the result will be such as to prevent the great expense of county matches falling too heavily on the individual players; otherwise many good men are excluded, and the county cannot do itself justice.—I am, Sir, yours faithfully, Edward Western, Hon. Secy.
Such was the start, and the first captain of the club was the Rev. Stirling Cookesley Voules, formerly a master at Rossall School, and now Rector of Rise Hull in Yorkshire. Mr Voules was a capital all-round cricketer, and was in the Oxford Eleven of 1863-64, '65, and '66. Mr Western after his retirement as honorary secretary was succeeded by Mr H. E. Murray-Anderdon, who has by his finance and assiduous duties done a great deal for Somerset cricket. After passing through many vicissitudes the County Club secured the freehold of the present ground at Taunton, and here many famous matches have been played not unassociated with brilliant achievements—to wit, the partnership for the first wicket of H. T. Hewett and Lionel Palairet, 346 against Yorkshire in 1892, which stood as a record until the present year, when Brown and Tunnicliffe in July, for Yorkshire v. Sussex, scored 378 for the first wicket; and the 424 by Mr Archie MacLaren of Lancashire, the highest individual score on record in a first-class match.
In 1890 Somersetshire defeated every county it encountered in its own rank, mainly owing to the superb batting of Mr H. T. Hewett, and the following year Somersetshire was admitted to first-class rank, when the Western county brought off a really magnificent win over Surrey in August, a victory which for enthusiasm has never been excelled on the Taunton ground. Three of the finest players in the Somersetshire Eleven of to-day are the brothers Lionel Charles Hamilton Palairet, Richard Cameron North Palairet, and Samuel Moses James Woods. The famous brothers have twice scored 100 during their partnerships in the same innings. Thus on June 3, 1895, at Lord's against Middlesex, "L. C. H." subscribed 109, and "R. C. N."
106, while on August 6, 1896, at Taunton against Sussex, "L. C. H." compiled 154, and "R. C. N." 156. Not even the brothers Grace can equal this record. Quite apart from the intrinsic value of such scores as 100 and 104 against Gloucestershire, 146, 165, and 113 against Yorkshire, 181 against Oxford University, 119 against Notts, and 147 not out, and 292 against Hampshire, Lionel Palairet is without a doubt one of the most stylish batsmen of the present day.
My friend Mr C. B. Fry has summed up the abilities of Lionel Palairet and S. M. J. Woods most emphatically when he states
