Athletics

CROSS-COUNTRY RUNNING. 103 but being merely looked on as a holiday scamper, there are no records to go by, until the " Big Side" Hare and Hounds, afterwards known as the "Crick Run," was founded at Rugby, of which we have a recordsince 1837, and which has been dealt within our athletic resume (p. 4), and there­ fore need not be further referred to here. We may skip over some thirty years—rather a long jump, itistrue, but during these three decades there is l ttle to record, the "amusement" had not yet risen to thedignity of a sport, but in thesixties it attracted more attention, and the Thames Rowing Club, which had, with the West London Rowing Club, done much to fan into flame the first spark of athleticism, as detailed in chap, i.,tried the experiment of promoting an invitation cross-country handicap on 7 Dec., 1867. There were twenty-one entries and twelve starters, who were conveyed fromPutney Station by 'bus to Wimble, don. The start was from Beverley Bridge, andthe course lay along Beverley Brook, the Dismal Swamp, Coombe Bridge, through Pelly Wady Wood, over the Ridgeway to the finish at the Windmill—distance, 2| miles. W. C. Cross, of the Thames R.C., was the winner, C. E. Rainsford, Middlesex A.C.,second, andWalter Rye scratch. The second, or" Handicap No. 2," was held on 1 Feb., 1868, starting athe Drying Grounds, Wimbledon Common, and finishing at the Well House—afterwards the champion­ ship goal; for this there weretwenty-four runners, A.King (25 sees.) winning by four feet. The third race was on 21 March; twenty-one ranin all, including anumber ofnames even now fresh in the memory of the athletes of to-day, amongst thembeing the lateH. F. Wilkinson,Civil Service, author of 11 Modern Athletics," and Jack Shearman, King's College School, then a plucky youngster,afterwards (1878) winner of the 440 yards championship.