as a general cricketer, he was esteemed to possess an excellent judgement of the game, and in questions that were frequently mooted his opinion would be appealed to.
The Beldhams, George and William, come next in succession, brothers, and both farmers. They also, with Wells, came from Farnham. George was what would be called a fine player; a good batter, and generally competent to fill the different posts in the game; but, as he attended the club a few times only during my stay in it, I am unable to discriminate or speak pointedly to his merits. Upon turning, however, to his brother William, we come to the finest batter of his own, or perhaps of any age. William Beldham was a close-set, active man, standing about five feet eight inches and a half. He had lightcoloured hair, a fair complexion, and handsome as well as intelligent features. We used to call him 'Silver Billy'. No one within my recollection could stop a ball better, or make more brilliant hits all over the ground. Wherever the ball was bowled, there she was hit away, and in the most severe, venomous style. Besides this, he was so remarkably safe a player; he was safer than the Bank, for no mortal ever thought of doubting Beldham's stability. He received his instructions from a gingerbread baker at Farnham, of the name of Harry Hall. I once played against Hall, and found him a very fair hand, yet nothing remarkable; he knew the principles of the game, yet, like many of inferior merit in performance, he made nevertheless an excellent tutor. He was a slow bowler, and a pretty good one. He had a peculiar habit of bringing his hand from behind his back immediately previous to his delivering the ball—a trick no doubt perplexing enough to an inexperienced batter. In his peripatetic lectures to the
