is clear ball 2 cannot be struck full, but impact must be slightly to one side or other of the centre according to whether ball 1 is above or below B P′. The divergence of return due to this slight division of ball 2 may be counteracted by a minute allowance of side, and the straight path may thus be regained. Or the screw back may be made without this compensation, in which case ball 1 will return either above or below the line B S, whence, though position for screw back may be lost, spot play may be continued. It has generally been usual to dismiss this straight screw back spot stroke somewhat contemptuously, as too easy to require much comment, an assumption which cannot be conceded. The stroke has to be played harder than many other spot strokes, and, therefore, greater accuracy is required. The slightest inaccuracy or imperfection of balls is fatal unless the player is a master of no ordinary capacity, and can, by his skill, apply the required compensations. What can be done with it alone has been conclusively shown by the best performers of the day, some of whom exhibit a marvellous power of retaining position directly behind the spot. The writer has seen Roberts do so with great ability; but his performances at this special stroke have been eclipsed, notably by Sala, who has made 186 consecutive screw backs, Peall, who has made 184, and we believe Memmott to have wonderful skill, and to have made a much greater number of these strokes than any other player.[^[17]]

When ball 1 is below the line B S, and just so far from it that position cannot be retained by screwing back, the stroke must be differently played. Place ball 1 as shown below B S, and distant a foot or so from the spot. If the stroke were played full, ball 2 would just hit the dangerous shoulder of cushion 1. That will suffice to give alignment, which is of considerable importance for this hazard, as freedom of stroke is required. Play ball 1 one-half high, free No. 1 strength or No. 2, on ball 2; ball 1 should follow through, and, returning from cushions 1 and 2, regain position on or near the line B′ S. That is the simplest form of the stroke, which is never an easy one, and seems decidedly more difficult with bonzoline than with ivory balls; the former requiring a stronger stroke to recover position, and therefore endangering the success of the hazard. When even thus but slightly out of the straight line, some of the best players use side to compensate for strength, an advantage, doubtless, if the hazard striking be very perfect. Yet for ordinary persons nothing is more difficult than to strike ball 2 truly when ball 1 is played with side; hence we counsel practice of this position with follow, but without side.

Fig. 6

A very small variation of the stroke, however, makes the use of side imperative. If ball 1 is near ball 2, sufficient follow cannot be got on, and position can only be retained by the use of direct side—that is, playing from cushion 6, right side; this causes ball 1 to shoot from cushion 1 with increased velocity, and at a different angle from that of incidence, thereby impinging on cushion 2 at a point above or nearer the pocket than it would otherwise have done. The compensation for the side is a reduction of strength.

Again, if ball 1 is a shade further from B S than the position shown and described for the plain follow, the use of side becomes obligatory. As ball 1 is further from ball 2, follow is less necessary, or rather it becomes unnecessary to strike above the centre, as developed rotation supplies the necessary follow. This stroke, and specially the variations which demand the use of side, require long and constant practice, and are always difficult.

Fig. 7

The position indicated in fig. 7 shows ball 1 further down the table, or from B S, than that exhibited in the previous figure. Here, with ivory balls it may still be possible to play off two cushions with a great deal of side; but it is generally better, certainly with bonzoline balls, to obtain position from cushion 1 only, by means of a stab. Place ball 1 as shown about eight to twelve inches from the spot; play a stab through the centre downwards, the angle of the cue being ten or fifteen degrees with the bed, a free No. 1 strength. Ball 1 will impinge on cushion 1, and return in the direction indicated. This stroke is not easy and requires considerable practice. It is also difficult to determine when it should be played as a follow off two cushions and when as a stab from one. No exact rule can be laid down; one player will adopt one way, another will choose another method. It is clear that where follow with side off two cushions ends stab begins, and therefore there is one position exactly between the two which may be played either way. One’s first impression or impulse is often a good guide, with the reservation that ivory favours the follow, whilst bonzoline favours the stab.

Fig. 8

Similarly the stab is gradually merged into a perfectly plain stroke. With ball 1 further down the table than in the last example the stroke becomes easier. As it is represented in fig. 8 nothing is required beyond the winning hazard and such regulation of strength as shall result in leaving another hazard from the opposite side of the table. Place the balls as shown; play ball 1 centre, No. 1 strength, on ball 2, so as to make the winning hazard; ball 1 will return to position from cushion 1 somewhat as indicated. If it returns too straight back—that is, too near the spot—in all probability ball 1 has been struck either a little below the centre or slightly to the left. The correction is obvious, and a very small allowance will cause ball 1 to come off the top cushion at a wider angle. The stroke becomes more difficult the further ball 1 is from ball 2, because it must be played with greater strength, which in turn may have to be controlled by delivering the cue rather under the centre.

As ball 1 is placed further down the table, it is evident that the winning hazard becomes finer till a point is reached at which position cannot be got from cushion 1 by a plain stroke. At first all that is required is to play the hazard with a little right side, which causes ball 1 to leave the top cushion at a sufficient angle; but as that ball approaches the line E S (the limit we have proposed for the spot stroke) various modifications of play are introduced. So long as the distance between balls 1 and 2 does not exceed a foot, and the former is within the angle E S D, the fine stroke with right-hand side may be played; when the distance is greater, or ball 1 is on or very close to E S, position is best gained by a gentle stab-screw, whereby the ball returns from cushion 1, as shown in fig. 9. Different persons play this stroke and its variations—which are many—in different ways, and it would be gratuitous to say that one way was right and another wrong. So long as the hazard is made and a good position is left no one can condemn the stroke, though one man may get position on one side of the spot and another man on the other side. Some players habitually use the reverse or left side if the stroke is played from cushion 6, in order to keep sufficiently away from the spot; but for reasons already given the use of side when attempting winning hazards is unadvisable. Sometimes it is obligatory, and then the risk of missing the hazard must be taken, for there is no doubt that even for the most accomplished hazard striker side greatly enhances the difficulty of the stroke.

Fig. 9

It is doubtful whether any further drawings are necessary to illustrate the spot stroke; they could no doubt be multiplied almost indefinitely, and one would be found to approach its neighbour so closely that even an educated eye and a much more elaborately drawn set of plates than those possible on the present scale would fail to detect the difference. The stroke must be taught by a master, and should occasionally be practised under his supervision, when much that is difficult to make clear on paper will at once become evident, and the variations of strokes (that is, those which are intermediate between the examples here given) may usefully be set up and played. It may be desirable to say that in each of the figures the nomenclature of fig. 1 has been retained: the letters D, D′ and E, E′ representing the limits within which the stroke lies, and B P′, B′ P are always the straight lines through the spot to the pocket. The lines D S, E S, &c., have been omitted in order that the figures may not be needlessly complicated. It is of course understood that the strokes should be made from both sides of the table, and it will very likely be found that whereas, playing from one side, there is a tendency to strike ball 2 rather full, from the other side the error is just reversed. This may partly arise from physical peculiarity—may be, in fact, an evidence of the personal equation or error of observation which everyone has to some extent—but it will often arise from error in the cue’s delivery, and, if so, will be greatly improved, if not wholly eliminated, by reversion to one-ball practice to secure truth of the centre stroke.

Before leaving the spot stroke the methods usually adopted to continue the break or to obtain safety must be noticed.

Diagram I.

Diagram II.

When ball 1, failing to regain position, is left above the spot, or nearer to the top cushion than the spot, several alternatives are presented. If for any reason it is wished to continue spot play, the hazard may be made with strength to cause ball 1 to return to position after going round the table and striking at least three cushions. This stroke, though not so difficult as it may at first sight seem, is not to be recommended, chiefly because getting the exact strength must be to a great extent a matter of luck. Also when the necessary strength is used the hazard is very uncertain. It is more or less a fancy stroke which greatly delights the gallery, and is illustrated in Diagrams I. and II.; Peall usually plays off three cushions, whilst Mitchell generally uses five. It is much sounder play, when possible, to drop the red into the pocket and lie near cushion 2 for a losing hazard (see fig. 10); and if that be impossible or very doubtful, then a miss in baulk or a double baulk should be played. The latter stroke, or one of the same type, will be hereafter explained when dealing with safety.

Fig. 10

This chapter may be closed—as, indeed, it was commenced—by reiterating the opinion that, whether the all-in game be tabooed as monotonous or not, the spot stroke is, and, as far as can be seen, must remain, of first-rate importance in modern billiards, and its study and practice will well repay such thought and work as may be bestowed on it.

CHAPTER IX
SAFETY AND BAULK PLAY

The subject of this chapter, though of very great importance, is unquestionably of much less interest than the consideration of making strokes, just as in war attack is preferred to defence. Yet no general is fit for command who does not well understand defensive tactics, and in the same way a billiard-player must often play a defensive game. In the first place, such a game is advisable when the adversary is a stronger player; he presumably will give points, and almost certainly will try to force the game, which may often be saved by prudent play. Again, when in possession of a great lead a defensive rather than an enterprising game is to be recommended; whereas, if behind, every reasonable endeavour to score and get a break should be made. It is a difficult matter to say how far a cautious game should be advised, for whilst prudence is praiseworthy, timidity, or cushion-crawling, as it is termed, is contemptible. Speaking generally, and considering average people, it may be said that if there is a small stake on the game, or if, what is in effect the same thing, the loser has to pay for the table, quite sufficient caution will usually be shown: whereas where there is neither stake nor payment great laxity in playing is likely to result. The same thing is seen in professional play; nowadays there is rarely a genuine match, the stakes are more or less imaginary, and the consequence is that the strict game suffers if it seems to interfere with taking gate-money. One evil effect of general laxity of play, neglect of etiquette, and so on, is that if occasion should arise for a serious game caution is very likely to be completely overdone, and a better player may, by adopting over-cautious tactics, actually throw the game into the hands of a more ignorant performer. No doubt, as in most other things, a middle course between temerity and timidity is best. It may be said that safety should be played for when there is no reasonable chance of making a score; and from this it follows that an inferior player should often content himself with giving a safe miss when a superior player may try to continue the game.

Safety is sought for in many ways, but with the majority of amateurs is more often the result of accident than of design. The simplest form, and that which is most familiar, is exhibited at the opening strokes of a game. The person who commences has the red ball on the spot, and may play at it if he please; but he rarely does so, preferring to give a miss in baulk. The adversary then has all the chances which the other player had, with the addition of those of a cannon; yet, unless the latter be very tempting, he too follows suit with a miss below the middle pocket, choosing the right or left so as to leave the squarer angle and more difficult score. Sometimes there is a good deal of fencing for the first opening, and whenever a miss is given endeavour should be made so to place ball 1 that not only is it difficult to score off, but that at the same time the adversary is forced to try for a stroke beyond his powers, or at any rate to disturb the position. He is then at a disadvantage, for he cannot give a miss because the other player has an easy stroke on the balls, and if he fails to score a good opening may be left. In giving a miss endeavour should always be made to place ball 1 in a commanding position, as well as in safety. All misses must be played with the point of the cue, and it is often advisable, if a careless player gives the miss otherwise, to insist on his making the stroke over again in the proper way. Another general rule is that when playing a miss back into baulk it is advisable to play from one or more cushions rather than direct for the desired position. The stroke may thus be played stronger, and the danger of failing to reach baulk is avoided. Another mode of playing for safety is to make a double or single baulk when the opponent’s ball is in hand; and there is yet a third mode, respecting which it is difficult to write, but which exists none the less, and that is so to regulate play that if failure to score should result as little as possible is left. Such a game, though fatal, we imagine, to anything like free play and long breaks, is yet very effective amongst players of moderate capacity. It will not, however, be seriously disputed that excessive safety play and use of obstructive tactics tend to alienate the sympathy of spectators, often most unjustifiably; witness the delight with which the public welcome a score in baulk from a safety miss, even when success is gained by the most palpable fluke. They seem to say, ‘Serve the cautious man right for his timidity’; and the only persons who appear to hold other views are those who have backed the prudent though unfortunate player.

Whilst on the subject of safety, it is well to consider the question of pocketing the adversary’s ball, and giving a miss in baulk. This mode of play is generally resented, and it is at best a confession of weakness; yet there are times when it is the game, and should be played, and the outcry against it should be promptly put down. It is one of those matters in which sentiment is allowed to outweigh expediency. Yet no wise man will neglect sentiment; and it is probably better to lose a few games by not availing oneself of the unpopular stroke than to gain them and lose the goodwill of the company. Nevertheless, there are times when a man may be greatly blamed for omitting to take advantage of the opening; for example, if his score is 95 out of 100, and he has the opportunity of putting his adversary down and giving a double baulk, should he neglect to do so and, in consequence, lose the game, neither he nor his backers are likely to be pleased. So, perhaps, though sentiment is strong, business is stronger, and each may prevail at different times and under different circumstances without offence.

A few examples of safety and baulk strokes will be found in the following diagrams:

Diagram I.—Ball 2, say the red, safe near cushion 1; ball 1 as shown near cushion 6, ball 3 in hand. Play ball 1 a plain medium No. 1 strength against cushion 3, whence it will impinge on cushion 4, and travel in the direction indicated. Even if ball 1 occupy the position 1′, it is still advisable to give a miss in baulk by striking cushion 3 in the first instance.

Diagram II.: Example A.—Ball 1 in hand; ball 2 over right top pocket; ball 3 or 3′ angled for ball 2, which is supposed to be the red. Ball 1 should be played a No. 1 strength to the top cushion to rest near ball 2, where it cannot be directly struck by ball 3. The best chance of disturbing the arrangement is to play ball 3 off cushion 5 or 6.

Example B.—Balls 2 and 3 as shown, the former being the red; ball 1 in hand. There is a certain winning hazard from ball 3 on ball 2, and if ball 1 has to play he should give a miss out of baulk, but directly in line with balls 2 and 3, and as close to the latter as possible. The hazard is then much cramped. Unless the balls are all close, a miss of this sort would be imprudent, for several solutions of the difficulty would present themselves to the player of ball 3.

Diagram III.: Example A.—Ball 2 near or touching cushion 1 as shown; ball 1 conveniently near it; ball 3 in hand. Play ball 1 a low screw on ball 2, rather fuller than half-ball, but carefully avoid a kiss, with strength about No. 2. Ball 1 will remain under cushion 1, whilst ball 2 is doubled to baulk. This is an excellent type of stroke, for by means of the screw ball 1 returns to the cushion further from the pocket than ball 2, and is almost always perfectly safe.

Example B.—Balls 1 and 2 as shown; ball 3 in hand. Play ball 1, with right side, a gentle stroke on ball 2, fine, so as to cut the latter towards the right bottom pocket; ball 1 will come off cushion 3 and rest in baulk.

Diagram I.

Diagram II.

Diagram III.

Diagram IV.—A very useful type of stroke is here exhibited. When playing the spot stroke, position is often practically lost by ball 1 remaining very near the line A A′ parallel to cushion 1, either above or below it, at such a distance from ball 2 as to make the hazard very dangerous. Similarly, in top of the table play, the loss of the adversary’s ball, whilst ball 1 is left somewhat as shown, necessitates safety play. Ball 3 being in hand, two courses are open for ball 1; either it may be played into baulk in the way shown on Diagram I., or the double baulk, which is not difficult, may be played. It is thus made: ball 1 three-quarters right about No. 3 strength on ball 2, one-quarter right; the paths indicated will be approximately followed. The usual fault with this stroke is to play too full on ball 2. If played fine with freedom and a little right side to ensure impact on cushion 5, and to avoid cushion 6, the stroke will generally be successful. A little difference in the position of ball 1 does not materially alter the stroke, which should be played until the winning hazard and position may be tried with reasonable chance of success. Play the stroke from both sides of the table till confidence is gained.

Diagram V.—What is said of the last stroke applies for the most part to this one, the difference being that ball 1 is above the line A A′. To make a double baulk, play ball 1 one-half low and right, about No. 3 strength, on ball 2, between one-half and one-quarter left. A little practice will show that there is considerable margin in the division of ball 2, within which the double baulk may be made; consequently the paths travelled by the two balls will diverge materially from those shown, which are for ball 2 about one-quarter left, or a rather fine stroke. Ball 1 may be moved either nearer the spot or nearer cushion 1, and the stroke may still be made, its limit being, of course, when the winning or losing hazard into the right top pocket becomes worth playing.

Diagram IV.

Diagram V.

Diagram VI.—Two very useful and very common types of double baulk strokes are here shown; they should, like most of the other strokes, be practised on either side of the table till they can be made with certainty. Ball 2 need not be touching the cushion; some variation of play is required as it is moved away, but not more than may be left to the intelligence of the reader who has thus far followed the advice given in this volume. In practice it will be found that the method of play shown for Example A holds good when ball 2 is close to the baulk-line, and for a certain distance above it when the other mode of play comes in. With ivory balls 18 in. above baulk may be considered the limit within which the stroke A should be confined; after that, and up to the middle pocket, the double baulk should be made as shown at B. With bonzoline balls the limit of the former stroke is considerably extended, but the 18 in. limit, though it may easily be passed, will be found safe with any balls. The double baulk may be made with extraordinary differences of stroke; the ball which has to travel round the table may impinge on cushion 1 anywhere from the point P towards the right; but it is advantageous so to play that impact with the cushion shall be to the right of the spot in order that the chance of the ball catching the corners of or entering the right middle pocket may be avoided.

Example A.—Ball 2 (the red) near cushion 5 as shown, within 18 in. above the baulk-line, ball 1 in hand. Place ball 1 towards the right of baulk; play one-half right No. 3 strength on ball 2 one-quarter right; it will return from cushion 5 towards the right bottom pocket; ball 1, after impact with cushions 5, 1, and 2, will enter baulk towards the left bottom pocket. The finer ball 2 is struck, the nearer to cushion 5 will it come into baulk, and the less strength is required, which, however, must be compensated for by more side.

Example B is in a way the converse of A, for ball 1 performs the short and ball 2 the long journey to baulk. Place ball 2 as shown 18 in. or further from the baulk-line, ball 1 towards the left spot of baulk. Play ball 1 from one-half to three-quarters low No. 3 strength on ball 2 about three-quarters left (as full as possible without the kiss); it will rebound from cushion 5, and after touching cushions 1 and 2 will enter baulk in the direction of the left bottom pocket; ball 1 will return from cushion 5 towards the right bottom pocket. This stroke can be made when ball 2 is a little above the middle pocket, but it requires execution and is too risky to be recommended.

Diagram VI.

Diagram VII.—When the red represented by ball 2 is above the middle pocket as shown, a double baulk may be made, and the stroke is worth working at for the sake of acquiring some certainty in striking ball 2 with freedom fuller than half-ball. It is not in reality a very difficult stroke, but it is not one to be recommended at critical moments, when the simplest solution would usually be to play back into baulk. Yet there are times when it is obligatory to hit the red ball, as for example when the adversary is within one point of game; and since with practice the stroke may be successfully made three out of four times, and a person who has once mastered it is, even if out of practice, more likely to make it than to fail, it should in such a case be played.

Suppose ball 2 to be placed as shown, exact position by measurement being unnecessary; balls 1 and 3 are off the table and the former is to play. Place ball 1 on the baulk-line for a three-quarters follow stroke on ball 2, so that it may strike cushion 1 well to the right of the spot. The diagram, though without pretension to absolute accuracy, will serve as a guide. Play ball 1 centre or rather higher a free No. 3 or No. 4 strength on ball 2 three-quarters left, or slightly fuller, which will then impinge on cushions 2, 1, and 6, entering baulk in the direction of the right bottom pocket. Ball 1 will after impact follow through ball 2 to cushion 1 and return thence to baulk. The stroke is a pretty one, and its practice is interesting.

Another type of baulk stroke is shown in Diagram VIII. It is clear that the single baulk would be simpler than the double, for by playing a more or less full stab on ball 2 it would of necessity run into baulk, whilst ball 1 would remain near the position which ball 2 occupied. But the double baulk is not difficult. Place the balls as in the diagram, play ball 1 one-half high with left side, a free No. 2 full (if anything to the left of full) on ball 2, which will after striking cushion 6 travel towards the right bottom pocket; ball 1, following through ball 2, will strike cushion 6 at the same place, but by reason of the follow and side will shoot off at a different angle, keeping nearer cushion 5. When ball 1 approaches position 1′, the stroke is similarly made, but must be played a little harder, for ball 2 will strike cushion 3 near P, and thence enter baulk. This class of stroke may be set up on either side of the table almost anywhere between baulk and the top.

Diagram VII.

Diagram VIII.

Diagram IX.

There are, of course, numerous other positions whence a double baulk may be played, either with or without the help of a cushion; but the examples given will, it is hoped, be sufficient to show how in positions where the mode of play is not self-evident the strokes should be attempted. As a general rule, endeavour should be made to leave the player’s ball and the red some distance apart, in order that the adversary may find it difficult to score from a cushion, or to disturb a comfortable arrangement. A useful set of strokes for such score or disturbance is shown in Diagram IX. The three variations should be practised, and then if in a game some intermediate stroke may be required, the player will be able to judge where to place his ball. The angle of return can also be controlled by the strength.

Let balls 2 and 3 be in baulk as shown, and ball 1 be in hand. It is desired to disturb balls 2 and 3 with the chance of scoring. Play ball 1 from the right corner of the Ｄ, centre on a point P about seven inches from the right top pocket, No. 2 strength; it will rebound from cushions 1 and 2, and following a path similar to that shown have a very fair chance of cannoning from ball 2 to ball 3. Again, place ball 1 on the centre spot of the Ｄ marked 1′; play as before on P a free No. 2, and it will arrive at a point about 2′.

And, lastly, place ball 1 on the left corner of the Ｄ marked 1″; play No. 3 strength on P, and it will return to 2″ and have a chance of cannoning on 3″. If these strokes are mastered they give a wide scope for the disturbance of certainties left in baulk, for they can be played from either end of cushion 1, and if balls 2 and 3 are missed, ball 1 has generally sufficient strength to carry it some distance up the table.

CHAPTER X
BREAKS

In Chapter III. the term break was explained as a continuous score, or one made in unbroken succession, and the definition is in a general sense accurate; nevertheless, it has amongst the better class of players a higher signification. With them it means a succession of strokes each of which has been played for, and so played that the next has been foreseen, calculated, and left as desired by the player. That is to say, a break to be perfect includes not merely making a stroke, but the preparation for another to follow. Hence the difficulty of making any given stroke is enhanced by the need of thought and of modification in play, in order that the balls may be favourably placed for the next attempt; but, on the other hand, making the next stroke, that is, continuing the break, is so much more certain after reasonable preparation, as in the hands of even a moderate performer to more than counterbalance the drawback. Indeed, in many cases it is as easy to play the stroke in the right way as in the wrong, and the eye once educated selects the proper method without conscious effort, so that the difficulty referred to is reduced to a minimum, and the advantage correspondingly preponderates.

A Serious Game: Nursing The Balls.

On the other hand, the great majority of amateurs, for whom the game is one of chance rather than of skill, either will not or cannot give the necessary attention to master its rudiments; consequently, they cannot be said to play for breaks, nor is it desirable that they should make the pretence. They will score faster by concentrating their attention on the stroke before them, and by implicitly trusting to Providence for the next. It is true that they never make a break in the higher sense of the word; nevertheless, they often succeed in putting together considerable scores and in defeating better players. For persons of this class—and let it be clearly understood that there need be no cause for shame in belonging to it, because many cannot give the time nor afford the money required for practice and professional supervision—a few general hints will suffice. What is ridiculous is when they pretend to a knowledge they do not possess, and ascribe their failures to playing for position, a crime of which they are wholly guiltless. Beyond these there are an increasing number of persons who have grasped the idea of playing a break, who desire to do so legitimately, and who can give some time and attention to the game, and now and then get a little professional instruction. Though such are undoubtedly in a higher class than the former, it by no means follows that they invariably defeat them. Their breaks though played for may very probably not equal by half the scores made by the others; indeed, until decided progress has been made the difficulty before alluded to of providing for the leave will result in the immediate stroke being missed so often, as to more than neutralise the benefits which arise from occasional success. In time, however, the average play and rate of scoring of this higher class will surpass the performances of those first mentioned to such an extent that they can give a start of from one-fifth to one-fourth of the game. The best players of this higher class soon reach the standard of what for want of a better definition may be called good club play. That is to say, few players in London clubs can give them points, they make consistent scoring, and under favourable circumstances may play 250 points in an hour. This means a considerable aptitude for the game, as well as some knowledge of it, and more or less education. In fact, a standard has been attained which will be lost unless kept up by steady work. Comparatively speaking, very few gentlemen pass beyond this stage, and when they do they seldom play in clubs. The reasons are obvious; in the first place they cannot get the tables for sufficiently long games, and they are liable in club-rooms to all manner of interruption fatal to continuity of play; they further meet no opponents from whom they have anything to learn. Hence naturally they prefer to play elsewhere, and they often attain to a very high standard of excellence in cases rivalling not without success high-class professional form. It must not of course be overlooked that certain natural qualities should be possessed by the student if he is to become a fine player, and also that men in every class as players may be fortunate enough to enjoy them. They will always be useful, and will often lead their possessor to victory when contending with a harder working but less gifted opponent. The most important of all is perhaps good health, for that covers a multitude of excellences; good nerve, good sight, quick and sound judgment, good temper. A good figure, too, is of great advantage, and it is better to be tall rather than short; yet how many short men have been and are fine players.

But these advantages will not of themselves suffice to make a player; intelligent practice and plenty of it are required, and the fewer or weaker the natural qualities may be the more must they be reinforced by work—‘à force de forger en devient forgeron.’

The system of classifying a player by means of his average break is a safe one, provided that the average is calculated from a great many games, and that the other person with whom comparison is made is averaged from the same number of games played under the same circumstances. Unless this is attended to results may mislead. The average break is found by dividing the points scored by the number of visits to the table. Thus if a player scores a game of 100 in 10 innings, the initial miss of course counting as 1, his average is 10; 20 innings give an average of 5; 25 an average of 4; and so on. This process if continued over a large number of games will give a result on which dependence may be placed. But a little consideration will make it plain that unless the circumstances are very similar comparison between players based on their averages may be misleading; one table is much easier than another; one adversary plays an open game and gives many chances, another plays for safety and leaves no opening time after time; the size of the balls, the temperature of the room and the light, the order maintained, and a variety of circumstances will affect the average, and moreover affect it differently in different men. Hence care is necessary before assuming as a result of one or two observations that the average derived from them is trustworthy. Still it is less liable to mislead than unassisted observation, and a man who desires to play a match with another and who knows his own average is considerably helped by taking the latter’s average, even if only from one or two games. If prudent he will allow a good margin in his favour to meet the unforeseen, for few things are more difficult to explain than personal questions concerning play and that most potent factor which we call luck.

As regards the first of these, it is a matter of common experience that men play differently—indeed, very differently—with different opponents. One man’s manner, or style of play, or what not, is aggravating and irritating to another, and the feeling need not be mutual; yet the man affected will play many points behind his real game. It is no exaggeration to say that there may be three men, A, B, and C, equal players, yet a record over a great number of games might show that whereas A generally beat B and lost to C, B on his part generally defeated C. Such an anomaly is of course more likely to be found where men are acquainted with each other—indeed, without acquaintance personal peculiarities would not count for so much.

The second subject, that of luck, must be approached with much caution. One person, generally that one who is enjoying fortune’s favours, will say that in the long run, as between man and man, luck is even. Indeed, he may go further and practically deny its existence, affirming, what is no doubt true, that the laws of nature are not altered or suspended in favour of any player, and that effect follows cause irrespective of personality. Another will declare that some men are habitually lucky, and that with certain players his chances are better than with others. There is truth probably in both contentions; luck is more likely to be evenly divided between the players in a long than in a short game, yet we think no close observer would care to deny that some men seem habitually lucky at billiards, just as it is generally admitted that certain persons are good cardholders, and, again, that other men appear to be more than averagely unfortunate. The better the player the more ready is he usually to admit his obligations, but as a rule, though no less valuable, they are not so evident as the palpable fluke of the weaker performer. They consist of trifles, so to speak, which are summed up in the phrase ‘a kindly run of the balls,’ and enable the fortunate man to compile breaks and play with confidence, feeling that nothing can go wrong, whilst all the time, no evident fluke being made, he is credited with playing a fine game. His unfortunate antagonist meanwhile can do nothing right; even when by dint of cue power and science he pulls off one difficult stroke after another, each leaves a more difficult one to follow, till failure is inevitable. And this is not all nor the worst; for whereas Fortunatus on failing to score leaves the balls safe or nearly so, our unlucky friend can scarcely touch them without leaving one certainty after another; finally, when attempting some impossibility, he makes the most undeniable fluke, at which the spectators smile in appreciation, whilst he is engaged in trying to solve the problem of why a fluke even should leave nothing to follow.

Luck plays an important part in most breaks, more in those all-round and what are called ‘out in the country’ than in top-of-the-table play, and least of all in spot breaks. With professional players it affects the results of games less evidently, and probably absolutely less than with amateurs, yet even with the former its power is immense. If they fluke seldomer, they make far more of each piece of luck. For example, the writer saw a match of 1,000 up between two very fine players, one of whom conceded the other a start of 100. He gave the usual miss in baulk, and his opponent attempted to screw in off the red. He failed egregiously, but drove the red round the table into a pocket, whilst his own ball after a strange career settled down beautifully for spot play. From this opening 100 spots were made, and the game when he broke down was called love, 404. Though play on both sides was of a very high order, the lead thus obtained made the final result almost a certainty.

In dealing with breaks, one other matter must be kept in mind; it is very important, and must influence anything we have to offer in the way of advice, making that of necessity general rather than particular. This is, that what is the game for one man is not necessarily the game for another, and that no very moderate break can be twice played alike even by the same man. Still there are general principles which cannot be neglected with impunity, and attention to them will without doubt improve the chances of the most moderate performers. More experienced players adhere to them almost unconsciously, and some even are disposed to push them too far, thus occasionally sacrificing the break in attempting too minute and too perfect control over the balls. This is a rock on which many a game is wrecked, specially by players of great delicacy of touch. A freer player, who recognises the futility of attempting too great precision, but who at the same time never loses sight for an instant of the general principles which should guide him, and whilst obeying them leaves minutiæ to take care of themselves, is far more likely to steer clear of trouble and to get home first.

A few words may suffice on the subject of nerve, a quality which is intimately connected with making breaks. All men at times suffer from nervousness, and its effect is paralysing; judgment, sight, and muscular control are all affected, in some instances one might say arrested. Nerve is probably closely allied to courage, yet in many respects it is quite distinct; and very often a player at billiards who is nervous has his failure unwarrantably attributed to what is expressively though inelegantly called funk. Yet the man is no more a coward than the hundreds are who if called upon to make a speech suddenly find their tongues if not their ideas paralysed; he would face danger, moral or physical, with average intrepidity, but still under certain circumstances his play breaks down and he collapses. In so far as the question is between man and man—one person’s nerve being greater than another’s—we have nothing useful to say: one man is taller or healthier or stronger than another, so much the better for the fortunate man; but much that is set down by thoughtless spectators to fear is in reality want of confidence, which happily may be supplied by intelligent work. That, with ordinary care in living and with a resolution never to play for stakes which cannot be lost with complete equanimity, is the remedy which will be found most effectual.

Allied to this gain of confidence is the consideration of whether beginners should select for purposes of play a difficult or an easy table. The question is open to argument, and perhaps what may suit one man may not suit another. But judging from personal experience and from professional advice respecting training for a match, we should counsel commencing to learn on an easy rather than on a difficult table. Many persons have doubtless experienced the feeling that when they have made 20, 30, 40, 50, or some greater number of points, they are on the way to making a break, and therefore must be careful lest they should fail. The thought is fatal, and is quickly followed by collapse. The best prevention is to become accustomed to making such breaks, and that is most easily managed on a table where the pockets are not very difficult. As one’s powers improve so may tighter pockets be encountered, but if the same game be played the limits of divergence of tables must be small. Half an inch or less in the width of a pocket necessitates a very material alteration of the game, which need not at this moment be further particularised.

A point of interest concerning breaks which may just be mentioned is that, although the tables and method of scoring in the French game are different from ours, yet the standard attained by amateurs is, compared with professional form, much the same in each country. In a rough way professionals may be said to score from ten to fifteen times more than amateurs: that is, of course, comparing class with class in this way; an indifferent amateur occasionally makes 25 or 30 points, so a professional of not very high class may sometimes make 250 to 450, whilst the amateur who can occasionally make 100 to 150 is to his fellows what the professional is who can score from 1,000 to 2,000. A series of 100 cannons is a very fine break for a French amateur, so may 100 points be said to be a long break for an English amateur, though there are a few gentlemen of whom it may fairly be said that such a break is by no means unusual; they, however, have decidedly passed from amateur to professional form.

Now as regards playing for a break the way for instruction is cleared by the system on which practice has been recommended and strokes have been explained in previous chapters. A careful reader cannot fail to have noticed that in almost every type of stroke described, the position of the ball or balls after the stroke has been considered in a way second only to actual execution. The application of the knowledge thus acquired must chiefly be left to the intelligence of the player, who will, when several strokes present themselves, at once select either the easiest, or that which promises to leave most, according as he plays for a score or for the break. Still a few remarks may be of use to the very large class of players who cannot undertake close study of the game, and if they seem to more advanced readers self-evident and unnecessary, we must crave their indulgence and try to be brief. An important point to keep in view is as far as possible after a losing hazard to leave the balls within the parallel lines P M, Q N (see Diagram I.), and then they will usually be well in play. Very often, however, one of the balls will be left beyond these lines and virtually safe; when that is so, an opportunity should be watched for, and may sometimes be made, to bring the other ball near to it, so that by means of a cannon it may be moved from its unprofitable situation.

Thus if the result of a few strokes has been to leave ball 3 out of play near a side cushion, ball 2 being near the centre of the table and ball 1 in hand, the game is to continue the losing hazards till ball 2 is so left that the cannon on ball 3 bringing it into play is easy. Suppose ball 2 to have been left exactly on the central longitudinal line of the table, in which case it is clear that the losing hazards into the top pockets are exactly alike. Yet, if ball 3 is in the position shown, play into one pocket will result in leaving the balls together, whilst if the other pocket be thoughtlessly selected the balls will be separated. First as a typical stroke let ball 2 be placed on the centre spot; the losing hazard into either top pocket is a known practice stroke (see Chapter V. p. [164]). Place ball 1 for the half-ball hazard, and play the stroke in the usual way, when ball 2 will stop near the left middle pocket, and it is probable that either a hazard or cannon will be left. The one serious danger of the stroke is that ball 2 should run into the middle pocket and the break be lost; even then a miss in baulk would leave its player with the best of the deal; besides, the mishap can be guarded against by being careful not to play on ball 2 fuller than half-ball, and with rather less strength than is required if a middle pocket loser were desired. But if the hazard be made into the right top pocket, then ball 2, after contact with cushions 6 and 1, would stop near the right middle pocket on the opposite side of the table from ball 3.

This type of stroke or break should be played as indicated, so long as ball 2 strikes cushion 2 first; when ball 2 is so far up the table that (when the half-ball losing hazard is played) it strikes cushion 1 first, then the hazard should be made into the right top pocket. This will be at once seen by placing ball 2 on the pyramid spot, ball 3 being as before. Place ball 1 on the left spot of the Ｄ, and play the usual half-ball hazard into the right corner pocket; ball 2 will return from cushion 1 towards ball 3. Place ball 1 on the right spot of the Ｄ, and play into the left corner pocket, and ball 2 will return towards cushion 2 away from ball 3.

Diagram I.

Again, with ball 3 as before, but ball 2 below the middle pockets, with a hazard from baulk right and left, ball 1 in hand. If the right middle pocket loser be played, place ball 1 for a fine rather than for a full stroke, in order that ball 2 may be cut towards ball 3; if the left middle pocket be selected, place ball 1 for a full rather than for a fine stroke, so that ball 2 after impact with cushion 1 may return to the left side of the table, and admit of bringing ball 3 into play.

Fig. 1

An excellent rule is to play known strokes in preference to inventions of the moment. Those who have practised the examples previously recommended will know with tolerable accuracy where ball 2 is likely to stop, at any rate in the commonest sort of plain strokes, and it is well to profit by this knowledge. Thus with the balls as shown in fig. 1, where 2 is the red, and 3, 3 are positions for the opponent’s ball, it is better, at any rate for those who are not considerably advanced, to play the half-ball losing hazard into the left corner pocket, than to endeavour to secure a chance of a top of the table break by making the cannon. For the hazard is more certain to most persons than the cannon, and if the stroke is made balls 2 and 3 must almost inevitably be left in play. Similarly in the positions shown in fig. 2, although the cannons from 1 to 2 and 3 are perfectly easy, yet it is better to play the known losing hazard 1 from 2 (which is supposed to be the red on the spot) into the right corner pocket. Ball 2 will then be left over or near the right middle pocket, into which a hazard will be left, or if the stroke has been played without enough strength there may remain a cannon from which the balls should be gathered at the top of the table.

Fig. 2

With balls 2 and 3 so left that there are plain losing hazards into the middle pockets whilst at the same time, ball 1 being in hand, a cannon is as easy or easier than either hazard, there is some difference of opinion as to which stroke a moderate performer should play. In case of being within two points of game the cannon may be chosen as rather the easiest, but except in that case we recommend playing the losing hazards. For at the worst there are two easy strokes on the table against one if the cannon were played, totalling five against two. If, however, the balls were so placed that one of them was too far up the table for a plain hazard, then it is possible that the cannon might pay better.

Fig. 3

For the class of players to whom these few hints are specially offered it is, we believe, sound advice to say—do not vary your strength of play greatly, accustom yourself to a free No. 1 or No. 2, and do not ordinarily depart from it; avoid extremes of strength and the use of side, specially with winning hazards; master the plain half-ball stroke, and many other things shall be added to your score. Do not concern yourself more than you can help about your adversary’s good or your own bad luck, and do not think it incumbent to explain for the instruction of spectators (some of whom at any rate presumably know more of the game and understand it better than yourself) the reasons of your failures.

Now in addition to the players just referred to—and they form the great majority—there are those who can devote considerable time and attention to the game, who can play the spot stroke in the sense of knowing how each position should be treated, and can usually make from five to ten spots, besides having a fair general notion of the game. Such persons represent the better class of club play, and from among them at rare intervals a few appear whose form approaches that of the professional. For their special behoof little need be said; they have acquired and practise unconsciously the principles already recommended; in order to improve in the matter of breaks they must work on professional lines, and may, within the limits which their powers prescribe, follow professional play. That is to say, it is not desirable to try to prescribe a separate style of break for persons who are fairly grounded in the grammar of the game, even though they may never attain great excellence. As a rule, they owe the length of their scores, which are often considerable, to small genuine breaks connected together by providential bounty; every now and then in a score they are obliged to give sole attention to making the stroke, and what is left is therefore due to luck, which may be good or bad. The truth of this becomes apparent if they are set to a break which must be thought out and which does not often admit of adventitious aid, such as the spot stroke or a nursery of cannons. They will rarely make more than ten or twenty consecutive strokes, and how often not more than five. Nevertheless, their profit will lie in trying to follow the lead of the masters, modified, as may be required, by personal proficiency.

Preparing to play behind the back: the right way

And here, lest it may be justly said that the interests of the vast majority of billiard-players and of our readers are in danger of being somewhat neglected in favour of a small minority who alone may reasonably aspire to professional form, we have much pleasure in introducing a paper by Mr. A. H. Boyd, who is well qualified to deal with the subject, on ‘Every-day Billiards.’ From his paper, which is commended to the careful attention of readers, it may be gathered that he has successfully passed through many of the sorrows of the self-taught student of the game, and is now enabled to attain to a measure of his legitimate aspirations.