operly in clothes, and
they get themselves up for a match much the same as we should if we were
going swimming."

"Why, last time we played," continued the Model Man, "only one man had
anything you could fairly call raiment. He came on to the pitch with
what he regarded as a pair of cocoanut-fibre trousers, and his team made
him captain upon the strength of them."

I said:

"If they prefer to play undraped, I don't see that it much matters to
us."

"Not personally, but a mixed audience cannot be expected to stand it,"
replied the Treasure. "We play cricket in St. Thomas upon a very public
and central piece of ground, and, at one time, everybody used to turn
out and watch the matches; but now, owing to the barbarous reasons I
have given you, cricket has fallen into disrepute. Of course, to see an
eleven taking the field in a state of nature makes dead against
civilisation and human progress."

Finally, the Model Man wrote to say that it would give him great
pleasure to bring a team to the ground upon the following morning if the
local talent promised to wear clothes. "My eleven will absolutely refuse
to play against anybody in the nude," he wound up.

An hour later a negro in a boat paddled out to us with an answer. He
hailed us, and we asked him if his people would accept our terms.

"Yes, massa, we all put fings on, but we much sooner play cricket
widdout."

[Illustration: "AS IF THEY WERE GOING IN SWIMMING."]

"Nonsense," shouted back the Model Man. "Cricket is a civilised game,
and must be followed in a civilised way, or not at all. We will be on
the ground at ten o'clock."

The messenger rowed off, and a great discussion began as to the
constitution of our team. Everybody wanted to go to the match, and sit
in the shade and look on and criticise, but no one much cared about
playing. The Captain of the "Rhine" absolutely refused, to begin with.
He said:

"I would do anything for my officers--anything in reason; but cricket is
out of the question. I shall, however, be on the ground with some
ladies. A good appreciative audience is everything in these cases.
Moreover, I will umpire if the tide turns against us."

The Treasure only consented to play after much pressure. He said:

"You know what the wicket is like; it's simply mountainous, and black
men have no control over their bowling. For you medium-sized chaps it
may be comparatively safe, but bowling at me is like bowling at a
haystack--you cannot