Not a few of the Norwich exhibits went on to Birmingham, where the Show opened, as usual, on the Saturday week following Norwich, that is to say, on November 25th, and there was a notable gathering of Midland agriculturists, though Lord Bradford, the President for the year, was not well enough to attend, while by a melancholy coincidence the late President, Sir Henry Wiggin, had died a few days before the Show. The most salient feature of the Birmingham Show was the unbroken success of His Majesty the King, who sent from Windsor ten entries of Herefords, Shorthorns, and Devons, and won with them four first prizes, a second, and two thirds, while in addition to this he was awarded three special prizes for the best of each breed, and the President’s prize of £25 for the best of the exhibits in the cattle classes. After all these awards had been made the contest for the three challenge cups began, being presented by Messrs. Elkington, Thorley, and Webb, for the best animal in the Show; but while the Elkington challenge up has no restriction as to breeder, it is stipulated in the conditions of the two others that they shall be given to animals which have not passed out of their breeders’ hands. This did not prove any obstacle to the King winning all three, for he makes it a rule to exhibit only home-bred stock, so that the Hereford steer, the Shorthorn heifer, and the Devon steer, which had each been proclaimed the best of its breed, were all three in the ring to compete for these valued trophies. They had to meet two or three very fine specimens of the Aberdeen Angus and Shorthorn cross-breds, exhibited by Mr. R. W. Hudson and by Mr. Learner, to which reference has already been made in connection with the Norwich Show. The judges, however, gave the preference to the King’s trio, and, after eliminating the Devon, they dwelt for a long time between the two others, their ultimate decision being in favour of the Hereford steer, which scaled nearly 18 cwt., and was preferred to the Shorthorn heifer. Thus the King won all that was possible in the cattle section at Bingley Hall.

While it was in progress the Scottish National Show was being held in Edinburgh, and the principal winner there was a heifer of the Aberdeen-Angus breed, which, as will be seen below, not only carried all before her at Edinburgh, but followed up this by winning the Championship at Islington. This heifer, bred, and still owned, by Colonel McInroy, C.B., of the Burn, Edzell, has a remarkable record, and at the age of two years nine months her live weight was just over 16 cwt., which for an Aberdeen-Angus is very good. Burn Bellona, as this heifer was called, was much admired at Edinburgh, but it was scarcely to be expected that she would secure so complete a triumph at Islington, especially with such a strong opposition to face as she had in the Norwich and Birmingham champions, to say nothing of the King’s other representatives. His Majesty, strongly as he has been represented on previous occasions, has never had so many entries at Islington as this winter, he having sent nineteen head of cattle, sheep, and pigs from Sandringham, several cattle from Windsor, two of Aberdeen-Angus from Ballater. It was generally expected that His Majesty would follow up his Bingley Hall triumph, an impression which was strengthened when it was seen that the Hereford and the Shorthorn had won the Cup as the best of their breeds. These prizes had been won before the arrival of the King, who had, at considerable personal inconvenience, arranged, upon the eve of a political crisis, to come up and see the Show. His Majesty was received on his arrival from Sandringham, shortly before three o’clock, by Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein, Lord Tredegar, the President of the Smithfield Club, Sir Walter Gilbey, Chairman of the Royal Agricultural Hall Company, the Earl of Coventry, Sir R. Nigel Kingscote, and Sir John Swinburne, and he paid a visit to the avenues in which the Devons, Herefords, and Shorthorns were placed, these being the classes in which his most successful exhibits were located. After he had inspected them, his pens of Southdown sheep, one of which had already been awarded the Championship, were brought out for the King to see, and not the least interesting feature of his visit was the presentation of some of the New Zealand football players, who had been invited to lunch by the Council of the Smithfield Club, and who could scarcely have anticipated being accorded such an honour. His Majesty’s engagements did not admit of his remaining to see the championship for cattle decided, the judges having been so much retarded by the even quality of the competitors, and had he been able to stay, he would not have had the satisfaction of witnessing a repetition of the Birmingham triumph, as the Hereford steer and the Shorthorn heifer were both beaten by Colonel McInroy’s Aberdeen-Angus heifer referred to above. Moreover, the Hereford steer, which had been placed in front of the Shorthorn heifer, had lost flesh a trifle since Birmingham, and their respective positions were reversed, the Shorthorn heifer being the “runner up.”

There was a general meeting of the Club on Tuesday, when Lord Tredegar, whose elevation in the peerage will give general satisfaction, took the chair for the last time, and will be succeeded by the Prince of Wales, whose term of office now begins, so that all bodes well for the Smithfield Club Show in 1906.

SPORT AT THE UNIVERSITIES.

Unlike wild partridges after their flight, it does not take Light and Dark Blue athletes long to settle down. Reinforced by an exceptionally smart lot of all-round Freshmen, they got to work betimes this year, and with admirable results. Rarely, if ever, have the respective prospects been so rosy in most departments of sport at this stage. And October Term, 1905, will long be remembered for the many fresh records accomplished during the preliminary and (so to speak) educational period of preparation and practice. “Wet-bobs” on both rivers have been very busy. Magdalen (Oxford) and Third Trinity (Cambridge) carried off the Coxwainless Fours, the last-named “for the sixth successive year”—a record, by the way. They won with great ease, but Magdalen only just snatched the Oxford race from New College, after a magnificent finish. Racing on the Cam for the Colquhoun Sculls was of the sensational order. In heat 1, President R. V. Powell (Eton and Third Trinity) won with great ease in the grand time of 7 min. 49 sec., or eight seconds better than R. H. Nelson’s 1902 record. D. C. Stuart (Cheltenham and Trinity Hall) qualified to meet him in the final, and the well-known L. R. C. man only succumbed by one second in the truly marvellous time of 7 min. 46 sec. This record is likely to stand for many a long year. Both the Trial Eights races were rowed on December 3rd, the Dark Blues’ at Moulsford, and the Light Blues’ at Ely. H. C. Bucknall’s crew had an easy victory on the Thames, and Lewis’s crew even an easier on the Ouse, but, individually, some promising work was shown. It is probable that Messrs. Kirby, Illingworth, Wilson, Arbuthnot (Oxford), and Cochrane, Donaldson, Lewis, Shimwell (Cambridge), will receive ample trial for the representative eights early in the new year. As several Old Blues and Seniors otherwise are also available this year, a stubborn fight is thus early anticipated for either March 31st or April 7th.

Athletes proper have been equally busy. The Oxford Freshmen’s Sports unearthed some promising talent in Messrs. Lloyd (Ramsgate), Stevens (an American Rhodes Scholar), Hallowes (a distance runner above the average), Doorly (another Rhodes Scholar, high jumper), and Darling (the Old Winchester quarter-miler). On the whole the performances were fully average, as proved later by the L.A.C. v. O.U.A.C. meeting result. The Dark Blues won by the odd event, despite the fact that they were mainly represented by junior men. As President Cornwallis will be assisted by numerous Old Blues in the spring, he ought to put a strong team against Cambridge on March 30th or April 6th. The Cambridge Freshmens’ performances in toto were hardly so good, but Messrs. Halliday (Harrow), K. G. Macleod (Fettes), Horfield (Harrow), and Just (St. Paul’s), all shone out individually. Some of the Old Blues have already been giving a foretaste of later quality. R. P. Crabbe (Corpus) created a new half-mile record for Fenner’s ground by running that distance in the splendid time of 1 min. 56½ sec. on November 15th. Other fine performances have been done with the hammer, at long-jumping and distance running. On November 29th, F. M. Edwards (Queen’s) won the Sidney College Strangers’ Three Miles Race in 14 min. 42⅖ sec., or only four seconds outside H. W. Gregson’s record. The Trinity College v. Racing Club de France International meeting at Fenner’s was won by the Light Blues by 6 events to 3. For the Collegians, Messrs. Welsh, Just, Ryle, and the Hon. G. W. Lyttelton did best. The latter’s “put” of 38 ft. 5½ in. was exceptional for this early stage of the season. Messrs. Soalhat, Molinie, and De Fleurac showed fine form for the Frenchmen, who, by the way, were not at full strength.

Two Inter-’Varsity contests have been decided before Christmas, as usual, i.e., the cross-country race at Roehampton on December 9th, and the Rugby football match at Queen’s Club three days later. As generally expected, the Cantabs excelled at hare and hounds work, winning by 23 points to 32. A. H. Pearson (Westminster and Cambridge) finished first, and in the grand time of 41 min. 11 sec., which creates another record. The previous best was A. R. Churchill’s 42 min. 17⅕ sec. last year. Although beaten, the Oxonians made a big fight of it, and F. O. Huyshe, their captain, gets his full Blue for finishing in the first three, an honour also attained by Pearson (Cambridge). The cross-country records now read: Cambridge, 16 wins; Oxford, 10 wins. Cambridge were very strong favourites for the Rugby football match, many critics anticipating a record score for them. In the result, however, Oxford put their detractors to the blush by holding their own splendidly from start to finish. The Light Blues won by 15 points (3 goals) to 13 points (2 goals and 1 try)—merely a matter of place-kicking as will be seen. It was a most interesting game, full of incident, surprise, and fluctuating fortune, in which the Oxford forwards were always in evidence. They beat their heavier Cambridge rivals fairly and squarely, and at half-back, too, the Oxonians were the smarter. The Cantab “threes” line was vastly superior, but rarely did they get the upper hand, thanks to excellent generalship by “Captain” Munro (Oxford) who, personally, was a class by himself. So far, Oxford claim 13 wins in these matches, Cambridge 12, and there have been 8 drawn games. The records of the two clubs after the match read:—

For.Against.
P.W.L.D.G.T.P.G.T.P.
Oxford1459024181793027229
Cambridge1587040232712017150

These emphatically show that records of any sort are “a slender plank to lean upon”—as Sterne has it.