Billiards

by William Broadfoot

SOME NOTES ON ‘THE TOP-OF-THE-TABLE′ GAME

By R. H. R. Rimington-Wilson

No practice by oneself at billiards can be more fascinating than this modern development at the top of the board; it has also this advantage, that in the absence of a marker it does not often entail journeys to far distant pockets in search of a ball. Furthermore, it is an art which makes as many calls on the head as it does on the hand and eye. Many little problems have to be solved, and many a solution, sufficiently obvious when pointed out, fails to present itself after months of solitary work.

The following notes presuppose the student to be well beyond the novice stage, and well up in the ‘out in the country’ game. He must have thoroughly mastered moderately easy short winning hazards, with and without side, also slow screws off fine and full balls under the same conditions. Failure in the former is absolutely fatal, and execution in the latter essential to due control over the object ball.

It is hardly necessary to say that a good spot stroke performer starts with a great advantage, many of the strokes being spot strokes pure and simple. Conversely, it follows that a good top-of-the-table player must of necessity be a fair spot stroke performer. To anyone who is uncertain of his short winning hazards there is only one course open—to work at them till he can do them, or to leave the top-of-the-table game severely alone. Breaking down at this game is usually even more expensive than failure at the ‘spot,’ as in the latter case all three balls are not necessarily together at the top.

To a master of the art there is no question but that this method of scoring presents the easiest and quickest way of making a break. Given the requisite knowledge, the strokes are generally not very difficult, and there is the enormous advantage of being close to the work—in addition to which the player adopting this style of game is much less affected by the conditions of the table.

Nursery cannons are of course a great feature of play at the top of the table, and must be made a separate study. They are much easier than is generally supposed, and require really more knowledge than execution, especially with the push stroke allowed as in the English game. The writer has several times seen fifty consecutive cannons made with no tip on the cue, which is strong evidence in favour of not much execution being required.

The chief difficulty lies (1) in getting position; (2) in turning the corners. Getting past the middle pocket is rarely attempted, and would generally defeat the best players. It is almost impossible to illustrate these ‘nurseries’ by means of diagrams, as often a difference of a hair’s breadth in position will determine the way of playing the stroke. To anyone wishing to make a study of nursery cannon play Vignaux’s ‘Le Billard’ (Paris, Delarue), an admirable work on the French game, well illustrated with diagrams, is strongly recommended.

Now, unless the opponent has been kind, before one can play the top-of-the-table game it is obviously necessary to get there; consequently diagrams are given to show some of the readiest means of obtaining the desired position. These do not, of course, pretend in any way to exhaust the subject, but merely indicate the general idea. Each diagram is accompanied by some simple instructions for play.

It will be seen that the commonest mode of getting position is by the long cannon (Diagram II.), played either to collect the balls in the region of the spot, or—with a slight variation of position—to double the red towards the top pocket, driving the opponent’s ball spotwards.

While mentioning this cannon it will not be out of place to call attention to a very important point, one of general application, but especially valuable in this type of stroke.

It is of the first importance that after cannoning the striker’s ball (ball 1) be left in a commanding position; in fact, in such a position that a score will almost certainly be left wherever the other two balls may come to rest at the top of the table.

In a general way this is effected by two opposite methods. We will first consider a case where the cannon ball (ball 3) lies well away from a cushion, and in an uncramped position, which it would be desirable for the striker’s ball to occupy. In this case the cannon should be made dead full on ball 3. Ball 1 will be stopped comparatively dead, and will occupy the other’s place, which is what is required.

It follows from this that in the event of ball 3 being close to a cushion or in some other undesirable place, the opposite method should be employed, and the full ball cannon avoided.

There are cases, of course, when it is desirable to cannon full on a ball touching or nearly touching a cushion, with a view of utilising the kiss, but this is not the class of stroke under discussion.

The main point it is hoped the previous remarks may convey is, the great importance of leaving the striker’s ball in a commanding position. The player’s attention is called to this as one of the chief points to be considered in this class of stroke.

Reference will be made in the diagrams to this method of play.

In conclusion, one word of warning. On arrival at the top of the table do not straightway become a player with one idea—to stop there.

Remember that a little exercise ‘in the country’ is often required, and often more profitable than a risky attempt to prolong the stay ‘at home.’ The return home is by no means hopeless. Not only is there every chance of it if a man is in good form, but under any circumstances no undue hurry should be shown to get position either for the spot or for play at the top of the table. It is better to plod along quietly with long losers and ordinary strokes till a favourable conjunction of the balls presents itself than to risk failure by attempting to get immediate position by means of complicated strokes full of compensations. No doubt if they come off successfully the triumph is great, but the method is unsound, and will not bear the test of time; it will fail far oftener than the less ambitious mode, which waits a bit on fortune, instead of trying to force her favours. It is usually the comparative novice who is in the greatest hurry—‘Chi va piano va sano, e chi va sano va lontano.′

Probably the most favourable open position for commencing the top-of-the-table game is when the red is on the spot, the striker’s ball in position for an easy spot hazard, and the opponent’s ball in close proximity to the red, above or below it, and more or less in the central line of the table. We may borrow a French expression and call this position the position mère. This position in the hands of an expert is most prolific, admitting as it does of a system of play consisting ideally of alternate winning hazards and cannons, but varied by ‘nurseries’ and incidental play. The great feature of the modern game is to obtain and regain this position mère.

The diagrams that follow are given with a view of illustrating some of the commonest methods of leading up to this position and suggesting others.

In supplementing previous remarks the student’s attention is invited to the importance of being constantly on the look out for an opportunity of playing the opponent’s ball spotwards when there is a probability of the succeeding stroke being a red winner. Even in the event of a red loser being left—instead of the winner as intended—the opponent’s ball can hardly occupy a more favourable position, as the balls probably can be gathered at the top of the table in the course of a stroke or two.

It will be noticed that in the examples given the play recommended is of the simplest and most natural description, calling for a little forethought, but for little or no execution. They also in nearly every case represent the simplest way of leaving a break even to a player who is not a proficient at the top of the table.

Diagram II.
Remember to be full on ball 3 with the view of stopping your own ball.
Compare also Diagram p. [177].

Diagram III.
Play half-ball on the red, driving it towards the right-hand top pocket. Full
on ball 3 to stop your own ball and drive it spotwards. With ball 2,
the white ball, be careful not to play too hard for fear of losing it.

Diagram IV.
Half-ball on ball 2, sending it spotwards, nearly full on ball 3, which will stop
your own ball and leave it near the pyramid spot.

Diagram V.
Be careful to be fine enough on ball 2 to keep it at the top of the table; a half-ball
would bring it down the table out of play.

Diagram VI.
(I.) Make the loser off the white, driving it spotwards. (II.) Hole the red, and
get position either by the slow drop or off the top cushion, preferably the latter.

Diagram VII.
(I.) Make the loser off the white, leaving it near the spot.
(II.) As in previous diagram.

Diagram VIII.
(I.) Make the white loser gently. (II.) Hole the red as before.

Diagram IX.
Screw back on to the white, bringing the red round. With the white as object
ball, care must be taken in this class of stroke not to hole it in the top
pocket.

Fig. 4.—Play to cannon full and slowly on ball 3, leaving the red winner and\white near the spot. With balls 1 and 2 further apart, the strength would be too difficult to play as here given, and the play would be as in Diagram No. I.

Fig. 5.—Play the white spotwards and be full on the red.

The diagrams and remarks just given having led us up to the top of the table, those that follow will attempt to illustrate on broad lines some of the play when there. Niceties cannot be touched upon, and it is thought more convenient to give individual strokes of common occurrence rather than the consecutive strokes of a break.

In some cases the stroke given might be played differently, in order to collect the balls for nursery cannons; but as the diagrams are intended to illustrate the more open game, the position for nurseries will not as a rule be taken into account. In other instances the stroke given admits of different treatment from that shown, the choice being frequently determined by the player’s preference for a particular class of stroke. The chief aim of the diagrams is to suggest ideas.

Fig. 6.—Play ball 2 behind the spot, cannon full on ball 3 (the red), leaving\the winner, which when made with a stab leaves the position mère. Guard against losing the red first stroke, in which case the break would very likely be lost.

A common fault in playing at the top of the table consists in endeavouring to bring the balls together, when the better game would be to leave them farther apart. In playing to bring them together a dead cover often results, very possibly bringing a promising break to a close. Of course in many instances to bring them together would be the game, but frequently it is not, and the reader should be on his guard against the above-mentioned cause of breakdown.

Fig. 7.—Hole ball 2 (the red), and get position for a cannon either by the\screw back or stab follow.

Fig. 8.—Play a three-quarter ball on ball 2 (the red), dropping gently on\ball 3, in such a way as not to interfere with the red winner to follow.

Fig. 9.—Remember to make use of the screw back in these positions.

Fig. 10.—Drop very gently between the balls; when making the second\cannon, push through and get above them.

Fig. 11.—Practise these strengths till you are sure of them.

Fig. 12.—White spotwards and leave red winner.

Fig. 13.—Play here to cannon, and leave the red winner, barely disturbing\the white.

Fig. 14.—Play very fine on the white so as not to disturb it. Avoid the run\through in this very useful class of stroke.

Fig. 15.—Gently here to leave red winner. Forefinger bridge. Better than\trying to bring them together. This is a stroke which requires some delicacy of execution; it should be practised till the red can be left near the corner pocket with certainty.

Fig. 16.—Push dead full and slowly, bringing the balls together for nurseries.\There must be more than the diameter of a ball between ball 3 and the cushion. The stroke is often assisted by pushing ball 1 on the left side, which ensures its free escape from the squeeze between cue-tip and cushion.

Fig. 17.—Study the position with the opponent’s ball on either side of the central\line of the table. In the one case when it lies on the player’s side, hole the red by the slow drop, stopping about B. In the other case play freely off the cushion to A.

Fig. 18.—Play rather fine on both balls, and come back a little way up the\table. In playing this class of stroke, the object being to send ball 3 to the spot and leave red winner, it is often useful to employ side, which taking effect from the cushion after the cannon is made, enables the player to keep near the object ball or away from it, as desired. The stroke can hardly go wrong.

Fig. 19.—Red touching cushion 1. Play slow, kiss cannon, leaving red winner.\Not too full on the red.

Fig. 20.—In this sort of position, the game is to cannon and drop slowly and\full on the red. A screw back cannon the next stroke played with good strength will probably permit of the top of the table game being continued. The strength for the return of the object ball, whether off one or more cushions, must be constantly practised. It varies considerably on different tables, and possibly with the weight of the balls.

Fig. 21.—There is no better practice for touch than these slow screws off a fine\ball; played off too thick a ball or too hard the break is lost at once. The object, of course, is to play the red over the top pocket for the winner and cannon slowly on the white.

Fig 22.—Beware in playing this cannon of leaving the red close to the cushion,\as a cover often occurs. Keep the red several inches from the cushion, either by finer cut or bringing it back from cushion.

Fig. 23.—Fine on ball 2 (the red) to leave winner. Cannon gently on inside of\ball 3, leaving it near the spot.

Fig. 24.—Stab the red in and stop close to it, taking care, of course, not to\stop on the spot. This leaves the stroke shown in fig. 15.

Fig. 25.—Play ball 2 back to the spot, leaving red winner.

Fig. 26.—Hole the red and play to leave your own ball for the push. Get a\shade above the white if possible to enable you to keep it near the spot.

Fig. 27.—Cannon fine on both balls and get above them.

Fig. 28.—White spotwards and leave the winner.

Fig. 29.—Play the white spotwards and leave the winner.

A Nursery

Much advantage will result to the thoughtful reader from a careful study of the foregoing remarks on breaks, specially if they are read beside a table on which the strokes may be played; but the same can scarcely be said with regard to any instructions we have seen for playing a break of nursery cannons. Of all strokes on the billiard-table they lend themselves least to description, and the distances between the balls being so small and the paths travelled so very short, that illustration by diagram is at once difficult and of doubtful use. Even if the writer or draftsman thoroughly understands each stroke, it is nearly impossible to convey his knowledge to the reader. As Mr. Rimington-Wilson has remarked, the student cannot do better than consult M. Vignaux’s manual as far as book study is concerned, for the principle underlying the break is the same on French and on English tables. There are, however, practical differences, such as the pockets on an English table, which interfere with the continuation of a long series, and the size of the balls and table, all of which make the break more difficult for us than for the French. On the other hand, our rules permit the push stroke, which is not allowed by French or Americans, and this makes a long break easier for us. Hence it is necessary to endeavour to give some idea of this style of play on our tables, the more so as nurseries form a large part of most long spot-barred breaks.

The only nurseries of cannons that have as yet played an important part in the English game are those made in such a way that the three balls are kept travelling in front of the player, and seldom further than from four to eight inches from the cushion. The series was invented in America under the name of Rail play, and brought to France by Vignaux, where though quite modern it is already barred in match games. Theoretically it consists of the repetition of one simple stroke, whereby the balls are moved slightly forward, the only check to uniformity being when a corner has to be turned or a pocket passed; practically, this normal stroke, position mère, as the French call it, is seldom preserved for any length of break, and the art of continuing to score consists greatly in the skill whereby it is recovered.

A notion of the ideal path of the balls may be gathered from fig. 30, that of ball 2 being a zigzag parallel to the cushion, and that of ball 3 a straight line also parallel; 1′ 1″ 1‴, 2′ 2″ 2‴, 3′ 3″ 3‴ are the positions of the balls after each stroke. In fact the relative position of the three balls remains the same, whilst they are all moved short distances along the cushion at each stroke. Of course to attain this result absolute perfection of manipulation and of implements is necessary, and equally of course, no such conditions exist; after a few strokes the relative position is altered, even if certain requirements of the series be preserved. These mainly are, that a line passing through the centres of 2 and 3 must be inclined, not parallel to the cushion; that ball 3 (of fig. 30) shall never be nearer the cushion than a diameter (2¹⁄₁₆ in.), so that there may be room for ball 2 to be played between it and the cushion, but ball 2 must never pass ball 3; that ball 1 also should never pass ball 3; and that each should follow its rail. These are the chief considerations to be kept in mind when playing the series, the next point of importance being how to continue the break when the relative positions of the balls to each other is modified by various imperfections of play.

Fig. 30.

Fig. 31.

A few of the commonest variations will be mentioned, the object of the strokes being to recover the position mère as soon as possible.

If ball 1 be played with a little right side or screw or too full on ball 2, or a combination of these errors, it will strike ball 3 too fine and come to rest below it, as shown in fig. 31. Ball 3, by having been struck too fine, has not travelled sufficiently, whereas ball 2 may have gone too far, so that the tendency of the error here represented is that the three balls should be left in line, and the series be lost; being only recoverable by a perfect massé—a stroke so rare in the English game that it may be neglected.

In the case supposed it is clear that following the usual nomenclature ball 3 would become ball 2 for the stroke about to be played, but would again become ball 3 in the next stroke after, and confusion might result; hence, for these nursery cannons the cushion is assumed to be cushion 1, or that at the top of the table, and the balls retain their numbers 1, 2, 3, as in the position mère, fig. 30. The player is standing at cushion 6, looking towards cushion 2. First let ball 1 have its centre at A. Play a very fine ball on 3, scarcely moving it and cannoning tolerably full on 2, coming off it to the left; a gentle stroke will leave something like the original position. If ball 1 has its centre at B, and occupies the position of the dotted circle 1′, then in the English game the break is continued by a gentle push very fine on 3, and as full as practicable on 2. One of the chief difficulties of this and other similar strokes when ball 1 is decidedly below the other balls is the correct alignment of the cue. Different persons meet the difficulty in different ways; the majority, who are tall enough and not too stiff, bend over reversing the cue so that its tip points towards instead of away from themselves, the elbow being raised; whereas others lay the cue on the table in the right alignment, then standing as before at cushion 1, raise the tip, having taken hold of the cue about 6 or 8 in. further back between the thumb and forefinger, and leaving the butt on the table, bring the tip forward for a stroke or push as the situation may require. Occasionally a short, stout man is put to considerable inconvenience and disadvantage in playing these shots, and has after each cannon to walk round and play the next with the rest; at first sight the hardship may not be apparent, but if the value of keeping the eyes close to the balls in such delicate work, and the additional labour in walking round a corner of the table, and taking up the rest, say twenty times in a series of forty cannons, be considered, the serious nature of the drawback will not be denied.

Fig. 32

Fig. 33

The next position (fig. 32) is just the reverse of the preceding. Play a fine delicate stroke on 2, cannoning gently on 3 also rather fine, and getting a position similar to that shown in the previous figure. If ball 1 is nearer the cushion and nearer ball 2, the cannon must be pushed, care being taken to push fine on 2 so as not to remove it further down the table than need be, and to get below 3, that is further from the cushion, for the next stroke. The stroke left being that of fig. 31, suppose it to be played too fine on ball 3, getting so full on ball 2, that it is left behind as in fig. 33. The stroke as shown is a screw a little further back, or less, than a right angle; but if played plain, ball 2 will return from the cushion at right angles, or perhaps to the left of the perpendicular, and there is much probability of ball 1 remaining between the other two and the break being lost. Whereas if ball 1 be played with left side, ball 2 will come off the cushion to the right and rejoin 3. If by error ball 1 be played with right side, ball 2 will return from the cushion straighter or more to the left. This use of side is very pretty, and its effect seems to point to the transmission of rotation to the second ball, reversed of course, as it should be, according to the theory put forward in Chapter VI.

Fig. 34

Fig. 35

Again, if instead of being left behind, ball 2 is rather too far forward, by playing ball 1 with right side and gentle screw ball 2 will be kept back and the relative position recovered. In playing this, however, a slight error may result in leaving the balls as shown (fig. 35), from which position the break should be continued by a kiss; ball 1 played just right of the centre of ball 2 should be kissed back on ball 3 fine.

Fig. 36

These kiss strokes should be practised till they can be done with great exactness. Usually the player being afraid of missing the cannon causes ball 1 to strike ball 3 too full, and thus drives it down the table, very likely so as to lose the break. Another type of stroke which easily results from nursery play is that wherein ball 2 has got too far forward and is left very close to ball 3. If ball 1 is favourably placed, a series of fine cannons may be played irrespective of the cushion, the secret being not to be too fine on the third or cannon ball, and so to avoid the danger of leaving all three balls in a straight line. In trying to continue cushion nurseries from a position such as is shown (fig. 36), the point to bear in mind is that ball 3 is too far back, relatively; therefore, it must be struck as full as possible without sending it cushion-wards, cannoning gently on ball 2. If 1 should occupy the position 1′, a push on the left of ball 1 for its support fine on ball 3, will result in the latter escaping off ball 2 in the proper direction, whilst ball 1 will cannon on ball 2, and by means of a few careful strokes the position mère may be recovered.

Fig. 37

Fig. 38

In playing cushion nurseries even after sufficient confidence is attained, and series of twenty or thirty cannons are not infrequently made, great trouble is found in continuing the break round a corner of the table. That the difficulty is real is apparent from watching professional play under the circumstances; very often it will be seen that when the balls have been worked into a corner, the player will seize the first opportunity of so striking his adversary’s ball as to leave it near the spot, and cannoning on the red with the view of holing it next stroke. In other words, the nursery is abandoned and a favourable position for the top-of-the-table play is selected. This, we venture to think—for to write dogmatically on such a matter is foolish—is generally sound play; it makes use of the pocket, which is a serious obstacle to continuing cannons. Nevertheless, by careful watching and sometimes by slight modification of play, the opportunity of turning the corner may be recognised or created. Two examples are shown in the following figures of positions, in which it is worth while to try to continue cannons; the balls should not be allowed to get too near the pocket before trying the strokes, otherwise success is endangered by the shoulders. The sketch, which has been made without the advantage of a table on which the balls might be set up, is therefore, no doubt, faulty, but may serve to convey the desired idea. The position shown is a modification of the normal one, and the player’s object is to cause ball 2 to strike cushions 1 and 2 clear of the shoulders of the pocket, with such strength as to leave that ball near cushion 2. Further, he must so cannon on ball 3 as to drive it towards the path of ball 2, if possible slightly ahead of it, when either the position mère, or one not differing very widely from it, will be left, and the series may be continued along cushion 2 towards the middle pocket. Play ball 1 a screw stroke about three-quarters right on ball 2, whence it will return on ball 3, moving it slightly towards cushion 2 and away from cushion 1. The relative positions of the balls to each other after a well-played stroke is roughly indicated at 1′ 2′ 3′; their actual position on the board cannot be shown, as it would confuse the original drawing.

Fig. 39

Fig. 39 shows another type of stroke for turning the corner. In this case ball 1 must be played with a little right side, the measure of which is the quantity of ball 2 taken so as to make it travel as desired. If fuller, more right side is required; if finer, less.

Fig. 40

A person practising these strokes will be able to interpolate many variations between the screw and the follow as here exemplified, and perhaps the best way to make good use of these types is to set up the balls in normal position for cushion nurseries within a few inches of the corner pocket, and then try in one or two strokes to leave a variety of one or other of the examples. In this way the eye becomes accustomed when playing a series to gauge the distance from the pocket and to seize a favourable opportunity for passing it.

Another way of turning the corner is shown in fig. 40, whereby as will be seen use is made of the jaws of the pocket to bring ball 2 down the table into the desired position. The stroke is so simple as not to need detailed description; it may be set up by sight, and a few attempts will reveal what compensations should be applied to insure to ball 2 the required speed and to slow ball 1, so that it may be left above the other balls. This diagram was sent by Mr. W. J. Peall, who, moreover, has kindly read these remarks on ‘cushion nurseries,’ and expressed his approval of them.

It is right that advice on the subject of cannon play should be given with caution and hesitation, for the science is far from understood even by our best players, and further knowledge may put our present ideas into the background, if not show some of them to have been founded on misapprehension. Hence but little more will be added on this subject, and that must be general. Avoid excessive use of the push stroke; it is commonly employed when quite unnecessary, and is more likely to result in leaving the balls touching than when an ordinary stroke is used. Next, play freely rather than over gently, and if possible under the close supervision of a first-rate performer, and one who can and will detect every small imperfection. Replace the balls after failure, and repeat the stroke till certainty is acquired; an hour’s practice daily is about what is required to keep up the necessary touch after the various positions have been mastered, but recollect that too much practice at close cannons is apt to cramp and destroy the freedom needed for general play.

These notes on nurseries may be appropriately closed by the following remarks kindly furnished by Mr. Rimington-Wilson, who, it is permissible to observe, can play such cannons with a speed and certainty as greatly to be envied as they are difficult of attainment, and in a style professional rather than amateur.

‘Nursery cannon play in England is still in its infancy, and the writer cannot help expressing a wish that it may never see full maturity. The possibilities of this style of game were well illustrated by the visit of the American champion Ives to this country, when he played a match with Roberts under unusual conditions.

‘It is true that Ives made his gigantic break in a way that would be impossible with the ordinary sized balls and pockets—viz.: by jamming the balls, which were an intermediate size between the American and English, in the angle of a table with very tight pockets. While maintaining the position in which he made his break, the balls were not jammed in the jaws of the pocket as they may be in the English game, but rather in the angle of the corner where, owing to the large balls and small pockets, there was very little danger of losing a ball. In fact, the break was played very much as it would be on an American table with no pockets.

Playing behind the back

‘Independently of this break Ives’s cannon play was very superior to anything of the kind in this country, and the writer has seen him in practice make a break between 600 and 700 without ever getting the balls angled, and this with the push stroke barred. Of course the massé stroke came into play, but not very frequently.

‘From the spectators’ point of view long series of nursery cannons soon become wearisome, perhaps even more so than the spot stroke. In many instances also a large proportion of those present are unable to see the play at all, as the body of the striker blocks their view. So wearisome and monotonous did the breaks become in the French and American game that it was found necessary to legislate against them, and in first-class play a line is now usually drawn fourteen inches from the cushions and parallel with them, inside which cannons, except under certain restrictions, are barred. It is not improbable that in the future some sort of restriction will have to be imposed in our game. Gate-money, however, with professionals settles these questions very satisfactorily; amateurs may be allowed to do as they please.’

CHAPTER XI
THE CHAMPIONSHIP AND THE THREE-INCH POCKET TABLE

Hitherto what has been stated about the game of billiards in this volume, whether generally or in the description of strokes recommended for practice, has been on the supposition that the table was of the ordinary make, the pockets being either those known as the standard of the Billiard Association, or of those patterns used by the best makers, both sorts being 3⅝ in. wide at the fall. As the game is played at the end of the nineteenth century this size of pocket is sufficiently difficult for amateurs as a class; and spectators of public play, by whose patronage professional players are mainly supported, have so greatly preferred the freer game and longer breaks possible with it, that the three-inch pocket or championship table may almost be said to have become obsolete. We believe, however, that this disappearance is merely temporary, due to a combination of circumstances which may not continue for long, and may be longer still in recurring. Further, if it was absolutely necessary when the conditions were drawn up to have what was called the championship of the game decided on a table different from that on which it is usually played—an anomaly greatly to be regretted—then the simple tightening of pockets was a device open to as little objection as any other. It is certainly preferable to barring this stroke or that on an ordinary table, an arrangement in which there may always be the suspicion that limitation is made in favour of a certain player or of a certain class of players, which is of itself sufficient condemnation. Whereas when the same result is obtained by making the pockets more difficult, that objection cannot be urged with equal force; the table is the same for all, and if a man can bring any stroke to such perfection that he can continue his break to great length, so much the better for him; he will remain champion till another arises who can go on longer.

A Difficult Stroke.

No stroke admissible in the ordinary game should be barred when the championship is played for, because the champion ought to be the greatest master of all lawful strokes; and if hazards are found to predominate unduly the remedy lies in tightening the pockets. But before the next game for the championship is played, cannons and not hazards bid fair to exercise too great an influence. If that match were played to-morrow in this year 1896 on a three-inch pocket table, it is safe to predict that victory would be gained by the man who was best at cushion nursery cannons; of this there is no question, ‘no possible shadow of doubt.’ What man in his senses would court constant failure at hazards when success with cannons was within his grasp? Here, therefore, we are again face to face with a question similar to that which arose on the ordinary table when the spot stroke was brought to perfection; with this difference, that whereas the strokes in a spot break are each genuine, easily seen and watched by the referee and spectators, and therefore fair, in a break of cushion nursery cannons the reverse is more than probable. Made by trick or sleight of hand rather than by an open stroke, with balls so close that even when the break is stopped and the referee summoned he cannot readily decide whether they touch or not, and when promptly continued remonstrance or complaint is too late to be of use, with the push stroke permitted, such a break is open to objections much graver than any ever urged against spot play. The scoring is faster far than is possible with the spot stroke, and play is often obscured for many spectators by the performer himself. In this case as in that of hazards no lawful stroke should be barred; it would seem preferable to draw lines round the table parallel to and at a fixed distance from the cushions, and to make rules somewhat similar to those in force for the Partie Américaine dite du Cadre. In this game, when balls 2 and 3 are in the same compartment, that is in one of the rectangular spaces between the lines and the cushions, and therefore are not separated by a line, only one cannon is allowed without making at least one of the balls pass the boundary. There is, in fact, no great difficulty in making rules to defeat tricks which are favoured by obscurity; no cannon otherwise lawful need be barred, and as the breaks must be slightly slower time is afforded for inspection, and if necessary for appeal to the referee. Moreover, the cannon game would be improved, for greater skill is required to continue the series when one ball at least must be some distance from the cushion, and therefore this suggestion has the merit of inciting players to greater exercise of skill in every lawful stroke, whereas the policy of barring certain strokes tends to their neglect and to a corresponding loss of execution.

The objections to having one pattern of table for ordinary play and another for championship matches are obvious, for the games being different the champion may not be the best player on the easier table, even when the spot stroke is barred; and to style a man champion of one game because he has beaten all comers at another is scarcely logical; but the remedy is not so apparent. Two solutions present themselves, only to be dismissed on consideration. First, that amateurs should adopt the three-inch pocket table, in which case there would be one game and the champion would ordinarily be the best player of that game; next, that the championship should be decided on an ordinary table and the three-inch pocket be abandoned. In both cases the difficulties seem insuperable; the game on the 3⅝-inch pocket or ordinary table is the better game for the vast majority of persons, if not absolutely the better game of the two, because of its greater variety, in that hazards play their part more equally with cannons, and because scoring is faster and a freer and better style of play is possible. Indeed, if the three-inch pocket table were introduced to clubs and public rooms, it would probably be found desirable to reduce the length of the game from one hundred to fifty points, whilst maintaining or only slightly reducing existing charges, because inferior players who form the majority would score so slowly. Again, if the championship matches were played on an ordinary table, success would depend mainly on mastery of the spot stroke, which is held to be undesirable. There is, of course, another alternative—to have a table with smaller pockets than the ordinary but larger than those of the championship table, and perhaps also to increase the size of the balls. It is not safe to be too sure of anything, but at present, so far as is known, such an arrangement has not been tried—save perhaps when Roberts played Ives, and the result was not encouraging; it may, therefore, be neglected on this occasion.

In short, the difference between professional and amateur play must remain so great that in spite of disadvantages the arrangement which seems open to fewest objections is to have two tables, an ordinary one for amateurs and for exhibition games, and another with three-inch pockets for the championship. The latter, with the lines already recommended for regulating cannon play, or with the push stroke considered to be foul, would form an excellent field whereon the battles of professionals might be decided.

But even supposing the question of the table to be settled, there is another formidable difficulty in the way of reviving satisfactory matches—namely, how to insure that the game is genuine and that each competitor is trying to win. The great games of old days were for the most part honest, the stakes were real, the rivalry of competitors was evident, and these facts added greatly to their attraction. Men paid a guinea gladly enough to see a game of that sort in comfort who would hesitate to pay five or ten shillings to see a mere exhibition game, although the play in the latter is certain to be more brilliant because it is unfettered by caution. Two causes are apt to have a malign influence on the genuineness of the game; one, that gate-money is often of more importance than the stake, and the other we may call the weakness of human nature. Both are somewhat thorny matters to deal with, the latter specially so; but those who know most will most readily admit the difficulty. In time there is reason to hope for improvement; the change of status and character of professional players during the last forty years amply justifies this; but, as in other ways of life, some men are more worthy of confidence than others, and that course in arranging for a competition is preferable which shall tend to strengthen the idea that honesty is the best policy. To help this the influence of gate-money should be reduced to a minimum, possibly by making the game short enough to be completed in one day if not at one meeting. The stakes should be substantial, and it is worth considering whether other advantages could be added to make the position of champion more attractive. But its reward must lie chiefly in the honour and distinction it confers rather than in money, and therefore no opportunity should be lost of adding to the dignity and consideration of the post; whilst even as regards remuneration it must have value, for its possessor will command the highest rates of payment which obtain in his profession.

These remarks concerning the championship are agreed to by Mr. Rimington-Wilson and by others who have studied the subject; they may not improbably before long have to be considered by those entrusted with drawing up conditions for the next match, which in the ordinary course of things is unlikely to be greatly delayed. For if youth does not advance with the speed which might be expected, age will inevitably tell and lessen the distance between first and second, till a combat on even terms is waged, or the elder retires and allows younger rivals to contest for the position.

Persons interested in the subject of this chapter will welcome the following memorandum kindly furnished by Mr. Russell D. Walker, the well-known sportsman, who, amongst other accomplishments, is a player of much merit on a championship table, although in places it repeats what has been already told in other parts of this book.