The Harvard Cricket Club.

A casual visitor to Jarvis Field sometimes wonders at a group of men on the southern end of the field, who, with their legs guarded by curious pads, stand in front of three upright stakes at the end of a smooth gravel path, and bat the balls thrown at them by the bowler. This is the cricket eleven practising.

Cricket, a game which is such an old and such a noble one, is, sad to say, but little known in our country, and but little in vogue among our colleges. Harvard, however, by receiving a large percentage of the St. Paul's men, who are for the most part, cricketlovers, has long held a prominent place in the sport, and will contest the championship cup this year with Columbia, Haverford College, and the University of Pennsylvania.

The prospects of our eleven seem to be very bright this year; there are now twenty men trying for positions on the team, a larger number than has ever tried before. The freshmen have showed up remarkably well, about six men being out every day at practice.

The crease on Jarvis is not a particularly good one, and the club is cramped by the small ground it is compelled to occupy, it being a very poor incentive to good batting to have tennis nets before one, and seats or picket fences at each side. And the mucker who "shacks" earns every cent he gets, by scrambling over the afore-named obstacles on an average of once a minute, to collect the balls which have been driven there.

The club will play practice games continuously now with all the local clubs. A game is at present being arranged with the Longwood's for next Saturday, and other games will follow in quick succession with the Longwoods, St. Pauls, I. Zingaris and other clubs.

The championship games will take place in June; those with the University of Pennsylvania and Haverford on the 22nd and 23rd, in Philadelphia, and that with Columbia probably in New York; but no game has yet been definitely arranged.

The club ought to be highly successful this year under the supervision of such men as Messrs. Clark and Taylor, and we hope that the college which it is working so hard to honor, will aid it all it possibly can, especially with subscriptions, which certainly could not be given for a more praiseworthy purpose.